A Chemically Standardized Extract of Ziziphus jujuba Fruit (Jujube) Stimulates Expressions of Neurotrophic Factors and Anti‐oxidant Enzymes in Cultured Astrocytes. (28th July 2014) - Chen, Jianping
Abstract The fruit of Ziziphus jujuba Mill., known as jujube or Chinese date, is commonly consumed as a health supplement worldwide. To study the role of jujube in brain benefits, the expression of neurotrophic factors and anti‐oxidant enzymes in the jujube‐treated cultured astrocytes was determined. Application of a chemical standardized water extract of jujube in cultured astrocytes for 24 h stimulated the expressions of nerve growth factor, brain‐derived neurotrophic factor and glial cell line‐derived neurotrophic factor in a concentration‐dependent manner. The pre‐treatment with H89, a protein kinase A inhibitor, attenuated the jujube‐induced expression of neurotrophic factors. In parallel, the treatment of jujube water extract induced the transcriptional expressions of the enzymes responsible for anti‐oxidation, i.e. NAD(P)H: quinine oxidoreductase 1, glutamate‐cysteine ligase catalytic subunit, glutamate‐cysteine ligase modifier subunit and glutathione S‐transferase, in a concentration‐dependent manner. These results proposed the benefits of jujube in regulating expressions of neurotrophic factors and anti‐oxidant enzymes in cultured astrocytes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.