Plant-derived acetylcholinesterase inhibitory alkaloids for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease

Stefano Dall'Acqua

Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy

Abstract: The inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) has been one of the most used strategies for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The AChE inhibitors (AChE-I) produce not only short-term symptomatic effects, but can also play a role in other pathological mechanisms of the disease (eg, formation of amyloid-β plaques), which has renewed interest in the discovery of such inhibitors. Four of the five currently prescribed treatments for AD are AChE-I. Natural alkaloids such as galantamine or alkaloid-related synthetic compounds (such as rivastigmine) are considered beneficial for patients with mild-to-moderate AD. However, there is a need for the discovery of more effective compounds and for this reason, plants can still be a potential source of new AChE-I. Findings and advances in knowledge about natural alkaloids as potential new drugs acting as AChE-I will be summarized in this paper.

Keywords: quinolizidine, steroidal, indole, isoquinoline