Letter to the editor
Current update on the protective effect of epicatechin in neurodegenerative diseases
Riya Thapa1, Gaurav Gupta1,2,3, Piyush Dave1, Santosh Kumar Singh1, Abhay Raizaday1, Waleed Hassan Almalki4, Govind Vyas5, Sachin Kumar Singh6,7, Kamal Dua7,8, Yogendra Singh9
1School of Pharmacy, Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Mahal Road, Jagatpura 302017, Jaipur, India
2Department of Pharmacology, Saveetha Dental College, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, Chennai, India
3Uttaranchal Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Uttaranchal University, Dehradun, India
4Department of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia
5Inva-Health Inc, Cranbury, NJ 08512, USA
6School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab, 144411, India
7Faculty of Health, Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia
8Discipline of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Health, University of Technology Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia
9Department of Pharmacology, Maharishi Arvind College of Pharmacy, Ambabari Circle, Ambabari, Jaipur, 302023, India
EXCLI J 2022;21:Doc897
Neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by the progressive loss of neural structures instead of the selective neuronal loss caused by metabolic or toxic disorders. Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are among the several neurodegenerative diseases for which there is no treatment (Ruz et al., 2020[21]). New and better treatment strategies are urgently required to tackle these fatal illnesses. For example, epicatechin is one of the most prevalent and plentiful flavonoids (Figure 1(Fig. 1)). Numerous organs and tissues, including the heart, skeletal muscle, and neurons, have been studied, and epicatechin has been associated with mitochondrial improvement (Panneerselvam et al., 2013[19]). Epicatechin has been demonstrated to aid in treating neurodegenerative diseases, although there is little data to back this claim (Shaki et al., 2017[22]). The discoveries will also offer researchers a roadmap for developing neuroprotective drugs that are safe and effective (Table 1(Tab. 1); References in Table 1: Al-Amri et al., 2013[1]; Ali et al., 2021[2], 2022[3]; Avramovich-Tirosh et al., 2007[4]; Beasley et al., 2019[5]; Bitu Pinto et al., 2015[6]; Cano et al., 2021[7]; Cuevas et al., 2009[8]; Diaz et al., 2019[9]; Ehrnhoefer et al., 2006[10]; Ferruzzi et al., 2009[11]; Koh et al., 2006[12]; Kumar and Kumar, 2009[13]; Li et al., 2004[14]; Lim et al., 2013[15]; Mandel et al., 2004[16]; Nan et al., 2021[17]; N'Go et al., 2021[18]; Rubio-Osornio et al., 2015[20]; Shaki et al., 2017[22]; Siddique et al., 2014[23]; Tseng et al., 2020[24]; Wang et al., 2012[25]; Xu et al., 2006[26]; Ye et al., 2012[27]; Zhou et al., 2019[28]).
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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Figure 1: Chemical structure of epicatechin
Table 1: An update on the protective effect of epicatechin in various neurodegenerative diseases