ABSTRACT
Object To investigate the effects of Heart-benefitting Recipe (HBR) on the histopathological changes of Alzheimer's disease (AD) rats after unilateral amyloid-?_ 25-35 protein (A?_ 25-35 ) injection into the amygdala. Methods The experimental rat models with dementia,spatial learning,and memory impairment were induced by unilateral amyloid ?_ 25-35 protein (A?_ 25-35 ) injection into the amygdala of rats. The spatial learning and memory ability and the function of cholinergic system were observed by the means of Morris water maze and radioligand binding assay. The protein expression of A?_ 1-40 ,AT_8 was estimated with immunohistochemistry. The expression of mRNA related to APP was observed by RT-PCR. Results HBR significantly alleviated the spatial learning and memory impairment induced by A?_ 25-35 and remarkably increased the activity of ChAT and Rt of M-receptor binding sites of these models. The expressions of A?_ 1-40 protein and APP mRNA in cortex and hippocampus of AD rats were decreased remarkably by HBR. The results of immunohistochemistry showed that the expression of hyperphosphorilated tau AT_ 8 in cortex and hippocampus of AD rats was inhibited significantly by HBR. Conclusion HBR can effectively improve the spatial learning and memory impairment,decrease the deposition of A?_ 1-40 ,and alleviate the hyperphos-phorylation of tau of AD rats induced by A?_ 25-35 .