Researchers may potentially have found a preventive solution for neurodegenerative disorders in the most unlikely of sources: used coffee grounds. The researchers found caffeic-acid based Carbon Quantum Dots (CACQDs) have the potential to protect brain cells from the damage caused by several neurodegenerative diseases – if the condition is triggered by factors such as obesity, age and exposure to pesticides and other toxic environmental chemicals.
Carbon Quantum Dots are essentially simple nanoparticles made of carbon that have found a growing number of applications, including bioimaging thanks to its fluorescent properties and as photochemical catalysts. Their active surfaces can be doped with different elements for desired effects, are biocompatible and can be produced simply from a range of organic substances such as lemon juice and used tea leaves.
The University of Texas at El Paso team behind the study was led by Jyotish Kumar, a doctoral student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and overseen by Mahesh Narayan, PhD, a professor and Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry in the same department. Their work is described in the journal Environmental Research.
“Caffeic-acid based Carbon Quantum Dots have the potential to be transformative in the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders,” Kumar said.
“This is because none of the current treatments resolve the diseases; they only help manage the symptoms. Our aim is to find a cure by addressing the atomic and molecular underpinnings that drive these conditions.”
Neurodegenerative diseases, when they are in their early stages and are caused by lifestyle or environmental factors, share several traits.
These include elevated levels of free radicals in the brain, and the aggregation of fragments of amyloid-forming proteins that can lead to plaques or fibrils in the brain.
Kumar and his colleagues found that CACQDs were neuroprotective across test tube experiments, cell lines and other models of Parkinson’s disease when the disorder was caused by a pesticide called paraquat.
The CACQDs, the team observed, were able to remove free radicals or prevent them from causing damage and inhibited the aggregation of amyloid protein fragments without causing any significant side effects.
The team hypothesises that in humans, in the very early stage of a condition such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, a treatment based on CACQDs can be effective in preventing full-on disease.
“It is critical to address these disorders before they reach the clinical stage,” Narayan said.
“At that point, it is likely too late. Any current treatments that can address advanced symptoms of neurodegenerative disease are simply beyond the means of most people. Our aim is to come up with a solution that can prevent most cases of these conditions at a cost that is manageable for as many patients as possible.”
Caffeic acid belongs to a family of compounds called polyphenols, which are plant-based compounds known for their antioxidant, or free radical-scavenging properties. Caffeic acid is unique because it can penetrate the blood-brain barrier and is thus able to exert its effects upon the cells inside the brain, Narayan said.
In the simple one-step ‘green chemistry’ method, the team ‘cooked’ caffeic acid at 230°C for two hours to reorient the caffeic acid’s carbon structure and form CACQDs. The CACQDs were then extracted according to a molecular weight cutoff of 1kDa.
The sheer abundance of coffee grounds is what makes the process both economical and sustainable, Narayan said.
Source: University of Texas at El Paso
