Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) are a widespread and serious global public health burden, particularly among the older population. At present, effective therapies do not exist, despite the increasing understanding of the different mechanisms of NDs. In recent years, some drugs, such as galantamine, entacapone, riluzole, and edaravone, have been proposed for the treatment of different NDs; however, they mainly concentrate on symptom management and confer undesirable side effects and adverse reactions. Therefore, there is an urgent need to find novel drugs with fewer disadvantages and higher efficacy for the treatment of NDs. Mushroom polysaccharides are macromolecular complexes with multi-targeting bioactivities, low toxicity, and high safety. Some have been demonstrated to exhibit neuroprotective effects via their antioxidant, anti-amyloidogenic, anti-neuroinflammatory, anticholinesterase, anti-apoptotic, and anti-neurotoxicity activities, which have potential in the treatment of NDs. This review focuses on the different processes involved in ND development and progression, highlighting the neuroprotective activities and potential role of mushroom polysaccharides and summarizing the limitations and future perspectives of mushroom polysaccharides in the prevention and treatment of NDs.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a complicated neurodegenerative condition with two forms: familial and sporadic. The familial presentation is marked by autosomal dominance, typically occurring early in individuals under 65 years of age, while the sporadic presentation is late-onset, occurring in individuals over the age of 65. The majority of AD cases are characterized by late-onset and sporadic. Despite extensive research conducted over several decades, there is a scarcity of effective therapies and strategies. Considering the lack of a cure for AD, it is essential to explore alternative natural substances with higher efficacy and fewer side effects for AD treatment. Bioactive compounds derived from mushrooms have demonstrated significant potential in AD prevention and treatment by different mechanisms such as targeting amyloid formation, tau, cholinesterase dysfunction, oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, neuronal apoptosis, neurotrophic factors, ER stress, excitotoxicity, and mitochondrial dysfunction. These compounds have garnered considerable interest from the academic community owing to their advantages of multi-channel, multi-target, high safety and low toxicity. This review focuses on the various mechanisms involved in the development and progression of AD, presents the regulatory effects of bioactive components with definite structure from mushroom on AD in recent years, highlights the possible intervention pathways of mushroom bioactive components targeting different mechanisms, and discusses the clinical studies, limitations, and future perspectives of mushroom bioactive components in AD prevention and treatment.

Three heteroleptic iridium(III) complexes 1, 2 and 3 bearing two cyclometalating 2′,6′-difluoro-2,3′-bipyridyl (dfpypy) chelates and one pyridyl pyrazolate ligand have been investigated by using the density functional theory/time-dependent density functional theory method to study the influence of the different substituent groups (―CF₃ and ―N(CH₃)₂ moiety on the electronic structures, phosphorescent properties and the organic light-emitting diode performance. The lowest energy absorption wavelength calculated is in good agreement with the experimental value. The lowest energy emissions of complexes 1, 2 and 3 are localised at 454, 534 and 821 nm, respectively. Ionisation potential and electron affinity have been calculated to evaluate the injection abilities of holes and electrons into these complexes. The calculated results show that the different substitute groups affect the charge transfer rate and balance. Finally, we hope that this study can provide a good guide to the future design and synthesis of novel phosphorescent materials for use in the organic light-emitting diodes.