Could caffeine be a future treatment for Alzheimer’s disease? A new study suggests its benefits could slow progression in affected persons in the early stages.
Previous epidemiological studies have suggested regular, moderate caffeine consumption might slow age-related cognitive decline and the risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease, a condition marked by memory disorders, issues with executive functions and orientation in time and space.
In the recent study, published in ‘Brain’ on Friday, researchers from France’s Lille Neuroscience and Cognition Research Centre analysed the mechanisms underpinning the development of Alzheimer’s disease. They found that the pathological increase of caffeine-target receptors in neurones during the disease’s development promoted the loss of synapses, which leads in turn to the early onset of memory disorders in animal models.
In 2016, the same research team described one of the mechanisms by which caffeine could block these receptors, which are abnormally overexpressed in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s. “By blocking these receptors, whose activity is increased in Alzheimer’s patients, it could be that caffeine prevents the development of memory disorders and other cognitive and behavioural symptoms,” said David Blum, research director of the French Institute of Health and Medical Research and one of the authors of the study.
A clinical Phase 3 trial, led by Lille University Hospital and involving 248 patients is underway. Half of the patients will receive 400 mg of caffeine, while the other half will receive a placebo. Its goal is to assess the effect of caffeine on the cognitive functions of patients with early to moderate stages of Alzheimer’s.
