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Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the production of β-amyloid proteins and hyperphosphorylation of tau protein. Inflammation and apoptotic severity were highly correlated with earlier age at onset of Alzheimer's disease and were also associated with cognitive decline. This study aims to examine whether the traditional Chinese medicine ginsennoside Rd could prevent cognitive deficit and take neuroprotective effects in β-amyloid peptide 1-40-induced rat model of Alzheimer's disease. To produce Alzheimer's disease animal model, aggregated β-amyloid peptide 1-40 injected into hippocampus bilaterally. Ginsennoside Rd protected their cognitive impairment and improved their memory function by daily intraperitoneal injection for 30 days consecutively. In addition, ginsennoside Rd alleviated the inflammation induced by β-amyloid peptide 1-40. Furthermore, ginsennoside Rd played a role in the down-regulation of caspase-3 proteins and reduced the apoptosis that normally followed β-amyloid peptide 1-40 injection. The results of this study showed that the pretreatment of ginsennoside Rd had neuroprotective effects in β-amyloid peptide 1-40-induced AD model rat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents research which shows that the amino-terminal domain of prion protein exhibits five to six sites that bind copper (Cu(II)) presented as a glycine chelate. The binding that occurs at neutral Ph; How the findings indicate that prion protein can exist in a copper-metalloprotein form in vivo; Research method; Results.