Effects And Mechanisms Of Royal Jelly On Atherosclerosis And Alzheimer’s Diseases In Rabbits Induced By High Cholesterol Diet

Nowadays,due to the influence of genetic-social psychological-environmental factors,the incidence of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases such as hypertension,atherosclerosis,and senile dementia remains high,seriously affecting people’s quality of life and health.Hypercholesterolemia is a common risk factor for hypertension,atherosclerosis,and Alzheimer’s disease.Most of these diseases are related to genetic and environmental factors.In addition to genetic factors,environmental factors have a significant impact on the pathogenesis of the diseases,of which the diet is the most important environmental factor.The use of natural functional food as an alternative treatment has become a new control strategy.Royal Jelly(RJ),a viscous,pulpy substance secreted by the worker bees developed from hypopharyngeal glands and epithelial glands,is a natural functional health food with a long history of use.It has a various pharmacological activities and health care functions.The anti-aging,hypolipidemic,and hypotensive effects of royal jelly has been well documented,however,the effects of royal jelly on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases has not been systematically studied.Based on our previous studies,this study using atherosclerosis model,isolated rabbit aortic rings perfusion model and Alzheimer’s disease model to systematically investigate the effects of royal jelly on atherosclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease,the main findings are summarized as follows:1.Effect of royal jelly on atherosclerotic model in ovariectomized rabbits induced by high cholesterol dietThrough the establishment of atherosclerosis(AS)model in ovariectomized rabbits induced by a 2%high cholesterol diet,it was found that royal jelly has anti-AS effect on menopausal rabbits,mainly by lowering blood lipids,inhibiting inflammation,and reducing oxidation stress levels,increasing NO levels,thereby protecting the vascular endothelium function and lowering blood pressure,and correctiong ANS balance disorders,while inhibiting and stabilizing AS plaques by affecting the expression of vascular a-SMA and CD68,and effectively alleviate the pathological changes of AS.2.Role of royal jelly in vasodilation of isolated rabbit thoracic aortic rings and its mechanismUsing a rabbit thoracic aortic rings perfusion model,it was found that 0.01 to 10 mg/mL royal jelly has a significant vasodilator effect.RJ contains muscarinic receptor agonist,possibly an acetylcholine-like substance,and induces vasodilation through NO/cGMP pathway and calcium channels.3.Effect and mechanism of royal jelly on Alzheimer’s disease model rabbitsThe model of Alzheimer’s disease(AD)was induced by adding 2%cholesterol diet with trace amounts of copper drnnking water.It was found that royal jelly can lower cholesterol levels,regulate the genes expression of ApoE and CYP 46 in brain,improve BBB permeability,and down-regulate BACE1 and RAGE expression,increase the expression levels of LRP1 and IDE,promote the degradation and clearance of Aβ,and finally reduce Aβ.In addition,RJ exerts anti-AD effects through anti-oxidation and enhancement of neuronal metabolic activity,preventing neuronal loss and reducing the pathological changes in AD rabbit brains.Taken together,this study used rabbit atherosclerosis model,isolated rabbit thoracic aortic rings perfusion model and Alzheimer’s disease models to systematically explore the protective effects/mechanisms of royal jelly on atherosclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease.These data suggest that royal jelly may be useful as an alternative/additive therapeutic strategy against cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.