Berberine: A Promising Treatment for Neurodegenerative Diseases

[Little_apple]

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

[Fumaniron]

Interesting article. Some points noted within article: 1. L-arginine or sildenafil antagonize berberine anti-depressant effect:

Studies have found that berberine has an antidepressant effect (Kulkarni and Dhir, 2008; Fan et al., 2017), acute administration can increase dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine levels in the whole brains of mice, and this effect can be antagonized by l-arginine or sildenafil pretreatment. In short, berberine can play an antidepressant effect by regulating brain biogenic amines and nitric oxide pathway (Kulkarni and Dhir, 2008). 

2. Berberine can be neurotoxic:

Meanwhile, there are several studies offer some important insights into the neurotoxic effects of berberine. It is reported that in the Parkinson’s disease model rats induced by 6-OHDA, berberine aggravate the degeneration of dopaminergic neuron in the substantia nigra of rats (Shin et al., 2013). In addition, berberine can aggravate the cytotoxicity induced by 6-OHDA in PC12 cells and aggravate of dopaminergic neuron death (Kwon et al., 2010).

I take the l-arginine supplement for overall blood flow enhancement, and luckily I don’t depend on berberine’ s anti-depressant effect mentioned.

I still have mixed feelings about berberine. It has so many potential benefits. However, as Bolt Upright and other have mentioned, the neurotoxicity potential are a cause for concern. I’ve cut down on the amount that I take, and may cut it out completely in the future because of this. Thanks for posting

[Little_apple in reply to Fumaniron]

Thank you for mentioning other posts on Berberine and its neurotoxicity. I need to seek those out.

It is my understanding that the blood flow enhancement of L-arginine is temporary

“We conclude that L-arginine reduces brain edema formation and improves cortical blood flow in the early phase after a brain trauma, whereas no circulatory effects can be seen after prolonged treatment.”

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/174...

I take Vinpocetine for this purpose

[Fumaniron in reply to Little_apple]

My pleasure. We're all in this together..

[Sydney75 in reply to Fumaniron]

The Natural Medicines database that tracks studies, drug interactions, adverse effects did not mention neurotoxicity. Berberine was very beneficial lowering a slightly high blood sugar (120) not diabetic and lower BP. The biggest side effect was gastric upset which is listed. The advice from users for diabetes and BP is to cycle on and off. Six weeks on and 2 off or 5 days on and weekends off. We are going to try it again to reduce overall inflammation markers.

Other folks like Vinpocetine but it is synthetic. Vinpocetine is a synthetic derivative of apovincamine, a compound found in periwinkle (Vinca minor) (10827). While not approved as a drug in the US, vinpocetine is sold as a prescription drug under the brand name Cavinton in several European countries. It is used for cognitive impairment and stroke; however, few double-blind clinical studies supporting its use have been published. It is not recommended for pregnant or nursing mothers.

Berberine is a bitter-tasting, yellow-colored alkaloid that is found in the roots, rhizomes, and stem bark of various plants, including European barberry, goldenseal, goldthread, greater celandine, Oregon grape, phellodendron, and tree turmeric (34203,91951). It was first isolated in the early 20th century from plants used in traditional Chinese medicine (91956).

-Syd

[Little_apple in reply to Sydney75]

excellent info thank you