Archive for July, 2008
July 22nd, 2008 -- Posted in Alzheimers, Mental Health |
Every aging baby boomer listens for the footsteps of Alzheimer’s, and for good reason: It’s estimated that 10 million American boomers will develop the disease. The need to develop preventative strategies, ideally long before Alzheimer’s destructive, clinical symptoms appear, is critical.
In furthering the steps toward that goal, UCLA associate professor of neurology John Ringman and his colleagues confirm in the current issue of the journal Neurology that during Alzheimer’s earliest stages, levels of specific proteins in the blood and spinal fluid begin to drop as the disease progresses, making them potentially useful as biomarkers to identify and track progression long before symptoms appear.
Identifying patients at the clinically “silent” stage is a prerequisite for advancing the strategies needed to prevent the symptoms from appearing. The hope is that one day, screening for such biomarkers could take its place beside such routine tests as colonoscopies and mammograms as another common tool of preventive medicine.
Familial Alzheimer’s and sporadic Alzheimer’s are two of the basic types of the disease. The majority of Alzheimer’s cases are sporadic and late-onset, developing after the age of 65; the causes of this disease type are not completely understood. Familial Alzheimer’s (FAD) is a rare form of the disease caused by certain gene mutations that affects less than 2 percent of Alzheimer’s patients. FAD is early-onset, meaning the disease develops before age 65, and it is inherited; all offspring in the same generation have a 50-50 chance of developing FAD if one of their parents had it. The markers the researchers tracked came from people with the FAD mutations.
“Since we knew that 50 percent of first-degree relatives will inherit the same rare mutations, we were able to study the biochemical changes occurring in the cerebrospinal fluid and blood as long as 30 years before the subjects were likely to develop the disease themselves,” said Ringman, who is the assistant director of the Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research at UCLA. “This allowed us to identify markers that might be used to diagnose the disease prior to the development of overt symptoms, and also tells us a lot about the chain of events that cause the disease.”
The study looked at several proteins that exist in the cerebrospinal fluid and plasma in 21 FAD mutation carriers and compared them to noncarriers. Knowing that the extracellular plaques characteristic of Alzheimer’s that form in the brain consist largely of a fibrous beta-amyloid protein called AB42, the researchers looked at that protein and found that it was elevated in the plasma of FAD mutation carriers, appearing long before the development of obvious dementia. The level then appears to drop as the disease progresses. In addition, the researchers showed that the ratio of AB42 to another protein, AB40, was reduced in the cerebrospinal fluid of FAD mutation carriers and, further, that the levels of two other proteins, called t-tau and p-tau181, were elevated prior to overt symptoms.
“These results are worth highlighting because of the implications for Alzheimer’s prevention research,” Ringman said. “The presence of cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease prior to any clinical symptoms suggests the pathology of Alzheimer’s precedes the clinical symptoms and further demonstrates that it may be possible to detect those changes prior to the appearance of cognitive dysfunction.”
The use of subjects at risk for autosomal dominant Alzheimer’s disease is both a strength and a weakness of the study, Ringman said. Using research subjects that are known to have a predisposition to Alzheimer’s calls for caution. On the one hand, he said, “this population can be genetically defined so we can predict whether they will or will not develop the disease in the future with a high degree of certainty. However, these mutations are very rare, and some findings in this rare form of Alzheimer’s disease may not generalize to more typical late-onset Alzheimer’s disease.”
Nevertheless, he said, since the pathology of FAD is essentially identical to that of sporadic Alzheimer’s, it is plausible that the preclinical changes in these proteins are common to all forms of the disease and bear more scrutiny.
The study was supported by several sources, including the Shirley and Jack Goldberg Trust, the Brotman Foundation of California, the National Institute on Aging, a grant from the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center of California, and the Sidell Kagan Foundation. Other authors include S.G. Younkin, D. Pratico, W. Seltzer, G.M. Cole, D.H. Geschwind, Y. Rodriguez, B. Schaffer, J. Fein, S. Sokolow, E.R. Rosario, K.H. Gylys, A. Varpetian, L.D. Medina and J.L. Cummings. The authors report no conflicts of interest.
The Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research at UCLA is a comprehensive research and clinical program for individuals with memory complaints, Alzheimer’s disease and related conditions. It is part of the UCLA Department of Neurology, which encompasses more than a dozen research, clinical and teaching programs. The department ranked No. 1 in 2005 and 2006 among its peers nationwide in National Institutes of Health funding.
Source: UCLA Newsroom, Mark Wheeler (http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/an-id-for-alzheimer-s-53281.aspx)
July 21st, 2008 -- Posted in Alzheimers, Brain Food, Mental Health |
MIT brain researchers have developed a “cocktail” of dietary supplements, now in human clinical trials, that holds promise for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
For years, doctors have encouraged people to consume foods such as fish that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids because they appear to improve memory and other brain functions.
The MIT research suggests that a cocktail treatment of omega-3 fatty acids and two other compounds normally present in the blood, could delay the cognitive decline seen in Alzheimer’s disease, which afflicts an estimated 4 million to 5 million Americans.
“It’s been enormously frustrating to have so little to offer people that have (Alzheimer’s) disease,” said Richard Wurtman, the Cecil H. Green Distinguished Professor of Neuropharmacology at MIT, who led the research team. The study appears in the May 9 issue of Brain Research.
Wurtman will present the research at the International Academy of Nutrition and Aging 2006 Symposium on Nutrition and Alzheimer’s Disease/Cognitive Decline in Chicago on Tuesday, May 2.
The three compounds in the treatment cocktail — omega-3 fatty acids, uridine and choline — are all needed by brain neurons to make phospholipids, the primary component of cell membranes.
After adding those supplements to the diets of gerbils, the researchers observed a dramatic increase in the amount of membranes that form brain cell synapses, where messages between cells are relayed. Damage in brain synapses is believed to cause the dementia that characterizes Alzheimer’s disease.
If the successful results obtained in gerbils can be duplicated in the ongoing human trials, the new treatment could offer perhaps not a cure but a long-term Alzheimer’s treatment similar to what L-dopa, a dopamine precursor, does for Parkinson’s patients, said Wurtman, a professor in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences.
“It doesn’t cure Parkinson’s, but what it does do is to help replace something that’s missing. It’s not permanent, but it has had an enormous impact on people who have Parkinson’s,” he said.
The new potential treatment offers a different approach from the traditional tactic of targeting the amyloid plaques and tangles that develop in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Until recently, most researchers believed these plaques and tangles caused the cognitive decline. But the failure of this hypothesis to lead to an effective treatment for Alzheimer’s disease has caused some scientists to theorize that, though the plaques and tangles are always associated with the disease, they may not be the main cause of the dementia, nor the best target for treating it.
Instead, the new research focuses on brain synapses, where neurotransmitters such as dopamine, acetylcholine, serotonin and glutamate carry messages from presynaptic neurons to receptors in the membranes of postsynaptic neurons. In Alzheimer’s patients, synapses in the cortex and hippocampus, which are involved in learning and memory, are damaged.
After the dietary supplements were given, the researchers detected a large increase in the levels of specific brain proteins known to be concentrated within synapses, indicating that more synaptic membranes had formed, Wurtman said. Synaptic membrane protein levels rose if the gerbils were given either omega-3 fatty acids or uridine plus choline. However, the most dramatic upsurge was observed in gerbils fed all three compounds.
“To my knowledge, this is the first concrete explanation for the behavioral effects of taking omega-3 fatty acids,” said Wurtman.
Choline can be found in meats, nuts and eggs, and omega-3 fatty acids are found in a variety of sources, including fish, eggs, flaxseed and meat from grass-fed animals. Uridine, which is found in RNA and produced by the liver and kidney, is not obtained from the diet. However, uridine is found in human breast milk, which is a good indication that supplementary uridine is safe for humans to consume, Wurtman said.
Recent studies by the researchers at MIT, and by scientists at Cambridge University in England, showed that either uridine or omega-3 fatty acids can promote the growth of neurites, which are small outgrowths of neuronal cell membranes. That further supports the hypothesis that omega-3 fatty acids increase synaptic membrane formation, said Wurtman.
Alzheimer’s patients in the clinical trials, which will involve multiple medical centers, are being given a drink that contains the compounds under study, or a taste-matched placebo.
“If it works as well on the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease as it does in laboratory animals, I think there will be a lot of interest,” Wurtman said.
Other authors on the paper are Ismail Ulus, Mehmet Cansev, Carol Watkins, Lei Wang and George Marzloff of MIT’s Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences. Ulus and Cansev also work at the Uludag University School of Medicine in Turkey.
The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Center for Brain Sciences and Metabolism Charitable Trust and the Turkish Academy of Sciences.
Source: MIT News (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2006/alzheimers.html)
July 21st, 2008 -- Posted in Arthritis / Joint Pain, Osteoporosis / Bone Health, Physical Health |
The bones are continuously being broken down and rebuilt in a cycle that takes two to three months. From childhood into the 30s, an individual’s bones absorb calcium, becoming strong and dense. As people age, however, the body start to reabsorb calcium from the bones, leading to the loss of between 0.3 and 0.5% more bone than is rebuilt.
This inequity causes the bone mass to shrink. The bones become fragile and prone to fractures even from everyday activities. These fractures often occur in the spine, hip or wrist.
About eight million women and two million men in the U.S. have osteoporosis. As many as 18 million more Americans may have low bone density.
Osteoporosis is a condition that has virtually no symptoms until severe bone damage has already occurred. Once the bones have been weakened by bone density loss, symptoms may include:
- Back pain
- Loss of height over time with stooped posture
- Fractures of the vertebrae, wrists, hips or other bones
Without treatment, a person with osteoporosis is likely to have fractures, most often in the spine or hips (which support the body’s weight) or in the wrists from bracing against a fall. Fractures of the spine can happen even without a fall or an injury. The bones of the spine become so weak that they start to compress. These types of fractures can cause severe pain and require a long recovery period. They also cause a loss of height and stooped posture.
Hip fractures, the second most common type of fracture due to osteoporosis, usually result from a fall. Although most people do relatively well with modern surgical treatment, hip fractures can result in disability and even death from postoperative complications.
Taking steps to prevent bone density loss is helpful no matter what your age or condition:
- Get enough calcium and vitamin D. Premenopausal women and postmenopausal women on HRT should have at least 1,200 milligrams (mgs) of calcium and 400 international units (IU) of vitamin D every day. Postmenopausal women not on HRT and those at risk of getting osteoporosis from taking steriods should get 1,500 mgs of calcium and 800 IU of vitamin D daily. Men under age 65 should consume 1,000 mgs of calcium every day and men over age 65, 1,500 mgs. Good sources of calcium include milk; low-fat plain yogurt; Swiss, cheddar and ricotta cheese; broccoli; canned salmon with the bones; orange juice and tofu. If you find it hard to get this much calcium from your diet, try calcium supplements.
- Exercise, which helps build strong bones and slow bone loss. It is helpful no matter when you begin, but it has the greatest benefits when you start young and do it throughout your life. Strength training lets you build the muscles and bones in your arms and upper spine. Weight-bearing exercise (walking, jogging, running, stair climbing, skipping rope, skiing and impact-producing sports) helps the bones in your legs, hips and lower spine.
- Don’t smoke. Smoking speeds bone loss, perhaps by lowering how much estrogen a woman’s body makes and by reducing the calcium absorbed by the intestine.
- Consider HRT. HRT is the best way to reduce a woman’s risk of osteoporosis during and after menopause.
- Avoid drinking too much alcohol. Having more than two alcoholic drinks a day may cut bone formation and the body’s ability to absorb calcium. There’s no clear link between limited alcohol intake and osteoporosis.
- Limit caffeine.
If you already have osteoporosis, you may also want to consider the following:
- Maintain good posture. Keep your head held high, chin in, shoulders back, upper back flat and lower back arched to avoid stress on your spine. When you sit or drive, put a rolled towel in the small of your back. Don’t lean over while reading or doing handwork. When lifting, bend at your knees, not your waist. Lift with your legs, keeping your upper back straight.
- Prevent falls. Wear low-heeled shoes with nonslip soles, and check your house for electrical cords, throw rugs and slippery surfaces that might cause you to trip or fall.
- Manage pain. Discuss pain management with your doctor. Don’t ignore chronic pain. Left untreated, it can limit your mobility and cause even more pain.
Source: Cedars Sinai Medical Center (http://www.csmc.edu/5219.html)
July 21st, 2008 -- Posted in Brain Food, Mental Health |
More than 17,000 people in the United States are diagnosed each year with a brain tumor. Some tumors are benign (noncancerous), and they can usually be removed and are not likely to recur. Others are malignant (cancerous). They interfere with vital functions and are life-threatening. Cancerous brain tumors usually grow rapidly, crowding and invading tissue.
Primary brain tumors are cancers that arise in the brain and affect the central nervous system (CNS). Secondary brain tumors, which are 10 times more common, are cancers that originated elsewhere in the body and have metastasized (spread) to the brain.
A brain tumor can be accompanied by the following signs and symptoms.
- Headaches that often are worse in the morning
- Seizures (convulsions)
- Nausea or vomiting
- Weakness or loss of feeling in the arms or legs
- Stumbling or lack of coordination when walking
- Abnormal eye movements or changes in vision
- Drowsiness
- Changes in personality or memory
- Changes in speech
People with the following conditions or characteristics may be at risk for developing a brain tumor.
- Radiation exposure
- Increased age
- Exposure to pesticides, herbicides, fertilizer
- Certain occupations, such as lead, petroleum, plastic, rubber, and textile workers, as well as aircraft and vehicle operators
- Exposure to electromagnetic fields
- Certain viruses, especially Epstein-Barr virus
- People who have had transplants and individuals with AIDS
Complementary and Alternative Therapies
A comprehensive treatment plan for brain cancer may include a range of complementary and alternative therapies. Nutrients and herbs may protect against side effects from conventional therapies as well as enhance chemotherapy and support anticancer activities. Mind-body therapies such as meditation, relaxation techniques, yoga, and qi gong may reduce the effects of stress and enhance your quality of life and your response to treatment. Ask your team of health care providers about the best ways to incorporate these therapies into your overall treatment plan, and make sure you always tell your health care provider which herbs and supplements you are taking.
Nutrition and Supplements
Following these nutritional tips may help reduce symptoms:
- Try to eliminate suspected food allergens, such as dairy (milk, cheese, and ice cream), wheat (gluten), soy, corn, preservatives and chemical food additives. Your health care provider may want to test you for food allergies.
- Eat foods high in B-vitamins, calcium, and iron, such as almonds, beans, whole grains (if no allergy), dark leafy greens (such as spinach and kale), and sea vegetables.
- Eat cruciferous vegetables (such as broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower).
- Eat antioxidant foods, including fruits (such as blueberries, cherries, and tomatoes) and vegetables (such as squash and bell pepper).
- Avoid refined foods such as white breads, pastas, and sugar.
- Eat fewer red meats and more lean meats, cold-water fish, tofu (soy, if no allergy) or beans for protein. Quality protein sources, such as organic meat and eggs, whey, and vegetable protein shakes, should be used as part of balanced program aimed at gaining muscle mass and preventing wasting that can sometimes be a side effects of cancer therapies.
- Use healthy cooking oils, such as olive oil or vegetable oil.
- Reduce or eliminate trans-fatty acids, found in such commercially baked goods as cookies, crackers, cakes, French fries, onion rings, donuts, processed foods, and margarine.
- Avoid caffeine and other stimulants, alcohol, and tobacco.
- Exercise, if possible, 5 days a week.
You may address nutritional deficiencies with the following supplements:
- A multivitamin daily, containing the antioxidant vitamins A, C, E, the B-complex vitamins, and trace minerals such as magnesium, calcium, zinc and selenium.
- Probiotic supplement (containing Lactobacillus acidophilus), 5 - 10 billion CFUs (colony forming units) a day, for maintenance of gastrointestinal and immune health. You should refrigerate your probiotic supplements for best results.
- Omega-3 fatty acids, such as fish oil, 1 - 2 capsules or 1 tbsp. of oil one to two times daily, to help decrease inflammation and help with immunity. Cold-water fish, such as salmon or halibut, are good sources.
- Vitamin C, 500 - 1,000 mg daily, as an antioxidant and for immune support.
- Lycopene, 5 mg one to three times daily, for antioxidant and anticancer activity.
- Alpha-lipoic acid, 25 - 50 mg twice daily, for antioxidant support.
- Resveratrol (from red wine), 50 - 200 mg daily, to help decrease inflammation and for antioxidant effects.
- Coenzyme Q10, 100 - 200 mg at bedtime, for antioxidant and immune activity.
- L-theanine, 200 mg one to three times daily, for nervous system and immune support.
- Melatonin, 2 - 6 mg at bedtime, for immune support and sleep. Higher doses may be needed in cancer. Consult your health care provider.
Herbs
Herbs are generally a safe way to strengthen and tone the body’s systems. As with any therapy, you should work with your health care provider to get your problem diagnosed before starting any treatment. You may use herbs as dried extracts (capsules, powders, teas), glycerites (glycerine extracts), or tinctures (alcohol extracts). Unless otherwise indicated, you should make teas with 1 tsp. herb per cup of hot water. Steep covered 5 - 10 minutes for leaf or flowers, and 10 - 20 minutes for roots. Drink 2 - 4 cups per day. You may use tinctures alone or in combination as noted.
- Green tea ( Camellia sinensis) standardized extract, 250 - 500 mg daily, for antioxidant, anticancer and immune effects. Use caffeine-free products. You may also prepare teas from the leaf of this herb.
- Reishi mushroom ( Ganoderma lucidum) standardized extract, 150 - 300 mg two to three times daily, for anticancer and immune effects. You may also take a tincture of this mushroom extract, 30 - 60 drops two to three times a day.
- Cat’s claw ( Uncaria tomentosa ) standardized extract, 20 mg three times a day, for anticancer, immune, and antibacterial or antifungal activity.
- Milk thistle ( Silybum marianum ) seed standardized extract, 80 - 160 mg two to three times daily, for detoxification support.
- Fermented wheat germ extract, 1 packet dissolved in favorite beverage once daily, for anticancer and immune effects.
Combine essential oils of bergamot ( Citrus bergamia ), chamomile ( Matricaria recutita ), and lavender ( Lavendula angustifolia) in aromatherapy applications. Place several drops in a warm bath, or four to six drops in 1 tbsp. of vegetable oil for massage.
Homeopathy
An experienced homeopath can prescribe a regimen for supporting general health during brain cancer that is designed especially for you. Acute remedies may help relieve symptoms associated with complications.
Homeopathy may help reduce symptoms and strengthen overall constitution, reduce the effects of stress during cancer, and may decrease the side effects of chemotherapy.
- Radium bromatum is specific for radiation poisoning, especially followed by arthritic complaints. Acute dose is three to five pellets of 12X to 30C every 1 - 4 hours until symptoms are relieved.
Acupuncture
While acupuncture is not used as a treatment for cancer itself, evidence suggests it can be a valuable therapy for cancer-related symptoms (particularly nausea and vomiting that often accompanies chemotherapy treatment). There have also been studies indicating that acupuncture may help reduce pain and shortness of breath. Acupressure (pressing on rather than needling acupuncture points) has also proved useful in controlling breathlessness. Patients can learn this technique to treat themselves.
Some acupuncturists prefer to work with a patient only after the completion of conventional medical cancer therapy. Others will provide acupuncture or herbal therapy during active chemotherapy or radiation. Acupuncturists treat cancer patients based on an individualized assessment of the excesses and deficiencies of qi located in various meridians. In many cases of cancer-related symptoms, a qi deficiency is usually detected in the spleen or kidney meridians.
The outlook varies greatly depending on the type of tumor and other factors. Some types of brain cancer have a 5-year survival rate above 80 percent. Brain cancer has significant emotional and psychological effects. Patients who receive radiation therapy to large areas of the brain or certain anticancer drugs may have a higher risk of developing leukemia or a second tumor at a later time. Radiation that affects the eyes may lead to the later development of cataracts.
Regular follow-up is very important after treatment, to make sure the tumor has not returned. Checkups usually include physical and neurologic exams and occasional CT scans or MRIs.
Source:University of Maryland Medical Center (http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/brain-cancer-000024.htm)
July 21st, 2008 -- Posted in Life Extension |
Mehmet Fatih Yanik
Asst. Professor of Electrical Engineering
Significant extension of the human lifespan by disease-preventive and tissue-regenerative technologies within the next one to two decades will dramatically impact the world economy. These technologies will probably span everything from small molecule therapies and nano- and microscale devices to whole organ replacement technologies using stem cells. Beyond the scientific and technological hurdles, temporary challenges will include the cost versus benefit of these technologies, legal and ethical concerns, and regulations and strategic investment choices among various options. The current economic slowdown may delay this revolution, but I strongly believe it is unstoppable, and hopefully it will take place within most of our lifetimes.
Source:MIT News (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2008/hope-yanik-0521.html)
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