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Two New Alzheimer's Treatments Patented


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#1 stellar

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 08:38 AM


Two New Alzheimer's Treatments Patented
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: December 1, 2004

Filed at 8:02 a.m. ET

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- The Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences
Institute has patented two new potential treatments for Alzheimer's
disease.

One treatment uses bryostatin, a cancer treatment drug. Bryostatin
activates an enzyme, which jump-starts a chemical process thought to
reduce the growth of certain plaques in the brain believed to cause
Alzheimer's, institute researchers found.

In lab animals, bryostatin appears to treat the memory loss symptoms and
the causes of Alzheimer's.

``Bryostatin might even prevent the disease,'' said Dr. Daniel Alkon,
the institute's scientific director.

The other treatment appears to improve short-term memory by combining
methylxanthine, found in coffee and tea, and phenylalanine, an
artificial sweetener ingredient. Alkon said the mixture might also be
used to treat attention-deficit disorder.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office awarded the patents on Nov. 23 and
Nov. 30, and clinical trials could start in six to eight months.

Both treatments, which use substances already approved for use in
humans, require more testing in people to see if they are safe and
effective.

The patents build on previous research at the institute into how brain
molecules interact to form memory.

Alzheimer's affects about 40,000 West Virginians and more than 4 million
Americans.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., helped found the nonprofit institute in
1999 in memory of his mother, who battled Alzheimer's before her death
in 1992.

West Virginia University recently broke ground for a $30 million
building in Morgantown for the institute.

About 25 institute researchers work in labs at WVU and Johns

Hopkins University in Baltimore.

#2 jokerace

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 06:19 PM

Phenylalanine is more than just an ingredient in aspartame. The fact that aspartame contains it isn't primary. Many organic substances contain it as well. Aspartame itself may be very harmful to your brain. There are scores of accounts citing aspartame as causing or being a main contributing factor in strokes, migraine etc. It is considered an excitotoxin. To this day, aspartame (nutrasweet) has the most consumer complaints reported to the FDA of any other approved food additive. It was originally denied by the FDA review board until power shifted and jobs were awarded. Then the new director overode the medical review board and enabled it to recieve approval as a food additive.

On a related note, I was really boggled when I saw the product NeuroStim contained artificial flavors and sweetners. Many of these additives are believed by many to cause neurological issues. Here's the ingedient list:

Amount Per Serving
Calories 14
TyroLean™ Blend
(Choline, L-Tyrosine, Acetyl L-Carnitine) 6,500 mg*
BrainDrive™ Blend
(DMAE (dimethylaminoethanol), Huperzine A 1%, Vinpocetine) 305 mg*
* Percent Daily Value Not Established


Other Ingredients:
Citric Acid, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Aspartame, Sucralose, Acesulfame K


Notice that it has THREE different artificial sweetners. I think they are way over doing it. This would seem quite counter-productive. I wouldn't recomend this product to anyone. It's a shame too because the other ingredients are pretty good.

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#3 stellar

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 06:22 PM

Notice that it has THREE different artificial sweetners.  I think they are way over doing it.  This would seem quite counter-productive.  I wouldn't recomend this product to anyone.  It's a shame too because the other ingredients are pretty good.


Why not just use Xylitol or Stevia?

#4 jokerace

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 06:29 PM

Why not just use Xylitol or Stevia?


Exactly. It's a good question. I am pretty sure I know the answer though. Xylitol and Stevia a both much more expensive. Stevia is an even better choice than Xylitol but again it is quite expensive compared to buying 50 gallon drums of chemical sludge. - aka aspartame and the others.

#5 hyoomen

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 09:07 PM

The Safety of Artificial Sweeteners (parts I & II), by David Tolson
http://thebull.bulkn...eID=6&pageID=88
http://thebull.bulkn...eID=7&pageID=95

I hope it is acceptable for me to post these links, and I admit that I do so without permission.

I personally still cringe at the idea, but I admit that my doing so may be founded upon irrational hysteria and an inherent distrust of mass conglomerates. Besides, I like sugar (and stevia).

#6 hyoomen

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 09:31 PM

To get somewhat more back to the topic at hand, I'm curious as to what specific methylxanthine they used in combination with phenylalanine. The 'family' of chemicals is pretty wide-ranging, including caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline. The idea that these can be used to treat Alzheimer's (especially in combination with phenylalanine), but I don't guess it comes as too much of a shock that these substances might be used in nootropic formulas, as they already are. :)

The bryostatin study is certainly interesting. Will be good to try and locate some more information on it (as well as some other chemicals that have been explored in the past, such as BZP) and check into plausible regimens.

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#7 jokerace

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Posted 02 December 2004 - 09:41 PM

I am inclined to err on the side of caution. I can definitely say that when I stopped drinking diet pepsi, my daily headaches also stopped. I know that it is not caffeine related because I still drink tea with caffeine and very occasionally a regular pepsi with no ill effects although pepsi does tend to lead to heartburn.

The articles are intersting but seem to start out from the angle of debunking the concern over artificial sweetners and end with suggesting caution with other natural sweetners since they are not well lab tested.

This worries me a bit as it probably bothers most scientifically minded people because if you start an investigative report with a particular conclusion in mind, you will reach that conclusion at the end.

On the other hand, the vast amount of negative info on artificial sweetners is mostly by case report which is not concrete evidence either. The important thing for me is "how does it make me feel". It make others feel like crap so I performed my own experiment to see if I felt better without it and within a week I could say for certain that I did. It has been about a year and a half since I quite ingesting artificial sweetners and I rarely get headaches or the general malaise that I experienced before.




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