Planta Med 2019; 85(18): 1540
DOI: 10.1055/s-0039-3400065
Main Congress Poster
Poster Session 2
© Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York

Neuroprotective extract fractions and single substances from Sideritis scardica in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, an in-vivo model for neurodegenerative diseases

F Heiner
1   Finzelberg GmbH & Co. KG,, Koblenzer Straße 48-56, 56626 Andernach, Germany
2   Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology, Heidelberg University,, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
,
B Feistel
1   Finzelberg GmbH & Co. KG,, Koblenzer Straße 48-56, 56626 Andernach, Germany
,
M Wink
2   Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology, Heidelberg University,, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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Publikationsverlauf

Publikationsdatum:
20. Dezember 2019 (online)

 
 

Hydroethanolic extracts of Sideritis scardica Griseb. (Lamiaceae), widely known as Greek mountain tea, have repeatedly shown CNS-associated activities, such as enhancement of cognitive performance [1] and ameliorating effects on pathomechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases [2]-[4]. To investigate the active principle in terms of neuroprotection, we chose Caenorhabditis elegans to examine the in-vivo activity of six extract fractions (prepared by liquid-liquid extraction, re-precipitation in ethanol and solid-liquid separation of a 40% ethanolic primary extract of aerial parts) as well as seven single compounds occurring in S. scardica. The transgenic C. elegans strain CL2355 expresses pan-neuronal human amyloid-β, leading to a degeneration of nerve cells involved in chemotactic behavior. The chemotaxis index of the worms significantly increased when treated with the polar-lipophilic fractions or polar, phenolic compounds belonging to the class of phenylethanoid glycosides, including acteoside. Exactly the same pattern was observed in two further assays: These fractions and substances also protected dopaminergic neurons of strain BZ555 from 6-OHDA-induced degeneration (quantifiable through fluorescence intensity) and they reduced the number of aggregates of Q40::YFP, a polyglutamine peptide, in strain AM141. The investigated mechanisms are linked to neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s disease, respectively, and were positively influenced by neuroprotective properties of polar-lipophilic S. scardica extract fractions and phenylethanoids. In each case, the measured significant effects did not exceed the activity of the primary extract itself. That indicates a relevant contribution to the overall efficacy of crude, hydroethanolic extracts, which themselves, representing multi-substance mixtures, we regard as the active principle of Sideritis scardica.


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  • References

  • 1 Wightman EL. et al. The acute and chronic cognitive and cerebral blood flow effects of a Sideritis scardica (Greek mountain tea) extract: A double blind, randomized, placebo controlled, parallel groups study in healthy humans. Nutrients 2018; 10: 955
  • 2 Heiner F, Feistel B, Wink M. Neuroprotektive Wirkung von Sideritis scardica–Extrakten auf Caenorhabditis elegans, einem Modellorganismus für neurodegenerative Erkrankungen. Z Phytother 2016; 37: V22
  • 3 Heiner F, Feistel B, Wink M. Protective effects of hydroethanolic Sideritis scardica extracts in C. elegans models of tauopathy and Huntington’s disease. Phytotherapie Austria 2018; 3: PA 8
  • 4 Heiner F, Feistel B, Wink M. Sideritis scardica extracts inhibit aggregation and toxicity of amyloid-β in Caenorhabditis elegans used as a model for Alzheimer’s disease. PeerJ 2018; 6: e4683

  • References

  • 1 Wightman EL. et al. The acute and chronic cognitive and cerebral blood flow effects of a Sideritis scardica (Greek mountain tea) extract: A double blind, randomized, placebo controlled, parallel groups study in healthy humans. Nutrients 2018; 10: 955
  • 2 Heiner F, Feistel B, Wink M. Neuroprotektive Wirkung von Sideritis scardica–Extrakten auf Caenorhabditis elegans, einem Modellorganismus für neurodegenerative Erkrankungen. Z Phytother 2016; 37: V22
  • 3 Heiner F, Feistel B, Wink M. Protective effects of hydroethanolic Sideritis scardica extracts in C. elegans models of tauopathy and Huntington’s disease. Phytotherapie Austria 2018; 3: PA 8
  • 4 Heiner F, Feistel B, Wink M. Sideritis scardica extracts inhibit aggregation and toxicity of amyloid-β in Caenorhabditis elegans used as a model for Alzheimer’s disease. PeerJ 2018; 6: e4683