Safflower leaf ameliorates cognitive impairment through moderating excessive astrocyte activation in APP/PS1 mice

• Published in: Food & function 2021-11, Vol.12 (22), p.1174-11716
• Main Authors: Zhang, Tiantian, Zhang, Shuangxi, Peng, Yunhua, Wang, Yongyao, Gao, Peipei, Hu, Yachong, Wang, Zhen, Noda, Mami, Hiramatsu, Midori, Liu, Jiankang, Long, Jiangang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alzheimer Disease - metabolism; Alzheimer's disease; Animals; Astrocytes - drug effects; Carthamus tinctorius; Carthamus tinctorius - chemistry; Cognition - drug effects; Cognitive ability; Cognitive Dysfunction - metabolism; Dementia disorders; Diet; Disease Models, Animal; Female; Impairment; Inflammation; Leaves; Mice; Mice, Transgenic; Morris Water Maze Test - drug effects; Neurodegenerative diseases; Neurofibrillary tangles; Neuroprotection; Oral administration; Oxidative stress; Oxidative Stress - drug effects; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plant Leaves - chemistry; Presenilin 1; Senile plaques; Transgenic mice; β-Amyloid
• ISSN: 2042-6496; 2042-650X
• DOI: 10.1039/d1fo01755a

In addition to beta-amyloid (Aβ) plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, Alzheimer's disease (AD) is typically triggered or accompanied by abnormal inflammation, oxidative stress and astrocyte activation. Safflower ( Carthamus tinctorius L.) leaf, featuring functional ingredients, is a commonly consumed leafy vegetable. Whether and how dietary safflower leaf powder (SLP) ameliorates cognitive function in an AD mouse model has remained minimally explored. Therefore, we orally administered SLP to APP/PS1 transgenic mice to explore the neuroprotective effects of SLP in preventing AD progression. We found that SLP markedly improved cognitive impairment in APP/PS1 mice, as indicated by the water maze test. We further demonstrated that SLP treatment ameliorated inflammation, oxidative stress and excessive astrocyte activation. Further investigation indicated that SLP decreased the Aβ burden in APP/PS1 mice by mediating excessive astrocyte activation. Our study suggests that safflower leaf is possibly a promising, cognitively beneficial food for preventing and alleviating AD-related dementia. Safflower leaf could protect the cognitive function in APP/PS1 mice possiblely through inhibiting excessive astrocyte activation, which provides a cognitively beneficial food for preventing and alleviating AD-related dementia.