Vitamin E helps blocks Alzheimer's ?

ironjustice@aol.com · medicine forum Guru Joined: 28 Apr 2005 Posts: 1522

http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/news-ng.asp?n=59811-gene-study-suggests

Gene study suggests vitamin E helps blocks Alzheimer's

04/05/2005 - Scientists have found genetic proof that vitamin E can
help protect against Alzheimer's disease, said DSM yesterday.

The nutritional products division of the company announced that through
the use of nutrigenomics, scientists have identified a number of genes
associating vitamin E with protection against Alzheimer's disease.
Alzheimer's disease is a growing public health concern as the number of
people suffering from it is increasing rapidly. Estimates suggest that
around 4.5 million people in the US alone live with the disease for
which, at present, there is no cure or prevention.

A number of epidemiologic studies have suggested the benefits of
vitamin E in reducing the risk of Alzheimer's disease, with one
clinical trial showing a significant delay in the onset of the disease
in a vitamin E supplemented group. However, as DSM pointed out, the
underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood.

Therefore, to help determine whether vitamin E may play a protective
role against Alzheimer's, DSM scientists used animal genes to
investigate the molecular mechanisms of vitamin E in the rat
hippocampus, a brain region considered the principle side of
dysfunction in Alzheimer's.

DSM scientists found a number of genes to be regulated by vitamin E -
namely those involved in the regulation of hormones and hormone
metabolism, nerve growth factors, apoptosis and the clearance of
amyloid beta, a significant hallmark of Alzheimer's.

The researchers therefore concluded that vitamin E appeared to have a
protective role in the prevention/onset of age-related neurologic
diseases, in particular Alzheimer's.

However, it might be difficult to demonstrate a beneficial effect of
vitamin E on the disease in humans, because of the severity of the
disease, cautioned the scientists.

Studies of diet-gene interactions have been underway for a number of
years but until now researchers have generally been limited to
investigating one, or at most, a handful of genes, at any one time and
single or simple groups of nutrients rather than whole foods.

However the human genome project has provided the background
information and new tools that enable researchers to take a much more
global perspective.

There are, however, huge challenges to be faced. Many of the
technologies are relatively new and still developing or being refined
and for practical and theoretical reasons, researchers are having to
rethink their standard approaches. Coping with, and interpreting, the
vast quantity of data generated is another other major issue. Although
specialised computer tools are available more development is needed.

This most recent study was published in Nutritional Neuroscience
(February 2005, 8;21-29).

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