Behavioral and neuropathological features of Alzheimer’s disease are attenuated in 5xFAD mice treated with intranasal GHK peptide
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a complex neurodegenerative disease and a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Efforts to find disease modifying treatments have met with limited success. The naturally occurring peptide GHK (glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine), in its Cu-bound form, supports angiogenesis, remodeling, and tissue repair, has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, and has been shown to improve cognitive performance in aging mice. These features raised the question of whether GHK-Cu could alleviate neurodegeneration observed in AD. Male and female 5xFAD transgenic mice on the C57BL/6J background at 4 months of age were given 15 mg/kg GHK-Cu intranasally 3 times per week for 3 months until 7 months of age. Results showed that intranasal GHK-Cu treatment delayed cognitive impairment, reduced amyloid plaques, and lowered MCP1-mediated inflammation levels in the frontal cortex and hippocampus. These observations provide the rationale for conducting additional studies to investigate the potential of GHK-Cu peptide as a promising treatment for AD.
Authors: Matthew Tucker, Gerald Yu Liao, Addison Keely, Joo Young Park, Manuela Rosenfeld, Jackson Wezeman, Ruby Mangalindan, Dan Ratner, Martin Darvas, Warren Ladiges
Institution: University of Washington
Language: English
Subfield: Physiology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W4403436901