Uji Aktivitas Anti-Alzheimer Ekstrak Etanol Kulit Buah Kakao (Theobroma cacao L.) Terhadap Perilaku dan Histopatologi Otak pada Mencit Terinduksi Skopolamin

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that develops gradually, characterized by a decline in cognitive and physical abilities. It is prevalent worldwide, including in Indonesia. One of the causes of Alzheimer's is impaired acetylcholine (ACh) function, which leads to damage in the hippocampus of the brain, resulting in behavioral problems and memory decline. Currently, treatments for Alzheimer's disease can only slow disease progression and alleviate symptoms, often accompanied by side effects. Therefore, biomedical innovation is needed to develop alternative acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors that are safer and more accessible. Cocoa pod husk (Theobroma cacao L.) is a potential candidate for alternative therapy due to its richness in bioactive compounds such as polyphenols and flavonoids with antioxidant properties. This study used scopolamine as an Alzheimer's-inducing agent in mice, with behavioral testing conducted through the Y-maze and hippocampal histopathology analysis. The results showed that the negative control group was significantly different from the normal control group, confirming the effectiveness of scopolamine in inducing Alzheimer-like conditions. Conversely, no significant difference was observed between the extract-treated group and the positive control group, indicating that the ethanol extract of cocoa pod husk exhibits effectiveness comparable to donepezil. Histopathological results further demonstrated an improvement in hippocampal structure in the extract treated group. Based on this research, it can be concluded that administering ethanol extract of cocoa pod husk at a dose of 100 mg/mL improves memory in Alzheimer's-induced mice, as evidenced by the increased percentage of alternations in the Y-maze behavioral test and the observed structural improvements in the hippocampus during histopathological examination.