The Effect of Various Polyphenols on Associative Memory Loss and Dementia in a Drosophila melanogaster Model of Alzheimer’s Disease
School Name
Spring Valley High School
Grade Level
10th Grade
Presentation Topic
Physiology and Health
Presentation Type
Non-Mentored
Abstract
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), a prominent neurodegenerative disease (NDD), is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States (National Institute of Aging, 2021), however, little is known about prevention. As a result, polyphenols (plant-based compounds) and other natural substances have been studied for their therapeutic potential in improving cognition and memory in AD cases. While the impacts of each polyphenol (phenolic acids, flavonoids, stilbenes, and lignans) contain fundamental similarities, each varies slightly in its impacts on the brain (Cory et al., 2018). The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of polyphenol subgroups on associative memory in AD, tested by building an olfactory association, through the use of Drosophila melanogaster. It was hypothesized that if Drosophila groups were each fed a different polyphenol, the flavonoid group would display the least associative memory loss when tested for a learned memory because flavonoids reduce acetylcholine deficiency, aggregations, and neurotoxicity in the brain (Ayaz et al., 2019). To test this, Drosophila were administered a phenolic acid, flavonoid, stilbene, lignan, or control solution for one week before experimentation. They were conditioned on olfactory appetitive assays (linking the odor 1-octanol to a sucrose reward) and then tested for memory acquisition using a Y-maze across four intervals (Simonnet et al., 2014). The results of this research rejected the null hypothesis, X²(4, N=150)>9.488, p<0.05; thus, it was concluded that polyphenols (including flavonoids) do cause a significant improvement in the associative memory of AD mutant Drosophila, with stilbenes and flavonoids providing the most effective response to memory loss.
Recommended Citation
Gowda, Anagha, "The Effect of Various Polyphenols on Associative Memory Loss and Dementia in a Drosophila melanogaster Model of Alzheimer’s Disease" (2023). South Carolina Junior Academy of Science. 116.
https://scholarexchange.furman.edu/scjas/2023/all/116
Location
ECL 118
Start Date
3-25-2023 9:45 AM
Presentation Format
Oral and Written
Group Project
No
The Effect of Various Polyphenols on Associative Memory Loss and Dementia in a Drosophila melanogaster Model of Alzheimer’s Disease
ECL 118
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), a prominent neurodegenerative disease (NDD), is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States (National Institute of Aging, 2021), however, little is known about prevention. As a result, polyphenols (plant-based compounds) and other natural substances have been studied for their therapeutic potential in improving cognition and memory in AD cases. While the impacts of each polyphenol (phenolic acids, flavonoids, stilbenes, and lignans) contain fundamental similarities, each varies slightly in its impacts on the brain (Cory et al., 2018). The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of polyphenol subgroups on associative memory in AD, tested by building an olfactory association, through the use of Drosophila melanogaster. It was hypothesized that if Drosophila groups were each fed a different polyphenol, the flavonoid group would display the least associative memory loss when tested for a learned memory because flavonoids reduce acetylcholine deficiency, aggregations, and neurotoxicity in the brain (Ayaz et al., 2019). To test this, Drosophila were administered a phenolic acid, flavonoid, stilbene, lignan, or control solution for one week before experimentation. They were conditioned on olfactory appetitive assays (linking the odor 1-octanol to a sucrose reward) and then tested for memory acquisition using a Y-maze across four intervals (Simonnet et al., 2014). The results of this research rejected the null hypothesis, X²(4, N=150)>9.488, p<0.05; thus, it was concluded that polyphenols (including flavonoids) do cause a significant improvement in the associative memory of AD mutant Drosophila, with stilbenes and flavonoids providing the most effective response to memory loss.
