Investigation of the protective effect of ß-glycyrrhetinic acid in the ß-amyloid induced in vitro alzheimer's disease model

This study was carried out to investigated the protective effects of 18ß- Glycyrretinic acid (GA) which is derived from licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra) plant extract on apoptotic pathways and antioxidant enzymes in an in vitro Alzheimer's Disease (AD) model induced by amyloid ß1-40 (Aß) in U87 Malignant Glioma cell line. In the study, three groups were formed: the control group consisting of U87 MG cell line, the Aβ group, in which the in vitro AH model was created containing the Aß- induced U-87 cell lines , and the Aß + 18ß GA group created by adding 18ß GA to the Aβ group. Caspase-3 as an indicator of apoptosis ,and to be able to determine the antioxidant status the levels of super oxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) enzymes were analyzed. When compared to the control group, the caspase-3 level in the Aß group was found to be statistically significantly higher; In the Aß +18ß GA group, the caspase-3 level was determined statistically significantly lower compared to the Aß group (p <0.05). Nevertheless, when compared to the control group, SOD, CAT and GPx enzyme levels were found statistically significantly low in the Aß group, while these enzyme levels were determined to be statistically considerably high in the Aß + 18ß GA group compared to the Aß group (p <0.05). As a result, it was revealed that 18ß-GA has a protective potential by increasing antioxidant enzyme levels and activating apoptotic pathways in Aß-induced in vitro AD model.When these effects are considered, it was evaluated that 18ß-GA could have the potential to be used in preventive or alternative treatment in AD, and this should be supported by further studies.