Alpha-lipoic acid is a fatty acid that's found in every body cell. The
body uses this acid to convert glucose (blood sugar) into energy.
Alpha-lipoic acid is also a potent antioxidant, neutralizing potentially
harmful chemicals called free radicals—and the acid has been shown to
increase the production of acetylcholine, a brain chemical that is a key
component of memory.wisepoqder Alpha-lipoic Acid powder
Small amounts of alpha-lipoic acid can be found in foods such as
spinach, broccoli, peas, brussels sprouts, and organ meats. Supplements
of the acid can be found at health food stores, drug stores, and on the
Internet—and many people take these supplements in hopes of warding off
the effects of Alzheimer's disease on memory.
In a paper published online in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease in
July 2012 a team of VA researchers and their colleagues looked at the
effects of administering alpha-lipoic acid to mice—not only on their
memories, but also on their oxidative processes and on their longevity. i
Their results offered some hope for those with Alzheimer's and their
families—and also some cautionary information.
"Our results indicate that alpha-lipoic acid improves memory and
reverses indications of oxidative stress in extremely old mice, but
decreases lifespan," says Susan A. Farr, PhD, of the St. Louis VA
Medical Center and the St. Louis University School of Medicine, the
study's lead author.
Farr and her colleagues used a specially bred strain of mice called
SAMP8 (the acronym stands for senescence-accelerated mouse prone). These
mice tend to have the same kinds of age-related learning and memory
deficits many humans do, and are used to investigate those mechanisms.
The team conducted two types of studies with SAMP8 mice. The first
type was designed to see if the behavior of the mice changed after
receiving daily dosages of alpha-lipoic acid; the second attempted to
determine whether their lifespan was either shortened or lengthened
after receiving doses of the acid over longer periods of time.
Mice tend to spend more time exploring new objects than familiar
ones, so the mice in the behavior study were exposed to two similar
objects (plastic frogs) for five minutes. Twenty-four hours later, one
of the frogs was replaced with a novel object (a plastic bird). The 10
mice that had been given alpha-lipoic acid before the test spent more
time exploring the new object than 10 others who had not been given the
drug.
These mice also were given a test using a maze, to see if the mice
could learn the location of an escape chamber. In this test, the mice
that were administered alpha-lipoic acid learned the location of the
"target area" more quickly than those who had not received the acid,
especially during the first few days of testing. Since all 20 of the
mice in the study were extremely old for the species (18 months), the
study indicated that even more advanced dementia can be reversed by
alpha-lipoic acid.
Autopsies of the mice's brain tissue, conducted after the tests were
completed, indicated that oxidative stress had been reversed in the
group that had been given alpha-lipoic acid; a likely reason the ability
to learn had improved in those mice. Oxidative stress describes the
level of damage in a cell, tissue, or organ, caused by the body's
reaction to oxygen as it breathes and produces energy. Failure to keep
up with the harmful chemicals oxidative stress produces has been
implicated in many diseases, including Alzheimer's, and has an impact on
the body's aging process.
The lifespan study, however, provided less encouraging results. In
this study, 50 11-month old SAMP8 mice were given alpha-lipoic acid
every day until the day they died. Their longevity was compared with a
control group of 50 SAMP8 mice that were not given the drug. The team
found that mice receiving the drug lived for an average of 20 weeks
after the drug was first administered, and those who did not receive the
drug lived an average of 34 weeks from the beginning of the test—a
significant difference.
"The reason for the increased mortality with alpha-lipoic acid in
this species remains to be determined," says Farr. "However, these
studies have confirmed the potent effect of alpha-lipoic acid on memory
and oxidative stress in SAMP8 mice."
Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that causes problems with
memory, thinking and behavior. The symptoms of Alzheimer's usually
develop slowly and get worse over time, eventually becoming severe
enough to interfere with daily tasks.
VA provides a full range of care for Veterans with Alzheimer's
disease, including home-based primary care; homemakers and home health
aides; respite care; adult day care; and impatient hospital, nursing
home or hospice care. VA's 20 Geriatric Research Education and Clinical
Centers, or GRECCs, conduct laboratory and clinical research on the
origins of aging and the diseases commonly associated with aging,
including Alzheimer's. Research on Alzheimer's and other conditions
associated with aging is ongoing at other VA sites, as well.
