Effect of Donepezil Hydrochloride on Cognitive Function

Objective: To explore the effect of donepezil hydrochloride on the cognitive function recovery of the rats with Alzheimer’s disease and the positive expression of nitric oxide synthase and acetylcholinesterase (NOS and AchE) in brain tissues of rats with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Methods: Forty SD (Sprague Dawley) rats were randomly classified into model group, treatment group, control group and sham operation group, with 10 rats in each group. AD rat models were prepared with Aβ1-40. The donepezil hydrochloride was orally administered to rats in treatment group two weeks after the modeling. Recognizing function of rats was assessed. The positive expression of NOS and AchE in brain tissues of each rat was observed via immunohistochemistry after administration of 28 days. Results: The escape latency of rats was significantly longer after modeling (p < 0.010). Compared to the model group, the escape latency of rats in treatment group was significantly shortened and the difference was significant (p < 0.05). Positive expression of NOS and AchE is mainly reflected in hippocampus region in brain tissues of rats. Compared with control group and sham operation group, NOS positive expression decreased and AchE positive expression increased in the rat brain of model group. The difference was statistically significant (p < 0.01). Compared with model group, NOS expression in rat brain of treatment group increased and AchE expression decreased, and the different was significant (p < 0.01). Conclusion: Donepezil hydrochloride can promote the recovery of cognitive function of AD rats. Its effect is also associated with the increased protein expression of NOS in hippocampus neuron cells in addition to specifically inhibiting the activities of AchE.