Moringa oleifera (Lam.): a natural remedy for ageing?

Effect of Moringa oleifera, an age-old ingredient of Indian ayurvedic and traditional medicine, was tested for its effect on age related antioxidant activity in Wistar albino rats of three age groups (6, 12 and 18 months old). Aqueous extract of M. oleifera leaves (MOAE) was administered orally at a dosage of 200 mg/kg body weight for a period of 30 days. MOAE treatment showed significant reduction in lipid peroxidation and lipofuscin pigmentation along with elevated serotonin and antioxidant enzymes in the brains of treated groups of aged rats. LC-MS-MS analysis revealed blood brain barrier permeable secondary metabolites viz., 9,9-bianthracene, 4-Methoxycinnamic acid, Cinnamic acid, (E)-p-coumaric acid pyrogallol and ostruthin from the extract. 9,9-bianthracene and ostruthin showed better binding affinity to Keap-1 and SERT in silico. The present result suggests the protective efficacy of M oleifera against age related oxidative stress in brain.

Supplementation of deprenyl attenuates age associated alterations in rat cerebellum.

Aging, a multifactorial process of enormous complexity is characterised by physio-chemical and biological aspects of cellular functions. It is closely associated with changes in metabolism of various biological molecules in the system. In the present study, we have investigated the effect of deprenyl on cerebellum during ageing process in male Wistar rats with respect to the changes in levels of protein, glycoproteins and amino acids in experimental rats of three age groups (6, 12 and 18 months old). Intraperitoneal administration of liquid deprenyl (2 mg/kg body weight/day for a period of 15 days i.p., significantly P < 0.05) attenuated age-associated alterations in the levels of amino acids (taurine, aspartate, glutamate, arginine, hydroxy proline and homocysteine), protein content and glycoprotein components (hexose and hexosamine) in the rat cerebellum. The results of the present investigation indicate that the protective effect of deprenyl is probably related to its ability to strengthen the neuronal membrane by its membrane stabilizing action or to a counteraction of free radicals by its antioxidant property.

Dark neurons in the ageing cerebellum: their mode of formation and effect of Maharishi Amrit Kalash.

Dark neurons are considered a manifestation of neuronal injury and although they cover various grades of damage their mode of formation is not yet clear. Age-dependent alterations in a dark purkinje neuronal population of guinea pigs (10 months and 32 months old) and rats (3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 15 months and 28 months) were studied. Light microscopical and electron microscopical observations revealed a significant increase (P < 0.05) in the number of dark purkinje neurons with age in both the guinea pigs and rats. Extraction of lipids from the cerebellum sections before processing for histochemical reaction resulted in a reduction of the dark neuronal population. In an other set of experiments, significant age-dependent increase in the cathepsin-D activity and lipid peroxidation was documented in the guinea pig cerebellum. Treatment of guinea pigs with Maharishi Amrit Kalash (MAK) (500 mg/kg body wt/day, for two months) significantly inhibited (P < 0.05) the activity of cathepsin-D and lipid peroxidation, and decreased the number of dark neurons. These findings suggest that the number of dark neurons increases with age and MAK prevents the conversion of light to dark purkinje neurons due to its inhibitory effects on cathepsin-D activity and antioxidant properties. We suggest that the conformational changes in the normal protein structure due to higher proteolytic activity and peroxidation of lipid in the aging cerebellum endangers a redundant capability for various staining agents and the Osimic acid molecules to react with proteins, lipids and other molecules, leading to an intensified cyto- and karyoplasms electron density.