Tests carried out on fruit flies found that those given curcumin – the key chemical in tumeric – lived 75% longer. Curcumin, extracted from the root of tumeric, has been used as medicine for thousands of years, aiding digestion, fighting infection and guards against heart attacks.
Alzheimer’s disease is linked to the build-up of amyloid plaques in the brain, damaging the wiring. Curcumin did not dissolve this, but accelerated the formation of nerve fibres by reducing the amount of their precursor forms – oligomers – from which they were formed.
Professor Per Hammarstrom, of Linkoping University in Sweden, said: “The results confirm our belief that it is the oligomers that are most harmful to the nerve cells.
“We now see small molecules in an animal model can influence the amyloid form. To our knowledge the encapsulation of oligomers is a new and exciting treatment strategy.”
Several theories have been established about how oligomers can instigate the disease process. According to one hypothesis, they become trapped at nerve junctions, inhibiting impulse signals. Others claim they destroy brain cells by puncturing membrane.
The rates of dementia are lower among the elderly in India.
Source:Inside Ireland