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Till date, drugs that have been used to manage Parkinson’s disease (PD) have only shown symptomatic relief with several adverse effects besides their inability to prevent neurodegeneration. Neuroinflammation plays an important role in the advancement of PD and can be targeted for its effective treatment. Researchers have suggested that herbal plants exhibiting the anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties are therefore beneficial to human health. Conventionally, Mucuna pruriens (Mp) seeds are used for maintaining male virility in India. Reportedly, Mp is used as a rejuvenator drug having neuroprotective property. Our study aimed to investigate effects of aqueous extract of Mp (100 mg/kgbwt) on neuroinflammation, orally administered to mice intoxicated with 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) as well as the molecular mechanism involved in the progression of PD. In this study, we have observed significant behavioral abnormalities beside decreased antioxidant defense in MPTP intoxicated mice. We have also observed significant increase in inflammatory parameters like Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein, Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase, Intercellular Cell Adhesion Molecule, and Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha in substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) of parkinsonian mice, while Mp treatment has notably reduced these inflammatory parameters. Mp also inhibited the MPTP induced activation of NF-κB and promoted pAkt1 activity which further prevented the apoptosis of the dopaminergic neurons. Moreover, Mp exhibited significant antioxidant defense by inhibiting the lipid peroxidation and nitrite level, and by improving catalase activity and enhancing GSH level in nigrostriatal region of mouse brain. Mp also recovered the behavioral abnormalities in MPTP treated mice. Additionally, Mp treatment considerably increased the immunoreactivity of Tyrosine Hydroxylase and Dopamine Transporter in SNpc of parkinsonian mice. Our high performance liquid chromatography analysis of the Mp seed extract have shown L-DOPA, gallic acid, phytic acid, quercetin, and catechin equivalents as the major components which might cause neuroprotection in PD mice. Our result suggested that Mp extract treatment containing L-DOPA and a mixture of rich novel phytochemicals significantly alleviates the MPTP induced neurotoxicity by NF-κB and pAkt pathway. The findings observed thereby indicate that Mp extract have suggestively ameliorated MPTP induced neuroinflammation, restored the biochemical and behavioral abnormalities in PD mouse and thus provided a scientific basis for its traditional claim.

Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress characterize major factors involved in the activation of complex processes corresponding to apoptosis-mediated neuronal senescence of dopaminergic neurons (DA) in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Here, we evaluated the molecular mechanisms participating in the treatment of a 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydopyridine- (MPTP-) intoxicated PD mouse model in response to chlorogenic acid (CGA). The results indicate that CGA treatment significantly improved the motor coordination of the MPTP-intoxicated mice. CGA also alleviated the fall in activity of mitochondrial complexes I, IV, and V in accordance with ameliorating the level of superoxide dismutase and mitochondrial glutathione in the midbrain of MPTP-induced mice. CGA inhibited the activation of proapoptotic proteins including Bax and caspase-3, while elevating the expression of antiapoptotic protein like Bcl-2 consequently preventing the MPTP-mediated apoptotic cascade. The study also revealed the improved phosphorylation state of Akt, ERK1/2, and GSK3β which was downregulated as an effect of MPTP toxicity. Our findings signify that CGA may possess pharmacological properties and contribute to neuroprotection against MPTP induced toxicity in a PD mouse model associated with phosphorylation of GSK3β via activating Akt/ERK signalling in the mitochondrial intrinsic apoptotic pathway. Thus, CGA treatment may arise as a potential therapeutic candidate for mitochondrial-mediated apoptotic senescence of DA neurons in PD.

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Oxidative stress and neuroinflammation play a key role in dopaminergic (DA) neuronal degeneration, which results in the hindrance of normal ongoing biological processes in the case of Parkinson’s disease. As shown in several studies, on 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) administration, different behavioral parameters have suggested motor impairment and damage of antioxidant defence. Thus, some specific biological molecules found in medicinal plants can be used to inhibit the DA neuronal degeneration through their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. With this objective, we studied chlorogenic acid (CGA), a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound, for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in MPTP-intoxicated mice. We observed significant reoccurrence of motor coordination and antioxidant defence on CGA supplementation, which has been in contrast with MPTP-injected mice. Moreover, in the case of CGA-treated mice, the enhanced expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) within the nigrostriatal region has supported its beneficial effect. The activation of glial cells and oxidative stress levels were also estimated using inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactivity within substantia nigra (SN) and striatum of MPTP-injected mice. Administration of CGA has prevented the neuroinflammation in SN by regulating the nuclear factor-κB expression in the MPTP-induced group. The significant release of certain pro-inflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin (IL)-1β has also been inhibited by CGA with the enhanced expression of anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10. Moreover, reduced GFAP staining within the nigrostriatal region has supported the fact that CGA has significantly helped in the attenuation of astrocyte activation. Hence, our study has shown that CGA supplementation shows its therapeutic ability by reducing the oxidative stress and neuroinflammation in MPTP-intoxicated mice.

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