WASHINGTON, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that grape seed polyphenols -- a natural antioxidant -- may help prevent the development or delay the progression of Alzheimer's disease.
The research, led by Giulio Pasinetti, was published online Friday in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, which causes brain changes that gradually get worse.
This is the first study to evaluate the ability of grape- derived polyphenols to prevent the generation of a specific form of amyloid (A) peptide, a substance in the brain long known to cause the neurotoxicity associated with Alzheimer's disease.
In partnership with a team at the University of Minnesota, Pasinetti and collaborators administered grape seed polyphenolic extracts to mice genetically determined to develop memory deficits and A neurotoxins similar to those found in Alzheimer's disease. They found that the brain content of the A*56, a specific form of A previously implicated in the promotion of Alzheimer's disease memory loss, was substantially reduced after treatment.
Previous studies suggest that increased consumption of grape- derived polyphenols, whose content, for example, is very high in red wine, may protect against cognitive decline in Alzheimer's. This new finding corroborates those theories.
"Since naturally occurring polyphenols are also generally commercially available as nutritional supplements and have negligible adverse events even after prolonged periods of treatment, this new finding holds significant promise as a preventive method or treatment, and is being tested in translational studies in Alzheimer's disease patients," said Pasinetti.
In Alzheimer's disease, brain cells degenerate and die, causing a steady decline in memory and mental function. Editor: Yang Lina