HupA Has Multiple Effects in Fighting Alzheimers

SHENYANG, ChinaHuperzine A (HupA) appears to exert multiple activities to fight the onset and progression of Alzheimers disease (AD), according to a recent study (Neuropsychopharmacol. 2011;36:1073-89. DOI: 10.1038/npp.2010.245). Huperzine A is purified from Chinese club moss and may be beneficial for memory problems due to its ability to increase levels of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity).

In the new study, researchers from China Medical University looked for new mechanisms behind HupAs activity, including the ability to activate Wnt signaling and reduction of amyloidosis in the brain. HupA was administered intranasally to beta-amyloid (Abeta) precursor protein and presenilin-1 double-transgenic mice for four months. Mice that received the HupA had an increase in ADAM10 protein levels and declines in BACE1 and APP695 protein levels; these were linked with reduced Abeta levels and Abeta burden, suggesting the extract enhanced the nonamyloidogenic APP cleavage pathway. Further, HupA inhibited GSK3alpha/beta activity, and enhanced the beta-catenin level in the mice, underscoring the idea that HupA may target the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway in the brains of subjects with Alzheimers.