Chemists Prove Chromones Are Effective Against Alzheimer's Disease

A study published in Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry detailed how chemists synthesized a range of biologically active molecules known as chromones and demonstrated their use in the treatment of Alzheimer's, reports Medical Xpress . Reduced levels of acetylcholine are one of the symptoms of Alzheimer's, and its decline is influenced by acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), with the latter's activity increasing in the course of Alzheimer's. Reducing BChE activity could decelerate acetylcholine disintegration, and researchers from the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia (RUDN) used chromones to accomplish this. "We found chromones interesting because of their pharmacological activity," said RUDN's Larisa Kulikova. "Their derivatives appeared to have anti-cancer, anti-viral (including anti-HIV), anti-microbial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, and antioxidant properties. It was especially important for our studies that chromones and their derivatives played an important role as antioxidants and acceptors of radicals." The chemists used kinetic methods and modeling to assess the pharmacological activity of the obtained substances, and screening outcomes showed that these substances efficiently slowed down BChE activity. The team plans to enhance the synthesis method and obtain chemical compounds with antioxidant- as well as BChE-suppressing properties.