Evaluating the Effect of Salvia Macilenta Extract on CREB Protein Level and Acetylcholine Esterase Activity in the Brain of Alzheimer’s Disease in Male Rats

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease leading to dementia. There are many studies to find the pretreatment and treating drugs in AD. The neuroprotective role of Salvia genus against neuronal death is well known. In this study, the protective role of Salvia macilenta (S. macilenta) extract on AD was investigated. Rats were gavaged by S. macilenta for 10 days. Then, they were injected by Amyloid beta. The molecular level of Ca2+/cAMP response element binding (CREB), and acetylcholine esterase activity were evaluated in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. Our results revealed that S. macilenta pretreatment can improve CREB phosphorylation compared to AD model in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus (both P<0.001). Pretreatment with S. macilenta reduced percentage of acetylcholine esterase activity compared to AD model in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus (P<0.001 and P<0.01, respectively). S. macilenta has a protective role against amyloid beta-induced toxicity through enhancement of CREB and regulation of the acetylcholine esterase activity that can be a dominant potential candidate in improving AD.