Multiple Bioactivities of Traditional Medicinal Herbs for Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases

The pathological effects of neurodegenerative diseases result from altered activity in multiple pathways. [...]new pharmacological therapeutic strategies, using natural compounds or medicinal herbal extracts comprising multiple compounds, are specifically designed to act on multiple neural and biochemical targets. Lim et al. reported the effect and possible mechanism of Jodeungsan (JDS), a traditional herbal formula, on lipopolysaccharide or H2O2-induced neurotoxicity in hippocampal neurons and microglia and suggested that JDS extracts might suppress tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6 production, supporting the antineuroinflammatory activity. Lee et al. demonstrated the antioxidative effects of α-pinene on scopolamine-induced learning and memory impairments in C57BL/6 mice and suggested that the effects may be due to elevated expression of choline acetyltransferase and antioxidant enzymes, mediated via activation of the NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) pathway. [...]α-pinene may be a candidate for the treatment of AD.