Curcumin exerts neuroprotective effects on proliferation of neural stem cells in vitro and APP/PS1 mouse model in vivo

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by the accumulation of amyloid beta (Aβ) plaques, leading to neuronal death. Notably, there are no therapeutically efficacious treatments for this disorder. This study investigates the neuroprotective mechanisms of curcumin. In vitro experiments demonstrated that curcumin significantly promoted the proliferation of neural stem cells (NSCs) derived from E16 mouse embryos. Additionally, in the APP/PS1 transgenic mouse model, curcumin improved cognitive function, as evidenced by a shorter escape latency and increased platform crossing frequency in the Morris water maze test and enhanced novel object recognition. Histological analysis showed that curcumin reduced Aβ accumulation in the hippocampal and cortical regions. Molecular studies revealed that curcumin upregulated the expression of BDNF and enhanced phosphorylation of CREB. Collectively, these findings indicate that curcumin exerts neuroprotective effects through multiple mechanisms, including promoting NSC proliferation, reducing Aβ accumulation, and the potential modulation of the BDNF-CREB signaling pathway.