Share this to:

Support & Insight for the Autumn of Life

FDA-Approved Buphenyl a Promising Treatment for Memory & Alzheimer’s

Bottle of BuphenylStudies in mice with Alzheimer’s show that sodium phenylbutyrate, known as Buphenyl, successfully increases factors for neuronal growth. Learn how this ability to protect learning and memory may block Alzheimer’s.


(CHICAGO) – Buphenyl, an FDA-approved medication for hyperammonemia, may protect memory and prevent the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Hyperammonemia is a life-threatening condition that can affect patients at any age. It is caused by abnormal, high levels of ammonia in the blood.

Studies in mice with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) have shown that sodium phenylbutyrate, known as Buphenyl, successfully increases factors for neuronal growth and protects learning and memory, according to neurological researchers at the Rush University Medical Center.

Results from the National Institutes of Health funded study, recently were published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

“Understanding how the disease works is important to developing effective drugs that protect the brain and stop the progression of Alzheimer’s disease,” said Kalipada Pahan, PhD, the Floyd A. Davis professor of neurology at Rush and lead investigator of this study.

A family of proteins known as neurotrophic factors help in survival and function of neurons. Past research indicates that these proteins are drastically decreased in the brain of patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

“Neurotrophic factor proteins could be increased in the brain by direct injection or gene delivery,” said Pahan. “However, using an oral medication to increase the level of these protein may be the best clinical option and a cost effective way to increase the level of these proteins directly in the brain.”

“Our study found that after oral feeding, Buphenyl enters into the brain, increases these beneficial proteins in the brain, protects neurons, and improves memory and learning in mice with AD-like pathology,” said Pahan.

In the brain of a patient with Alzheime’rs, two abnormal structures called plaques and tangles are prime suspects in damaging and killing nerve cells. While neurons die, other brain cells like astroglia do not die.

The study findings indicate that Buphenyl increases neurotrophic factors from astroglia. Buphenyl stimulates memory-related protein CREB (cyclic AMP response element-binding protein) using another protein known as Protein Kinase C (PKC) and increases neurotrophic factors in the brain.

“Now we need to translate this finding to the clinic and test Buphenyl in Alzheimer’s disease patients,” said Pahan. “If these results are replicated in Alzheimer’s disease patients, it would open up a promising avenue of treatment of this devastating neurodegenerative disease.”


MORE INFORMATION:

Other researchers involved in this study are Grant Corbett, neuroscience graduate student at Rush and Avik Roy, research assistant professor at Rush.

Alzheimer’s disease slowly destroys memory and thinking skills. In most people with Alzheimer’s, symptoms first appear after age 60. Alzheimer’s is the most common type of dementia among older people. Alzheimer’s affects as many as 5.3 million Americans.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

2 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
wwl4bbc
wwl4bbc
March 17, 2013 4:46 am

Exciting! We need to find a treatment/cure much sooner rather than later!

Unknown
Unknown
March 17, 2013 10:51 pm

I have been diagnoised with Dementia Stage 1 & court ordered to a place,that cares 4 people that have alz. or severe dementia. Bought a l.t.& got involved with whats going on with me.Now wondering if this treatmeant might improve my memory. 5 yrs.here- T.B.I.dementia,no taste or smell senses-HELP-anybody-please

B. Berger

B. Berger

Visit Our Pages On:

Welcome

This site was inspired by my Mom’s autoimmune dementia.

It is a place where we separate out the wheat from the chaffe, the important articles & videos from each week’s river of news. With a new post on Alzheimer’s or dementia appearing on the internet every 7 minutes, the site’s focus on the best information has been a help to many over the past 15 years. Thanks to our many subscribers for your supportive feedback.

The site is dedicated to all those preserving the dignity of the community of people living with dementia.

Peter Berger, Editor

Related

150322-MayoDia.jpeg
The Mayo Clinic's Better Way to Test Dementia
Some Alzheimer’s tests cost thousands of dollars, some cost pennies. The trick is using the right tests at the right ...
person holding hearing aid
How Hearing Loss is Linked to Cognitive Decline
A doctor who specializes in geriatric medicine explains how hearing devices can be helpful in preventing long-term co...
130526-skincancer.jpeg
Why Don't Skin Cancer Patients Get Alzheimer's?
80% fewer skin-cancer patients get Alzheimer's. Why? Is it the medicines they take, their genes, or are they more pro...

Books

Amazon Books
2
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x
News to Get at the Truth

Subscribe To Our Weekly Newsletter

Enjoy thought-provoking videos & articles
News to Get at the Truth

Subscribe To Our Weekly Newsletter