Liu J, Head E, Gharib AM, Yuan W, Ingersoll RT, Hagen TM, Cotman CW, Ames BN. Memory loss in old rats is associated with brain mitochondrial decay and RNA/DNA oxidation: partial reversal by feeding acetyl-L-carnitine and/or R-alpha -lipoic acid. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2002 Feb 19;99(4):2356-61. PubMed.

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  1. Stalling the Ravages of Aging (and Alzheimer's?) With Antioxidants "Since its conception nearly 50 years ago (Harman, 1956), the free radical theory of aging has found some of its best support from studies of brain aging and Alzheimer disease (Smith et al., 1991; Smith et al., 1996). The significance of altered redox homeostasis in both aging and AD is best appreciated by studies showing protection by antioxidants in aging (Joseph et al., 1998, 1999) and AD (Sano et al., 1997; Smith et al., 1999). The present paper by Liu et al., found that antioxidants targeting mitochondria, such as lipoic acid and carnitine, reverse both age-related oxidative damage and behavioral deficits. Since redox changes in AD are similar in nature, albeit greater, to those in aging, these studies indicate that effective therapeutics can be found for AD, and, more importantly, that such treatment may be efficacious for behavioral deficits." -George Perry and Mark A. Smith, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio

    References:

    Smith CD, Carney JM, Starke-Reed PE, Oliver CN, Stadtman ER, Floyd RA, Markesbery WR. Excess brain protein oxidation and enzyme dysfunction in normal aging and in Alzheimer disease. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1991 Dec 1;88(23):10540-3. PubMed.

    Smith MA, Perry G, Richey PL, Sayre LM, Anderson VE, Beal MF, Kowall N. Oxidative damage in Alzheimer's. Nature. 1996 Jul 11;382(6587):120-1. PubMed.

    Joseph JA, Shukitt-Hale B, Denisova NA, Prior RL, Cao G, Martin A, Taglialatela G, Bickford PC. Long-term dietary strawberry, spinach, or vitamin E supplementation retards the onset of age-related neuronal signal-transduction and cognitive behavioral deficits. J Neurosci. 1998 Oct 1;18(19):8047-55. PubMed.

    Joseph JA, Shukitt-Hale B, Denisova NA, Bielinski D, Martin A, McEwen JJ, Bickford PC. Reversals of age-related declines in neuronal signal transduction, cognitive, and motor behavioral deficits with blueberry, spinach, or strawberry dietary supplementation. J Neurosci. 1999 Sep 15;19(18):8114-21. PubMed.

    Sano M, Ernesto C, Thomas RG, Klauber MR, Schafer K, Grundman M, Woodbury P, Growdon J, Cotman CW, Pfeiffer E, Schneider LS, Thal LJ. A controlled trial of selegiline, alpha-tocopherol, or both as treatment for Alzheimer's disease. The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study. N Engl J Med. 1997 Apr 24;336(17):1216-22. PubMed.

    HARMAN D. Aging: a theory based on free radical and radiation chemistry. J Gerontol. 1956 Jul;11(3):298-300. PubMed.

    Smith MA, Petot GJ, Perry G. Diet and oxidative stress: a novel synthesis of epidemiological data on Alzheimer's disease. J Alzheimers Dis. 1999 Nov;1(4-5):203-6. PubMed.

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