Apple Peel and Flesh Contain Pro-neurogenic Compounds

• Published in: Stem cell reports Vol. 16; no. 3; pp. 548 - 565
• Main Authors: Ichwan, Muhammad, Walker, Tara L., Nicola, Zeina, Ludwig-Müller, Jutta, Böttcher, Christoph, Overall, Rupert W., Adusumilli, Vijay S., Bulut, Merve, Sykes, Alex M., Hübner, Norbert, Ramirez-Rodriguez, Gerardo, Ortiz-López, Leonardo, Lugo-Hernández, Enrique A., Kempermann, Gerd
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 09.03.2021; Elsevier
• Subjects: 3,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid; adult neurogenesis; dentate gyrus; hippocampus; mouse; neural precursor cells; quercetin; adult neurogenesis; mouse; dentate gyrus; hippocampus; 3,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid; quercetin; neural precursor cells
• ISSN: 2213-6711; 2213-6711
• DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2021.01.005

As mammals evolved with exposure to particular diets, naturally abundant compounds may have become part of the set of environmental co-determinants that shaped brain structure and function. Here we investigated whether bioactive factors found in apples directly affect hippocampal neurogenesis in the adult mouse. We found that quercetin, the most abundant flavanol in apple peel, was anti-proliferative at high concentrations but pro-neurogenic at low concentrations. This was confirmed in vivo, with intraperitoneally delivered quercetin promoting survival and neuronal differentiation, without affecting proliferation. Using a bioassay-guided fractionation approach we also identified additional pro-neurogenic compounds in apple flesh that were not related to flavonoids. We found that 3,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid significantly increased neural precursor cell proliferation and neurogenesis. This work shows that both flavonoids and 3,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid are pro-neurogenic, not only by activating precursor cell proliferation but also by promoting cell-cycle exit, cellular survival, and neuronal differentiation. [Display omitted] •Quercetin promotes hippocampal precursor cell survival and differentiation•Quercetin induces endogenous antioxidants and the AKT pathway•Apple juice supplementation has no effect on adult neurogenesis or learning•3,5-Dihydroxybenzoic acid increases precursor cell proliferation and neurogenesis In this article, Kempermann and colleagues show that quercetin, the most abundant flavonoid in apple peel, promotes hippocampal neurogenesis in the adult mouse brain. They also identify 3,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid as another pro-neurogenic compound found in apple flesh.