"Besides the shingles vaccine, we might have more good news about potential therapies for Alzheimer's disease. A new study in Naturedemonstrated a link between the mineral lithium in the brain and Alzheimer's disease. Of 27 metals tested in brain tissue, only lithium levels differed between healthy, mildly cognitively impaired, and Alzheimer's brains. They also found that lithium was concentrated in amyloid plaques, while it was scarce in nearby tissue. The authors suggest plaques may "steal" lithium from surrounding brain cells, worsening cognitive function."
"Mice prone to Alzheimer's on a lithium-deficient diet showed more amyloid and tau protein build-up and worse cognitive function. Genes associated with the maintenance of brain architecture were downregulated in lithium-deficient mice. Microglia (cells responsible for immune defense) became pro-inflammatory and less able to clear amyloid. Mice given lithium saltssaw reversals of Alzheimer's disease pathology and improved memory. A specific formulation of lithium (lithium orotate) outperformed lithium carbonate (more commonly used therapeutically) in mice."
Brains of people with cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's had lower lithium levels than healthy brains. Lithium was concentrated in amyloid plaques and scarce in nearby tissue, suggesting plaques may "steal" lithium from surrounding brain cells and worsen cognitive function. Mice on lithium-deficient diets developed increased amyloid and tau accumulation, downregulation of genes for brain architecture, pro-inflammatory microglia with reduced amyloid clearance, and impaired cognition. Lithium supplementation reversed pathology and improved memory in mice. Lithium orotate delivered more brain-available lithium than lithium carbonate and caused fewer kidney and thyroid effects in mice.
Read at Psychology Today
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]