Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Investigating Neuroprotective Effects of Berberine on Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Autophagy Impairment in Parkinson’s Disease

I take 600 mg twice a day for a number of reasons.

Here is this paper. It is free to read: Investigating Neuroprotective Effects of Berberine on Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Autophagy Impairment in Parkinson’s Disease 2025 - https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/26/15/7342

"Animal experiments were conducted based on the results of the cell experiments. Following a 4-week oral administration of berberine, its effectiveness was assessed through behavioral experiments conducted with a mouse model induced with 6-OHDA. The rotarod test, pole test, wire hang test, and balance beam test were utilized to evaluate motor skills associated with endurance, balance, and hand grip strength. The findings indicated an enhancement in exercise capacity across all tests, implying that berberine has the potential to alleviate pathological symptoms associated with PD. Consistent with our in vitro findings, in vivo results confirmed that berberine exerted its effects by activating AMPK and upregulating key downstream targets, including SIRT1, PGC-1α, LC3B, and P62. These results indicate that berberine can modulate similar molecular pathways in both cellular and animal models. Furthermore, AST and ALT analyses revealed no significant hepatotoxicity of berberine in mice. Favorable effects observed for body weight further support the in vivo safety profile of berberine.

Taken together, these findings suggest that berberine not only can alleviate pathological features of PD but also can exert disease-modifying effects. Given its efficacy and low toxicity, berberine represents a promising therapeutic candidate for treating PD and potentially other neurodegenerative disorders."

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Here is some info on Berberine as an iron chelator:

Berberine Is a Promising Alkaloid to Attenuate Iron Toxicity Efficiently in Iron-Overloaded Mice 2022 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1934578X211029522

The results of this study show that the natural compound berberine demonstrates a superior ability to reduce excess iron and chelate it in tissues, including liver, kidney and lung. By reducing oxidative stress, it can also improve the activity of the antioxidant enzymes catalase and superoxide dismutase. This remarkable ability of berberine is comparable to and often superior to that of deferoxamine as a common chelator. Berberine was equally capable of reducing malondialdehyde and lipid peroxidation resulting from an iron overdose. Therefore, we recommend further in vivo studies on berberine as an iron chelator and an antioxidant compound in diseases associated with iron-overload.

Is Chelation Therapy a Potential Treatment for Parkinson’s Disease? 2021 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8036775/

• In recent clinical trials, iron chelation therapy has been shown to open the way to a treatment of Parkinson’s disease, PD, which potentially slows the disease progression. Many of these neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, appear to be related to focal accumulation of iron in specific regions of the brain.

 

Investigating Neuroprotective Effects of Berberine on Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Autophagy Impairment in Parkinson’s Disease

I take 600 mg twice a day for a number of reasons. Here is this paper. It is free to read: Investigating Neuroprotective Effects of Berberin...