Resveratrol attenuates neuroinflammation-mediated cognitive deficits in rats

Abstract

Neuroinflammatory responses are involved in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. In the present study, the protective effects of resveratrol, a polyphenolic compound, on cognitive deficits induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were examined in rats, and the possible mechanisms were explored. The data showed that resveratrol administration by intraperitoneal injection (i.p.) may inhibit cognitive deficits induced by bilateral intracerebroventricular injection of 5 μg of LPS in rats. Subsequently, resveratrol afforded beneficial actions on the inhibition of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, cyclooxygenase (COX)-2, and amyloid-β protein precursor (APP) generation, as well as the inhibition of phospho-transcription factors of nuclear factor κB p65 (p-NF-κB p65) activation followed by the presence of LPS in rat hippocampus. The results of the present study indicate that resveratrol may attenuate LPSinduced direct neuroinflammation in rats, and its mechanisms are, at least partly, due to inhibition of the generation of TNF-α, COX-2, and APP, and the related phosphorylation of NF-κB. These findings suggest that resveratrol might be a potential agent for treatment of neuroinflammation-related diseases, such as AD. © 2010 The Pharmaceutical Society of Japan.