Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a common neurological disease with recognition ability loss symptoms and a major contributor to dementia cases worldwide. Gastrodia elata Bl. (GE), a food of medicine–food homology, has been reported to have a mitigating effect on memory and learning ability decline. However, the effect of GE fermented by Lactobacillus plantarum, Acetobacter pasteurianus, and Saccharomyces (FGE) on alleviating cognitive deficits in AD was not studied. Mice were randomly divided into six groups, control, model, donepezil, low, medium, and high doses of FGE, and D-Galactose/Aluminum chloride (D-Gal/AlCl₃) was used to establish an AD-like mouse model. The results indicated that FGE could improve the production of neurotransmitters and relieve oxidative stress damage in AD-like mice, which was evidenced by the declined levels of amyloid-β (Aβ), Tau, P-Tau, acetylcholinesterase (AchE), and malondialdehyde (MDA), and increased acetylcholine (Ach), choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels in brain tissue. Notably, FGE could enhance the richness of the gut microbiota, especially for beneficial bacteria such as Lachnospira and Lactobacillus. Non-target metabolomics results indicated that FGE could affect neurotransmitter levels by regulating amino acid metabolic pathways to improve AD symptoms. The FGE possessed an ameliorative effect on AD by regulating neurotransmitters, oxidative stress levels, and gut microbiota and could be considered a good candidate for ameliorating AD.

Kaji-ichigoside F1 (KF1), a natural oleanane-type triterpenoid saponin, is the main active constituent from Rosa roxburghii. In the southwest regions of China, particularly in Guizhou Province, this plant was used as a Miao ethnic medicine to prevent and treat dyspepsia, dysentery, hypoimmunity, and neurasthenia. In the present study, the neuroprotective effect of KF1 was evaluated against N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-induced neurotoxicity in vivo and in vitro. An NMDA-induced PC12 cell neurotoxicity assay showed that KF1 effectively improved cellular viability, inhibited the release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and reduced cell apoptosis. Furthermore, KF1-treated NMDA-induced excitotoxicity mice displayed a remarkable capacity for improving spatial learning memory in the Y-maze and Morris water maze tests. In addition, KF1 increased the levels of the neurotransmitters 5-hydroxytryptamine, dopamine, and monoamine oxidase and reduced the calcium ion concentration in the hippocampus of mice. Hematoxylin and eosin and Nissl staining indicated that KF1 effectively reduced the impairment of neurons. Furthermore, Western blot assays showed that KF1 decreased NMDAR1 expression. In contrast, the NMDAR2B (NR2B), glutamate receptor (AMPA), TrkB, protein kinase B (AKT), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), PSD95, and synapsin 1 were upregulated in NMDA-induced PC12 cells and an animal model. These results suggest that KF1 has a remarkable protective effect against NMDA-induced neurotoxicity, which is directly related to the regulation of the NMDA receptor and the activation of the α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid receptor (AMPAR) and BDNF/AKT/mTOR signaling pathways.

This study isolated five acid-producing strains (XQ₁ and YZ₁–YZ₄) from naturally fermented pomace of Rosa roxburghii Tratt (RRT) in Guizhou’s karst region. Genetic and phenotypic analyses identified XQ₁, YZ₂, and YZ₄ as Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum), YZ₃ as Weissella cibaria, and YZ₁ as Bacillus licheniformis. A comparative evaluation with commercial strain AC revealed that XQ₁, YZ₂, and YZ₄ exhibited superior acidification (reaching the stationary phase at 40 h) and tolerance to acidic conditions (pH 3.0), ethanol (6% v/v), bile salts (0.3%), and osmotic stress (6.5% NaCl), along with broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Their cell-free supernatants (CFSs) showed comparable superoxide dismutase activity and total antioxidant capacity (2.54–2.66 FeSO₄·7H₂O eq mmol/L) to AC (2.68), with DPPH radical scavenging exceeding 50%. YZ₃ displayed weaker acid production, tolerance, and limited antimicrobial effects. Safety assessments confirmed non-hemolytic activity and antibiotic susceptibility. In conclusion, the L. plantarum strains XQ₁, YZ₂, and YZ₄ demonstrated strong ensiling potential and remarkable probiotic properties, establishing them as promising indigenous microbial resources for the preservation of RRT pomace and other food products.

In the ongoing search for new vicinal diol natural products, four new (Migaones A–D, 1–4) and four known (5–8) vicinal diol sesquiterpenoids were isolated from the branches and leaves of Cinnamomum migao. Their structures were unequivocally determined by comprehensive spectroscopic analyses (HRESIMS, 1D, and 2D NMR), single-crystal X-ray diffraction, electronic circular dichroism calculations, and comparison with existing literature data. All compounds isolated from C. migao possess vicinal diol structural units except compound 2. The newly isolated compounds (1–4) were evaluated for their neuroprotective activity using the PC12 cell injury model induced by N-methyl-daspartate acid (NMDA) and compounds 1–2 showing moderate neuroprotective activity against NMDA-induced neurotoxicity. Furthermore, molecular docking studies indicated that the most active compound 2 binds to the active site of the NMDA receptor via hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions.

Rosa roxburghii is a distinctive medicinal and edible plant resource. In an effort to uncover structurally novel secondary metabolites from this plant and explore their pharmacological potential, a phytochemical investigation of the fresh fruits of R. roxburghii led to the isolation of two new dihydroavicine alkaloids, roxburghcids D (1) and E (2), and a new triterpenoid glycoside, roxburghcid C (6), together with five known compounds (3–5, 7–8). The structures of the new compounds were unambiguously elucidated through extensive spectroscopic analyses (including 1D and 2D NMR and HRESIMS), quantum chemical calculations, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. In bioassay evaluations, compounds 2 and 3 exhibited significant ABTS radical scavenging activities, with IC₅₀ values of 39.59 and 17.38 μM, respectively. Additionally, compounds 2, 6, and 8 exhibited modest α-glucosidase inhibitory activities, with inhibition rates of 33.13%, 38.61%, and 36.85%, respectively, at a concentration of 100 μM. Furthermore, compounds 2 and 4 showed significant cytotoxicity against the A549 human cancer cell lines, with IC₅₀ values of 7.23 and 8.36 μM, respectively. This study represents the first report of alkaloids isolated from R. roxburghii, enriching its phytochemical profile and providing valuable chemotaxonomic insights for this species.