AN ANCIENT APPROACH BUT TURNING INTO FUTURE POTENTIAL SOURCE OF THERAPEUTICS IN ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Abstract

Dementia is one of the ages related mental problems and characteristic symptom of various neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease which is age related. It is a progressive, neurodegenerative disorder which primarily affects the elderly population and it is considered to be responsible for 60 % of all dementia in people who are aged 65 or more. It is debilitating in nature, and due to which an enormous social and economic worry is placed on our society. Currently there is no proper cure for the disorder and much of the treatments available have been able to only delay the progression of the disease or provide symptomatic relief for a short time period. Therefore there is a need for a different approach to the treatment of these diseases. Plants have been used since ancient times in the treatment of various diseases including cognitive disorders, such as alzheimer’s disease. Therefore ethno pharmacological screening of plants may provide useful leads in the discovery of new drugs for the treatment of alzheimer’s disease. Screening of various plants is reviewed in this article, belonging to various families, used in traditional systems of medicine (e.g. Chinese, Indian and European) for treatment of cognitive dysfunction. Phytochemical substances such as alkaloids, biphenolic lignans, curcuminoids, caffeic acid derivatives, triterpenoids, and withanolides with pharmacological activities relevant to AD treatment are discussed in this review.