Forskning

April 30, 2014

Beneficial effects of caffeine in a transgenic model of Alzheimer’s disease‐like Tau pathology

C Laurent et al, 2014, Beneficial effects of caffeine in a transgenic model of Alzheimer’s disease‐like Tau pathology, Neurobiology of Aging, published online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT: Tau pathology found in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is crucial in cognitive decline. Epidemiological evidences support that habitual caffeine intake prevents memory decline during aging and reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. So far, experimental studies addressed the impact of caffeine in models mimicking the amyloid pathology of AD. However, in vivo effects of caffeine in a model of AD‐like tauopathy remain unknown. Here, we evaluated effects of chronic caffeine intake (0.3 g/L through drinking water), given at an early pathological stage, in the THY‐Tau22 transgenic mouse model of progressive AD‐like pathology. We found that chronic caffeine intake prevents from the development of spatial memory deficits in Tau mice. Improved memory was associated with reduced hippocampal Tau phosphorylation and proteolytic fragments. Moreover, caffeine treatment mitigated several pro‐inflammatory and oxidative stress markers found upregulated in the hippocampus of THY‐ Tau22 animals. Together, our data support that moderate caffeine intake is beneficial in a model of AD‐like Tau pathology, paving the way for future clinical evaluation in AD patients.