Pre-training Catechin gavage prevents memory impairment induced by intracerebroventricular streptozotocin in rats

Objective:

To evaluate the effects of Catechin (CAT) on memory acquisition and retrieval in the animal model of sporadic alzheimer’s disease (sAD) induced by intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of streptozotocin (STZ) in passive avoidance memory test.

Methods:

Thirty adult rats were divided into 5 experimental groups (n=6). Animals were treated by icv saline/STZ (3 mg/kg) injection at day one and 3 after cannulation. The STZ+CAT group received 40 mg/kg CAT by daily gavages for 10 days, after icv STZ treatment and before training. The step-through latency (STL) and time spent in the dark compartment (TDC) were evaluated to examine the memory acquisition and retrieval. All tests were performed in Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran, from April to December 2013.

Results:

The STZ treatment significantly decreased STL and increased the number of entries to the dark compartment on the training day. It also increased TDC, on day one and 7 after training. Pre-training gavage of CAT reversed the STL significantly (p=0.027). The CAT treatment also decreased the TDC in both early and late retrieval, in respect to STZ group.

Conclusion:

This data suggests that CAT as an antioxidant could improve both memory acquisition and retrieval in the animal model of sAD.According to reports in 2012, there are more than 35 million people living with dementia worldwide.1 Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which is characterized by amyloid (Aβ) plaque accumulation, is the most common forms of dementia, and results in memory loss and cognitive impairment.2 The pathological features of AD include Aβ peptide misfolding that form neurotic plaques on the neurons and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles composed of hyperphosphorylated tau protein.3 There are many reports indicating elevated oxidative stress in the brain of patients with mild cognitive impairment or AD.4 Oxidative stress may be the first feature in the brain of AD patients,5,6 which appears even before Aβ deposition.7,8 Transgenic mice bearing a mutant amyloid precursor protein (APP) similarly showed oxidative stress before Aβ deposition.9 The Aβ plaque formation is suggested to be an effort by the cell to protect itself against oxidative stress.10 The Aβ metabolism increases reactive oxygen species (ROS) and decreases adenosine triphosphate production in mitochondria.11 The secretion, oligomerization, and aggregation of Aβ is the result of its ROS sequestering activity and leads to destruction of cellular integrity.12 Other consequences of cellular oxidative damage include cell cycle aberration and tau hyperphosphorylation, leading to the formation of neurofibrillary tangles.13Polyphenolic flavonoids are neuroprotective against oxidative stress14 and possess potent radical scavenging15 and anti-inflammatory activities.16 Catechin (CAT) protects cultured mesencephalic neurons against 6-hydroxydopamine treatment,17 and also prevents primary hippocampal neurons from Aβ toxicity.18 Epicatechin gallate and epigallocatechin gallate was found to increase the activity of oxygen radical species-metabolizing enzymes, superoxide dismutase and catalase, in mouse striatum.19 The CAT is also capable of inhibiting lipid peroxidation induced by iron ascorbate in brain mitochondrial membranes.20 Evidence suggests that damages caused by Aβ can be undermined by antioxidants such as vitamin E21 or polyphenols.22 There are reports that CAT is more effective than vitamin E and C for the destruction of free radicals.15 So these antioxidants could be the major candidates for the prevention and treatment of AD. In this study, we evaluated the effects of CAT as a potent antioxidant on memory acquisition in the animal model of sporadic AD (sAD) induced by intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of streptozotocin (STZ) in passive avoidance memory test.