Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized, among others, by abnormally low levels of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the brain. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) plays a significant role in the process through hydrolysis of the acetylcholine neurotransmitter. Currently, the main method for treatment of AD at a symptomatic stage entails administration of AChE inhibitors to patients diagnosed with the disease. However, it is also possible to take certain steps to treat AD by delivering inhibitors with food. There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that tea (Camellia sinensis) shows numerous beneficial properties, including improving cognitive abilities. This is particularly important in the case of AD patients. The study assessed the impact of brewing conditions on the inhibition of AChE activity observed in tea extracts (black, white, or fruit). Our study revealed that neither temperature nor time of brewing influenced the respective infusions’ ability to inhibit the activity of AChE. Anticholinesterase activity was observed in most of the different types of tea that were analyzed, with the highest rate of inhibition (30.46%–48.54%) evidenced in the Biofix Tea Wild Strawberry brand. The results of our research show that tea may be used as a rich source of cholinesterase inhibitors which play a significant role in AD treatment.
Highlights
Dementia is currently one of the fastest spreading diseases with an estimated 36 million people suffering worldwide
Demonstrated that green and black tea extracts can improve the efficiency of the cholinergic system, which may substantially contribute to alleviating the effects of the cholinergic deficit observed in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and other age-related memory disorders
In the course of an almost six-year study conducted on a group of patients who were 65 years old or older, Tomata et al [20] observed that drinking green tea was significantly correlated with a lowered risk of dementia
Summary
Dementia is currently one of the fastest spreading diseases with an estimated 36 million people suffering worldwide. The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease (AD) [1]. Studies indicate that by 2050, the number of affected patients may reach 115 million, which constitutes a nearly threefold increase relative to the disease’s prevalence in the present decade [2]. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butylcholinesterase (BChE) hydrolyze ACh in the synaptic cleft [5,6], and one of the possible therapeutic strategies for symptomatic treatment entails the use of AChE inhibitors [7,8]. According to the cholinergic hypothesis, AChE inhibitors lead to an increase in the ACh concentration in the brain and improvement of AD patients’ cognitive functions [9,10]
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