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Volume 17
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Investigating the Impact of Sorghum on Tau Protein Phosphorylation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Modulation in Alzheimer’s Disease: An In Vitro Study

by
Nasim Rezaee
1,
Eugene Hone
1,
Hamid Sohrabi
1,2,3,
Rasheed Abdulraheem
1,
Stuart K. Johnson
4,
Stuart Gunzburg
5,
Ralph N. Martins
1,3 and
W. M. A. D. Binosha Fernando
1,*
1
Centre of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease Research & Care, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, WA 6027, Australia
2
Centre for Ageing, Health Future Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia
3
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
4
IngredientsbyDesign Pty Ltd., Lesmurdie, WA 6076, Australia
5
CWEK Pty Ltd., South Fremantle, WA 6162, Australia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Nutrients 2025, 17(3), 516; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030516
Submission received: 23 December 2024 / Revised: 18 January 2025 / Accepted: 20 January 2025 / Published: 30 January 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of Natural Extracts on Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Background: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with poorly understood pathology. Elevated tau, phospho-tau and mitochondrial dysfunction are significantly correlated with an increased risk of AD and are therefore targets for disease-modifying therapy. In this study, we examined the effects of polyphenolic extracts from six different varieties of sorghum: Shawaya short black-1 (Black), IS1311C (Brown), QL33/QL36 (Red), B923296 (Red), QL12 (White), and QL33 (Red) on the attenuation of beta amyloid-induced phospho-tau levels, total tau levels, and mitochondrial dysfunction in neuronal cells. Method: Tau proteins (231 (pT231), Serine- 199 (pS199), and total tau proteins (T-tau)) were detected and quantified using sandwich ELISA kits, while mitochondrial dysfunction was measured in terms of mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels. Results: Almost all varieties of the sorghum extracts reduced the beta amyloid-induced pS199 and pT231 levels (p ≤ 0.05). The optimum concentration of QL33/QL36 (1000 µg/mL), QL12 (2000 µg/mL), and QL33 (2000 µg/mL) strongly attenuated the phospho-tau level. Sorghum IS1311C (750 µg/mL) showed the highest Δψm reduction (39.8%), whereas QL33 (2000 µg/mL) most strongly improved the ATP level (37.7%) (p ≤ 0.01). For both Δψm and ATP assays, the least activity was observed in sorghum B923296 at 21% and 25.5%, respectively (p ≤ 0.01). Conclusions: The polyphenol extracts from sorghum attenuated the tau toxicity and Aβ-induced mitochondrial dysfunction in a variety- and dose-dependent manner and made a promising disease-modifying agent against AD. However, extensive research is needed to validate the efficacy of the sorghum extracts prior to animal and clinical studies.
Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; human tau; amyloid beta protein; mitochondria; sorghum; polyphenols Alzheimer’s disease; human tau; amyloid beta protein; mitochondria; sorghum; polyphenols

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MDPI and ACS Style

Rezaee, N.; Hone, E.; Sohrabi, H.; Abdulraheem, R.; Johnson, S.K.; Gunzburg, S.; Martins, R.N.; Fernando, W.M.A.D.B. Investigating the Impact of Sorghum on Tau Protein Phosphorylation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Modulation in Alzheimer’s Disease: An In Vitro Study. Nutrients 2025, 17, 516. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030516

AMA Style

Rezaee N, Hone E, Sohrabi H, Abdulraheem R, Johnson SK, Gunzburg S, Martins RN, Fernando WMADB. Investigating the Impact of Sorghum on Tau Protein Phosphorylation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Modulation in Alzheimer’s Disease: An In Vitro Study. Nutrients. 2025; 17(3):516. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030516

Chicago/Turabian Style

Rezaee, Nasim, Eugene Hone, Hamid Sohrabi, Rasheed Abdulraheem, Stuart K. Johnson, Stuart Gunzburg, Ralph N. Martins, and W. M. A. D. Binosha Fernando. 2025. "Investigating the Impact of Sorghum on Tau Protein Phosphorylation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Modulation in Alzheimer’s Disease: An In Vitro Study" Nutrients 17, no. 3: 516. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030516

APA Style

Rezaee, N., Hone, E., Sohrabi, H., Abdulraheem, R., Johnson, S. K., Gunzburg, S., Martins, R. N., & Fernando, W. M. A. D. B. (2025). Investigating the Impact of Sorghum on Tau Protein Phosphorylation and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Modulation in Alzheimer’s Disease: An In Vitro Study. Nutrients, 17(3), 516. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030516

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