Pioglitazone Improves Cognitive Function via Increasing Insulin Sensitivity and Strengthening Antioxidant Defense System in Fructose-Drinking Insulin Resistance Rats

Insulin resistance (IR) links Alzheimer’s disease (AD) with oxidative damage, cholinergic deficit, and cognitive impairment. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) agonist pioglitazone previously used to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has also been demonstrated to be effective in anti-inflammatory reaction and anti-oxidative stress in the animal models of AD and other neuroinflammatory diseases. Here, we investigated the effect of pioglitazone on learning and memory impairment and the molecular events that may cause it in fructose-drinking insulin resistance rats. We found that long-term fructose-drinking causes insulin resistance, oxidative stress, down-regulated activity of cholinergic system, and cognitive deficit, which could be ameliorated by pioglitazone administration. The results from the present study provide experimental evidence for using pioglitazone in the treatment of brain damage caused by insulin resistance.