The use of cucurbitacin e in the inhibition ofenzymes in the apoptotic mechanism that causesthe accumulation of tau fibrils in an alzheimeranimal model, and the investigation of its effecton memory acquisition by measuring theexpression of the relevant genes

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a brain disease. Phytochemicals are the basis of phytotherapy. In this study, tau fibrils were formed in a rat model of Alzheimer's. It was investigated whether there was a decrease in tau fibril formation and its effect on cognitive functions after treatment with cucurbitacin E (CuE) in the Ecballium elaterium plant. Sprague Dawley female rats (225-250 g) were used. Tau fibrils were formed with okadaic acid and was applied intracerebroventricularly (ICV). Animals were randomly divided into 5 groups, with 6 animals in each group. 1- Control, 2- Stereotaxic, 3- Stereotaxic+aCSF (artificial cerebrospinal fluid), 4- Stereotaxic+Ocadaic acid (OKA), 5- Stereotaxic+OKA+CuE. Rotarod, Morris water maze, and elevated plus maze test were used for anxiety and memory analyzes. Finally, the hippocampus tissue was removed. The changes of Tau fibrils were determined immunohistochemically, MAPK1/3, MAPK14, and Tau protein levels were determined by western blot, and gene expression levels of MAPK1/3 and MAPK14 were determined by quantitative Real-Time PCR. Statistical analysis was performed with one-way ANOVA for multiple comparisons and post-hoc analyzes using Tukey's test. The results showed that CuE is effective in the acquisition of memory by regulating Alzheimer's tau pathology and can be used for therapeutic purposes. Key Words: Alzheimer's Disease, Cucurbitacine E, Tau Fibril, Phytochemicals