Results
Title

Regulation of gut microbiota in Alzheimer's disease mice by silibinin and silymarin and their pharmacological implications.

Authors

Shen, Liang; Liu, Lu; Li, Xin-Yu; Ji, Hong-Fang

Abstract

The newly reported associations between Alzheimer's disease (AD) and gut microbiota indicate the potential of gut microbiota regulation–based therapeutic intervention for AD. Silymarin and its main active component, silibinin, are promising natural agents against AD, while their acting mechanisms remain to be explored. The present study investigated the effects of silibinin and silymarin administration on behavioral and histological manifestations, and regulation on the gut microbiota of transgenic APP/PS1 mice. First, silibinin and silymarin administration could alleviate memory deficits and reduce the amyloid plaque burden in the brain of APP/PS1 mice in comparison with controls. Second, silibinin and silymarin administration tended to decrease the microbiota diversity and exhibited regulative effect in abundances on several key bacterial species associated with AD development. This implied that gut microbiota regulation by silibinin and silymarin might be involved in their effects against AD. Further studies are warranted to fully elucidate the molecular mechanisms.

Subjects

GUT microbiota; ALZHEIMER'S disease; MOUSE diseases; TRANSGENIC mice; AMYLOID plaque; SILYMARIN; TRIMETHYLAMINE oxide

Publication

Applied Microbiology & Biotechnology, 2019, Vol 103, Issue 17, p7141

ISSN

0175-7598

Publication type

Academic Journal

DOI

10.1007/s00253-019-09950-5