Health
Dopamine may improve memory in Alzheimer’s patients, study suggests: What you need to know
Topline
Researchers have found that increasing dopamine production in mice with Alzheimer’s disease improves their memory, a process they hope can be replicated in humans, although more testing needs to be done for a better human alternative.
Woman hugging her elderly mother.
Key facts
A research team from Japan’s RIKEN Center for Brain Science tested the new treatment method, boosting dopamine production in the brains of mice with Alzheimer’s disease, in the hope of increasing levels of an enzyme called neprilysin.
Prior research has shown that neprilysin can reduce the production of bits of protein called beta-amyloid, which reduces the formation of plaque around brain neurons – one of the first indicators of Alzheimer’s disease – and the research team had previously found that the neurotransmitter dopamine increases levels of neprilysin.
The scientists were able to continuously activate the neurons in the mice’s brains that produce dopamine, and after eight weeks the mice had significantly fewer plaques in their brains, according to a new study published Tuesday in Science Signaling.
Next one, levodopaSome mice were given a Parkinson’s drug used as a dopamine replacement because, although the drug has serious side effects, boosting dopamine production in humans with a drug is a more viable treatment option than genetically engineering. growth as the researchers did with the mice.
The drug was given for three months and led to an increase in neprilysin and a subsequent decrease in beta-amyloid. The mice that received this treatment performed better on memory tests than the placebo group that was not treated with the drug.
What side effects does Levodopa have?
The researchers believe that levodopa – also known as L-DOPA – is a good starting point to begin researching the human treatment for boosting dopamine production in Alzheimer’s patients, but it may not be the best option in the long term because it has ‘serious side effects’ in some Parkinson’s patients. Some of the most common side effects include dizziness, nausea, confusion, hallucinations, psychosis, low blood pressure, agitation and delusions, according to StatPearls research. Long-term use can lead to complications such as irreversible changes in motor function, which affect approximately 50% of patients who take the drug for five to ten years. Because of these side effects, “our next step is to investigate how dopamine regulates neprilysin in the brain, which should provide a new preventive approach that can be initiated in the preclinical stage of Alzheimer’s disease,” Dr. Watamura Naoto, first author of the study and researcher at the RIKEN Center for Brain Science, said in a statement.
What is dopamine?
Dopamine, also known as the ‘feel-good neurotransmitter’, is a hormone and a type of neurotransmitter in the brain that is used by the nervous system to send messages to the nerves, according to to the Cleveland Clinic. It plays an important role in the brain’s reward system because it is released by the brain when a person does something that is pleasurable. This rush of dopamine causes a person to seek more of that feeling, which can lead to behaviors such as drug and alcohol addiction and overeating, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Research has shown that the hormone may play a major role in dementia, as low dopamine levels can indicate early signs of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
Large number
6.7 million. That’s how many Americans aged 65 or older had Alzheimer’s disease in 2023, according to to the Alzheimer’s Association. About one in nine people aged 65 or older has Alzheimer’s.
Tangent
Erectile dysfunction drugs such as Viagra may also be important treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, according to a neurological study published in February. The researchers found that participants who were prescribed erectile dysfunction medications were 18% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than their counterparts who were not. The types of drugs used in the study are called phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors, and the researchers believe that PDE5Is may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s because some forms of the drugs may improve brain health by increasing blood flow to enlarge the brain and reduce the amount. of the energy neurons consumed in the brain.
Read further
Erectile dysfunction drugs like Viagra may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s, study shows (Forbes)
