Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Jul 28;27(15):4839.
doi: 10.3390/molecules27154839.

Advances on Therapeutic Strategies for Alzheimer's Disease: From Medicinal Plant to Nanotechnology

Nasser A Hassan  1   2 , Asma K Alshamari  3 , Allam A Hassan  4   5 , Mohamed G Elharrif  6 , Abdullah M Alhajri  1 , Mohammed Sattam  1 , Reham R Khattab  2
Affiliations
Review

Advances on Therapeutic Strategies for Alzheimer's Disease: From Medicinal Plant to Nanotechnology

Nasser A Hassan et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic dysfunction of neurons in the brain leading to dementia. It is characterized by gradual mental failure, abnormal cognitive functioning, personality changes, diminished verbal fluency, and speech impairment. It is caused by neuronal injury in the cerebral cortex and hippocampal area of the brain. The number of individuals with AD is growing at a quick rate. The pathology behind AD is the progress of intraneuronal fibrillary tangles, accumulation of amyloid plaque, loss of cholinergic neurons, and decrease in choline acetyltransferase. Unfortunately, AD cannot be cured, but its progression can be delayed. Various FDA-approved inhibitors of cholinesterase enzyme such as rivastigmine, galantamine, donepezil, and NDMA receptor inhibitors (memantine), are available to manage the symptoms of AD. An exhaustive literature survey was carried out using SciFinder's reports from Alzheimer's Association, PubMed, and Clinical Trials.org. The literature was explored thoroughly to obtain information on the various available strategies to prevent AD. In the context of the present scenario, several strategies are being tried including the clinical trials for the treatment of AD. We have discussed pathophysiology, various targets, FDA-approved drugs, and various drugs in clinical trials against AD. The goal of this study is to shed light on current developments and treatment options, utilizing phytopharmaceuticals, nanomedicines, nutraceuticals, and gene therapy.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; gene therapy; nanomedicines; neurofibrillary tangles; nutraceuticals; pathophysiology; phytopharmaceuticals.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest, financial or otherwise.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The physiological structure of the brain and neurons in (a) healthy brain and (b) Alzheimer’s disease (AD) brain.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Chemical structures of FDA-approved anti-AD drugs.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Phases of Alzheimer’s disease.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Pl Factors influencing the risk of AD development.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Hypothesis/Theories for the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease.
Figure 6
Figure 6
(a) Nutraceuticals used in the treatment of AD; (b) Structures of Nutraceuticals.
Figure 7
Figure 7
AChE inhibitors for the treatment of AD along with NDMA antagonist memantine.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Different nanotechnology approaches for the treatment of AD.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Van Cauwenberghe C., Van Broeckhoven C., Sleegers K. The genetic landscape of Alzheimer disease: Clinical implications and perspectives. Genet. Med. 2016;18:421–430. doi: 10.1038/gim.2015.117. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Prasansuklab A., Tencomnao T. Amyloidosis in Alzheimer’s disease: The Toxicity of Amyloid Beta (Aβ), Mechanisms of Its Accumulation and Implications of Medicinal Plants for Therapy. Evid.-Based Complement. Altern. Med. 2013;2013:413808. doi: 10.1155/2013/413808. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bird T.D. GeneReviews. University of Washington; Seattle, WA, USA: 2012. Early-onset familial Alzheimer’s disease; pp. 1–42. - PubMed
    1. Chu L.W. Alzheimer’s disease: Early diagnosis and treatment. Hong Kong Med. J. 2012;18:228–237. - PubMed
    1. Sun X., Chen W.-D., Wang Y.-D. β-Amyloid: The key peptide in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. Front. Pharmacol. 2015;6:221. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2015.00221. - DOI - PMC - PubMed