Exploring the efficient natural products for Alzheimer’s disease therapy via Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) models

AbstractAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is a grievous neurodegenerative disorder and a major form of senile dementia, which is partially caused by abnormal amyloid-beta peptide deposition and Tau protein phosphorylation. But until now, the exact pathogenesis of AD and its treatment strategy still need to investigate. Fortunately, natural products have shown potential as therapeutic agents for treating symptoms of AD due to their neuroprotective activity. To identify the excellent lead compounds for AD control from natural products of herbal medicines, as well as, detect their modes of action, suitable animal models are required. Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) is an important model for studying genetic and cellular biological pathways in complex biological processes. Various Drosophila AD models were broadly used for AD research, especially for the discovery of neuroprotective natural products. This review focused on the research progress of natural products in AD disease based on the fruit fly AD model, which provides a reference for using the invertebrate model in developing novel anti-AD drugs.Keywords: Alzheimer’s diseaseDrosophila melanogasternatural productsAβTauChinese medicines AcknowledgmentsFinancial support: scientific research founding of traditional Chinese medications and integration of traditional Chinese and western medicine of Tianjin Health Commission and Tianjin Administration of Traditional Chinese medications, Project No. 2021052.Disclosure statementThe authors report there are no competing interests to declare.Additional informationFundingOur financial support is as follows: scientific research founding of traditional Chinese medications and integration of traditional Chinese and western medicine of Tianjin Health Commission and Tianjin Administration of Traditional Chinese medications, Project No. 2021052.