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Review
. 2024 Dec 24;45(1):8.
doi: 10.1007/s10571-024-01526-w.

Molecular Signaling Pathways of Quercetin in Alzheimer's Disease: A Promising Arena

Mansour A Alsaleem  1 , Hayder M Al-Kuraishy  2 , Ali I Al-Gareeb  3 , Ali K Albuhadily  2 , Mohammed Alrouji  4 , Asmaa S A Yassen  5   6 , Athanasios Alexiou  7   8   9 , Marios Papadakis  10 , Gaber El-Saber Batiha  11
Affiliations
Review

Molecular Signaling Pathways of Quercetin in Alzheimer's Disease: A Promising Arena

Mansour A Alsaleem et al. Cell Mol Neurobiol. .

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by cognitive impairment and memory deficit. Even with extensive research and studies, presently, there is no effective treatment for the management of AD. Besides, most of drugs used in the treatment of AD did not avert the AD neuropathology, and the disease still in a progressive status. For example, acetyl cholinesterase inhibitors are associated with many adverse effects, such as insomnia and nightmares. As well, acetylcholinesterase inhibitors augment cholinergic neurotransmission leading to the development of adverse effects related to high acetylcholine level, such as salivation, rhinorrhea, vomiting, loss of appetite, and seizure. Furthermore, tacrine has poor bioavailability and causes hepatotoxicity. These commonly used drugs do not manage the original causes of AD. For those reasons, natural products were repurposed for the treatment of AD and neurodegenerative diseases. It has been shown that phytochemicals produce neuroprotective effects against the development and progression of neurodegenerative diseases by different mechanisms, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. Quercetin (QCN) has been reported to exert an effective neuroprotective effect against AD and other neurodegenerative diseases by lessening oxidative stress. In this review, electronic databases such as PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched for possible relevant studies and article linking the effect of QCN on AD. Findings from this review highlighted that many studies highlighted different mechanistic signaling pathways regarding the neuroprotective effect of QCN in AD. Nevertheless, the precise molecular mechanism of QCN in AD was not completely clarified. Consequently, this review aims to discuss the molecular mechanism of QCN in AD.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Molecular mechanism; Neurodegenerative diseases; Neuroprotective effect; Oxidative stress; Quercetin.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests. Ethical Approval: Not applicable. Consent to Participate: Not applicable. Consent for Publication: Not applicable.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Alzheimer’s disease neuropathology
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Chemical structure of quercetin and its derivatives
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Pharmacological effects of quercetin
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
The neuroprotective effect of quercetin against neurodegenerative diseases
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Role of quercetin against the development and progression of AD neuropathology
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Mechanistic role of QCN against AD neuropathology
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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