A Comparative Assessment of Five Available Citrus Fruits’ Cholinesterase Inhibitory, Antioxidant and Thrombolytic Activities for the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Disorders

Abstract

Citrus fruits are well known for its antioxidant properties. Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a common type of progressive neurodegenerative disease, is characterized by low level of neurotransmitter (acetylcholine), oxidative stress and neuro-inflammation in brain stream. Effective treatment strategies rely mostly on either enhancing the cholinergic function of the brain by stimulating the cholinergic receptors, improve the level of acetylcholine from being a breakdown by cholinesterase enzymes or induce antioxidant therapy. . Beside this atherothrombosis is a major cause of global life threatening cerebral diseases. In this study we examine five commonly available Citrus fruits available in Bangladesh; those are well known for their antioxidant activities with a rich source of vitamin C and polyphenols. A crude methyl extract (CME) of these fruits are evaluated for acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) inhibitory activity by Ellman’s method. Antioxidant, free radical scavenging, reducing power and thrombolytic property are also assessed in this study, which strongly implies that that the CME of these fruit are of AChE and BuChE inhibitors with moderate thrombolytic activities.