Open Access

Ginsenoside Rg1 improves cognitive capability and affects the microbiota of large intestine of tree shrew model for Alzheimer's disease

  • Authors:
    • Yuqian Guo
    • Limei Wang
    • Jiangli Lu
    • Jianlin Jiao
    • Yi Yang
    • Hongbin Zhao
    • Zhang Liang
    • Hong Zheng
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: February 22, 2021     https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2021.11931
  • Article Number: 291
  • Copyright: © Guo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Ginsenoside Rg1 (Rg1) is traditional Chinese medicine with neuroprotective activity. Previous studies have demonstrated that Rg1 improves Alzheimer's disease (AD) and alters gut microbiology, but its mechanism remains to be elucidated, and thus far, its use in the treatment of AD has not been satisfactory. The present study investigated the improvement effects of Rg1 and its association with the microbiota of the large intestine. Following treatment with Rg1 in AD tree shrews, the treatment group demonstrated significantly shorter escape latency and crossed a platform more frequently in a water maze test. Western blotting demonstrated that Rg1 inhibited the expression of β-secretase 1, while increasing microtubule-associated protein 2 and Fox-3 in the hippocampus. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that Rg1 decreased the expression of amyloid β, tau phosphorylated at serine 404 and pro-apoptotic factor Bax, while increasing the expression of Bcl-2 in the hippocampus and cortex. High throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA demonstrated that Rg1 altered the microbiota abundance of the large intestine. In conclusion, Rg1 affected the expression of apoptosis proteins, possessed a neuroprotective effect and may have a close association with the microbiota of large intestine by significantly reducing the abundance of Bacteroidetes and increasing the energy requirement of tree shrews.
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April-2021
Volume 23 Issue 4

Print ISSN: 1791-2997
Online ISSN:1791-3004

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Spandidos Publications style
Guo Y, Wang L, Lu J, Jiao J, Yang Y, Zhao H, Liang Z and Zheng H: Ginsenoside Rg1 improves cognitive capability and affects the microbiota of large intestine of tree shrew model for Alzheimer's disease. Mol Med Rep 23: 291, 2021.
APA
Guo, Y., Wang, L., Lu, J., Jiao, J., Yang, Y., Zhao, H. ... Zheng, H. (2021). Ginsenoside Rg1 improves cognitive capability and affects the microbiota of large intestine of tree shrew model for Alzheimer's disease. Molecular Medicine Reports, 23, 291. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2021.11931
MLA
Guo, Y., Wang, L., Lu, J., Jiao, J., Yang, Y., Zhao, H., Liang, Z., Zheng, H."Ginsenoside Rg1 improves cognitive capability and affects the microbiota of large intestine of tree shrew model for Alzheimer's disease". Molecular Medicine Reports 23.4 (2021): 291.
Chicago
Guo, Y., Wang, L., Lu, J., Jiao, J., Yang, Y., Zhao, H., Liang, Z., Zheng, H."Ginsenoside Rg1 improves cognitive capability and affects the microbiota of large intestine of tree shrew model for Alzheimer's disease". Molecular Medicine Reports 23, no. 4 (2021): 291. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2021.11931