Bridging cyanobacteria to neurodegenerative diseases: A new potential source of bioactive compounds against alzheimer’s disease

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) represent a drawback in society given the ageing population. Dementias are the most prevalent NDs, with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) representing around 70% of all cases. The current pharmaceuticals for AD are symptomatic and with no effects on the progression of the disease. Thus, research on molecules with therapeutic relevance has become a major focus for the scientific community. Cyanobacteria are a group of photosynthetic prokaryotes rich in biomolecules with confirmed activity in pathologies such as cancer, and with feasible potential in NDs such as AD. In this review, we aimed to compile the research works focused in the anti-AD potential of cyanobacteria, namely regarding the inhibition of the enzyme ß-secretase (BACE1) as a fundamental enzyme in the generation of ß-amyloid (Aß), the inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) lead to an increase in the availability of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the synaptic cleft and the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, as phenomena associated with neurodegeneration mechanisms.This research was funded by the projects: BLUEHUMAN—BLUE biotechnology as a road for innovation on HUMAN’s health aiming smart growth in Atlantic Area—EAPA_151/2016 of the Interreg Atlantic Area Programme funded by the European Regional Development Fund, and ATLANTIDA (ref. NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000040), supported by the Norte Portugal Regional Operational Program (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement and through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Acknowledgments: CIIMAR acknowledges ALGAVALOR-MicroALGAs: integrated production and valorization of biomass and its various applications—SI I and DT no. 352234—supported by the PORTUGAL 2020 through the European Regional Development Fund. CIIMAR acknowledges the strategic funding UIDB/04423/2020 and UIDP/04423/2020. LAQV-REQUIMTE Research Unit acknowledges the strategic funding (UIDB/50006/2020)