declined cognition and Alzheimer's disease potentially related to reduced lithium levels
In a groundbreaking discovery, scientists at Harvard Medical School, led by Bruce Yankner, have found a link between Lithium deficiency in the brain and Alzheimer's disease. This finding adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting that lithium could be a key player in the fight against this debilitating condition.
The research, published in various scientific journals, indicates that lithium deficiency in the brain may be a key early trigger in Alzheimer's disease. This deficiency, according to Yankner's team, could be reversed with lithium supplementation, particularly with lithium orotate, which has shown promising results in reversing Alzheimer's-related brain damage and memory loss in mouse models.
The team's key findings reveal that lithium naturally occurs in the brain and is essential for healthy brain function. It protects all major brain cell types and maintains normal cognition. However, in individuals with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's, lithium levels are significantly reduced. This depletion seems to accelerate pathology such as amyloid plaque formation and microglial inflammation.
One of the most intriguing aspects of this research is the discovery that beta-amyloid plaques—the hallmark of Alzheimer’s—sequester lithium, lowering its bioavailability in the brain. This depletion appears to contribute to the acceleration of pathology.
Experiments with mouse models demonstrated that feeding them lithium-depleted diets accelerates aging and Alzheimer's-like symptoms, while supplementation with lithium orotate reversed pathological changes and memory deficits. This suggests that lithium orotate, a compound capable of bypassing plaque sequestration, could be a promising therapeutic agent.
Yankner's team developed a screening platform to find lithium compounds that evade plaque sequestration, with lithium orotate as a promising candidate. They advocate larger clinical trials to identify a non-toxic dose and test lithium orotate's potential as an early preventive or therapeutic option.
Moreover, measuring brain lithium levels could become a biomarker for early Alzheimer's detection and identifying individuals at risk, enabling timely lithium replacement therapy.
While human studies are pending, Yankner emphasizes caution. However, he is optimistic that lithium orotate could change the treatment landscape by not just slowing but reversing cognitive decline.
This discovery might explain why standard lithium compounds such as lithium carbonate have shown limited clinical efficacy and toxicity issues in elderly Alzheimer’s patients, since plaques sequester them before they can act. Lithium orotate appears to avoid this problem.
The study opens up many questions, such as whether lithium levels in people decline with normal ageing, whether lithium is an essential element, and what would be an optimal dietary intake. A 2017 nationwide study in Denmark reported a link between higher levels of Lithium in drinking water and a lower incidence of dementia, adding to the intrigue.
Ashley Bush, a neuroscientist at the University of Melbourne, Australia, notes that the study suggests that lithium is a physiological signalling ion, rather than an irrelevant trace metal. He also notes that in addition to GSK3b, 'it is likely that there are further biochemical targets whose activities or interactions might be modulated by lithium'.
In summary, Bruce Yankner’s research reveals lithium deficiency as a foundational factor in Alzheimer’s pathogenesis and positions lithium orotate as a novel, promising therapeutic agent deserving further clinical investigation. The potential of lithium orotate to stall or reverse Alzheimer's disease is an exciting development in the field of neuroscience, offering hope for those affected by this devastating disease.
- The discovery by scientists at Harvard Medical School, led by Bruce Yankner, suggests that lithium could play a key role in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, and its deficiency might be a trigger for this neurological disorder.
- The research indicates that therapies and treatments using lithium orotate, which evades plaque sequestration, could potentially reverse Alzheimer's-related brain damage and memory loss, and even stall the progression of the disease.
- The study also highlights mental health conditions, like Alzheimer's disease, as potential targets for health and wellness interventions that focus on maintaining proper lithium levels in the brain.
- Furthermore, the exploration of lithium therapies and its role in neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease, paves the way for future research into the wider implications of lithium for mental health and CBD's interactions with lithium in the brain.
