Maria LuÃsa Serralheiro
Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal
Title: Phenolic compounds from herbal infusions in the prevention of age-related diseases (atherosclerosis and Alzheimer)
Biography
Biography: Maria LuÃsa Serralheiro
Abstract
Aqueous extracts from plants have been consumed throughout history for the prevention or amelioration of several diseases namely, atherosclerosis and Alzheimer. Now-a-days, a part of the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects have been disclosed. The effect of infusions containing mainly rosmarinic acid, chlorogenic acid and other caffeic acid derivatives were analysed on what concerns their effect on the prevention of age-related diseases like atherosclerosis and Alzheimer Disease (AD). As these diseases are multifactorial-caused the main selected topics will be the inhibitory activity of these compounds or extracts on enzymes involved in cholesterol biosynthesis (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase, HMGR) and in the AD treatment (acetylcholinesterase, AChE). The effect of these caffeic acid derivatives on the absorption of cholesterol from the diet at membrane-transporter proteins is also a matter of concern and will be envisaged. Several infusions from different herbs either collected in the fields or bought in the supermarket, in Portugal, were studied. A small number of volunteers consumed several of these infusions in order to get some insight into the effect in decreasing cholesterol blood level and, eventually, reducing atherosclerosis. The results obtained seemed worthwhile of setting up a bigger experimentation plan. The permeation of phenolic compounds has been evaluated and studies with laboratory animals indicated that these compounds can reach the brain and act as AChE inhibitors. The presence of different phenolic compounds in these mixtures influence the permeation of each other. This is also another important point to be addressed, paving the way to permeation studies with chemically defined extracts when bioavailability is concerned