Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease that shows multimodal symptoms such as progressive cognitive impairment along with changes in mood and behavior. The disease comprises various stages of severity, including pre-clinical AD, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and AD dementia.

The present study is designed to explore the beneficial use of polyphenols from natural plants for management of AD, in comparison to conventional standard therapy. In addition, the potentiating effect of the herbal combination of ginkgo biloba and curcumin against scopolamine-induced AD-like alterations will be assessed. This will be accomplished by proposing six specific aims:

1- Demonstration of the effect of curcumin, GBE and their combination on cognitive performance (learning and memory) and on locomotor activity of scopolamine-demented rats (behavioral tests).

2- Evaluation of the effect of these compounds on oxidative stress in the hippocampus of these animals.

3- Investigation of the effect of these products on inflammatory biomarkers (cytokines) in the hippocampus of these animals.

4- Assessment of the accumulation of amyloid β-containing plaques in the hippocampus of animals treated with these compounds compared to non-treated animals.

5- Determination of the effect of these compounds on cholinesterase activity in the hippocampus of scopolamine-treated rats.

6- Examination of the histopathological changes in the hippocampus of treated animals compared to non-treated rats.