One of the more promising studies with good potential announced at last week’s International Alzheimer’s Conference, is study focused on something you can try now to improve your brain health. This study will involve a hormone derivative called Allopregnanolone.
Dr. Roberta Brinton, Ph.D., of the University of Southern California will head up this study. Dr. Brinton notes both aging and Alzheimer’s disease are characterized by a decline in the ability of the body (including the brain) to self-renew and repair, but the capacity for regeneration is retained, albeit at a decreased level.
Allopregnanolone (also known as Allo) is a neurosteroid found in the brain and bloodstream. In previous studies it has shown promise as a potential regenerative therapy to promote brain cell creation (neurogenesis) and improve cognitive function in older animals and animals with induced Alzheimer’s disease. This is an exciting announcement.
At the AAIC 2013 conference, Brinton reported their intention to begin a Phase 1 clinical trial of Allo in participants diagnosed with MCI (mild cognitive impairment) due to Alzheimer’s and mild Alzheimer’s, with doses administered once-per-week for 12 weeks to establish a safe and tolerated dose. The Alzheimer’s Association noted that because this is “naturally” occurring in a healthy body and brain, it is much safer than most drugs, so they can cut to the chase.
Secondary goals of the trial include assessing potential short-term effects of Allo on cognition and MRI indicators of AD and gaining evidence for a subsequent Phase 2 proof of concept trial with MRI-based biomarkers to show regenerative efficacy.
“Allopregnanolone is a well-characterized agent with a very promising track record of promoting neural stem cell generation and restoring cognitive function in animal models of Alzheimer’s,” said Brinton. “We consider Allopregnanolone a first in class regenerative therapeutic for MCI and Alzheimer’s. Our hope is that, through further research, we will add Allo to the roster of Alzheimer’s treatments.
“A critical issue to consider for potential regenerative therapies for Alzheimer’s is the ongoing and progressive burden of brain cell death caused by the disease. It is not sufficient solely to generate new neurons and to promote their survival; it is necessary to reduce the ongoing burden of pathology for there to be long-term benefits for cognition and function,” Brinton added. “We were very encouraged to discover that Allo reduced the burden of Alzheimer’s pathology. Our latest findings are very exciting as they show that Allo increases the energy capacity of the brain. This is important because the generation of new neurons, new synaptic circuits and synaptic transmission all require substantial energy.”
Now you the reader may be thinking – Well that’s fine, but when do we get access to this? Actually the exciting answer is the nutrients needed to stimulate production of this substance are already available over the counter and they are not expensive! Allopregnanolone is a metabolite of progesterone which is produced in the body. Progesterone comes the master hormone pregnenolone, and pregnenolone is available in this country as a health food supplement. If you’ve attended one of my classes you learned of the importance of pregnenolone as well as the hormone it produces – DHEA, estrogen and testosterone in promoting brain health, and how these are dramatically reduced by age, but can be boosted with this simple supplement which costs less than $25
In 2002 scientists discovered that Alzheimer’s disease patients have lower levels of pregnenolone, and Allopregnanolone as well as DHEA-sulfate (DHEAS) in all the main memory-related areas of their brains, compared with control patients. Furthermore, the brains of patients with the highest neurosteroid levels display the lowest collections of the destructive amyloid-beta proteins. (see link to references below)
So the next logical questions was, can Pregnenolone protect against AD. French scientists have been studying this question, and the results have been outstanding (at least with rats). They found pregnenolone sulfate (the form found in brain tissue) completely reversed memory deficits in older, memory-impaired rats.
It does this through at least 4 different pathways. One, pregnenolone aids in the generation of brain cells is by increasing levels of and cell receptivity to acetylcholine – the neurotransmitter of memories, which often becomes deficient in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. But it can also stimulate new nerve cell growth in areas closely associated with memory and learning. And it’s been shown to help strengthen the tiny microtubules which facilitate cellular communication and neurotransmission. As a result of these multiple actions studies has shown these neuro-steroids can improve both learning and retention of information at relatively low doses, and faster than expected. And even help restore memory in animals given experimental anesthesia-inducing drugs.
Acetylcholine is not only vital for thought and memory, it is also involved in controlling sleep cycles, especially the phase of sleep that is associated with memory (called REM or paradoxical sleep). Bottom line, pregnenolone dramatically increases memory-enhancing sleep. If you are over age 60 this might be another reason why you have difficulty sleeping, as it dramatically declines with age.
One of the bonus is that this pregnenolone is a potent modulator of GABA receptors, which are what calm down our body and brain. Anxiety and depression are believed to be caused, in part, by the prevention of our body’s production of allopregnanolone.
As a result of this fascinating research a new private company in France has already started to develop pregnenolone derivatives as pharmaceutical drugs for memory enhancement and the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. But as I noted, you don’t need to buy it from France, Pregnenolone is quite safe and available at most health food stores here in the US. If you are interested in trying some give me a call at 801 529-8238, or email me at DavidRJL@aol.com and tell me where you live and I’ll share where you can obtain a trial supply of high quality to try for less than $20 a bottle. If you buy some at a local store please let me know your results – again we can conduct our own little study here and share results.
This article is for information purposes only. It is not intended to prevent or treat any disease. There are many causes of memory problems. If you are having memory or other health concerns you are advised to see a licensed doctor and keep them abreast of any special supplements you are taking.
If you’d like to see what Pregnenolone can do for you click here.
To learn more about Pregnenolone or to check out references and sources go to: http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/nov2007_report_pregnenolone_01.htm
For all the latest Alzheimer’s conference News go to: http://www.alz.org/aaic/2013_news_releases.asp
Reference
Marx CE, Trost WT, Shampine LJ, et al. The neurosteroid allopregnanolone is reduced in prefrontal cortex in Alzheimer’s disease. Biol Psychiatry. 2006 Dec 15;60(12):1287-94.
Schumacher M, Weill-Engerer S, Liere P, et al. Steroid hormones and neurosteroids in normal and pathological aging of the nervous system. Prog Neurobiol. 2003 Sep;71(1):3-29.
Mayo W, Le MM, Abrous DN. Pregnenolone sulfate and aging of cognitive functions: behavioral, neurochemical, and morphological investigations. Horm Behav. 2001 Sep;40(2):215-7.
Mayo W, George O, Darbra S, et al. Individual differences in cognitive aging: implication of pregnenolone sulfate. Prog Neurobiol. 2003 Sep;71(1):43-8.
Mayo W, Lemaire V, Malaterre J, et al. Pregnenolone sulfate enhances neurogenesis and PSA-NCAM in young and aged hippocampus. Neurobiol Aging. 2005 Jan;26(1):103-14.
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