Phytochemical composition, antioxidant activity and neuroprotective effect of Crataegus pinnatifida fruit

Abstract

Various neurodegenerative diseases e.g., Alzheimer's affect many elderly people that eventually leads to disability and premature death. No effective treatment for these neurodegenerative diseases has been developed yet. Oxidative stress-mediated neurodegeneration is one of the key pathophysiological factors involved in these diseases. Since numerous botanic components are well-known potent antioxidants, in this study, we aim to examine the neuroprotective effects of phytochemical compositions from the water, methanolic, and 95% ethanolic extracts of the Crataegus pinnatifida fruit against hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced cytotoxicity in PC12 neuronal cells. Our results revealed that the methanolic extract showed the most favorable antioxidant activities in scavenging various sources of free radicals. All three extracts concentration (0.5–5 μg/ml)-dependently protected PC12 against H2O2-induced cell death with the methanolic extract being the most potent one. Component elucidation revealed that the methanolic extract contained the greatest amounts of total phenolic compounds, flavonoids and tannin content. Conversely, the water soluble and 95% ethanolic extracts yielded a comparable amount of total triterpenoid. Our results indicated that methanolic and 95% ethanolic extracts of C. pinnatifida fruit show the potential to be novel neuroprotective agents to be considered in nutraceutical products for preventing oxidative-related disorders. Further investigation is necessary to verify the neuroprotective efficacy and mechanisms in vivo.