NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., October 3, 2016 --- Physician researchers from
Pickup Family Neurosciences Institute’s Memory & Cognitive Disorders Program have discovered that taking the “medical food,” CerefolinNAC
®, for management of hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) for at least two years could help delay the effects of
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in the brains of patients, according to a study published today in the
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
The research is not only significant for its contribution to the field
of AD treatment, but for its authorship. While it is one of the most respected
hospitals in the region,
Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian is at its core a community hospital – not an academic center that
is expected to produce research for prestigious peer-reviewed journals.
“Our physician leaders don’t just employ the cutting-edge tools
of medicine, they are engaged in building them,” said
Michael Brant-Zawadzki, M.D., F.A.C.R., Ron & Sandi Simon Executive
Medical Director Endowed Chair, Pickup Family Neurosciences Institute, and Senior
Physician Executive, Hoag. “The publication of
Dr. William Shankle’s research is a testament to Hoag’s commitment to innovation.”
Working with researchers from Nestle Health Sciences – Pamlab Inc,
Dr. Shankle, the Judy & Richard Voltmer Endowed Chair in Memory &
Cognitive Disorders at Pickup Family Neurosciences Institute, confirmed that CerefolinNAC
® therapy can greatly reduce brain tissue loss (atrophy) from key
regions affected by AD and Cerebrovascular disease (CVD).
The study showed that taking CerefolinNAC ®, a nutritional therapy
combining L-methylfolate, methylcobalamin, and N-acetyl-cysteine, slowed
hippocampal and cerebral cortical atrophy for AD patients, and slowed
frontal lobe atrophy in CVD patients who suffer from HHcy, a common medical
condition which is associated with a wide variety of neurological disorders
including AD, CVD,
stroke,
Parkinson’s disease and
multiple sclerosis.
This study helps explain previous contradictory results about B-vitamins
by showing the importance of keeping patients on the therapy for at least
two years.
“Previous studies might not have treated patients long enough period
to see the positive outcomes,” said Junko Hara, Ph.D., one of the
lead authors of the study. “That’s a noteworthy contribution,
to show that after two years, the therapy can help significantly delay
brain atrophy.”
“Medical foods,” are generally defined as nutritional supplements
formulated to be given under physician supervision for the management
of a specific disease or condition. The nutritional supplement, CerefolinNAC®,
normalizes the circadian rhythm of the synthesis of cell proteins, enzymes
and other molecules that regulate neuronal function, plus protects neurons
from free radical damage generated during episodes of oxidative stress.
In patients with AD and CVD, when HHcy is not treated, they show faster
rates of brain atrophy than those without HHcy. However, when HHcy is
managed with CerefolinNAC® in those patients, Dr. Hara and colleagues
discovered that brain atrophy rates slow down to the level of AD and CVD
patients without HHcy.
“It’s a significant finding, and one that warrants further
study,” she said. “We are very excited to contribute to the
continued understanding of this disease.”
The full article, “CerefolinNAC Therapy of Hyperhomocysteinemia Delays
Cortical and White Matter Atrophy in Alzheimer’s Disease and Cerebrovascular
Disease,” can be found in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease,
Volume 54, issue 3 (September 2016).
ABOUT HOAG MEMORIAL HOSPITAL PRESBYTERIAN
Hoag is an approximately $1 billion nonprofit, regional health care delivery
network in Orange County, California, that treats more than 27,000 inpatients
and 379,000 outpatients annually. Hoag consists of two acute-care hospitals
– Hoag Hospital Newport Beach, which opened in 1952, and Hoag Hospital
Irvine, which opened in 2010 – in addition to seven health centers
and ten urgent care centers. Hoag is a designated Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Hoag offers
a comprehensive blend of health care services that includes five institutes
providing specialized services in the following areas:
cancer,
heart and vascular,
neurosciences,
women’s health, and orthopedics through Hoag’s affiliate,
Hoag Orthopedic Institute, which consists of an orthopedic hospital and two ambulatory surgical
centers. In 2013, Hoag entered into an alliance with St. Joseph Health
to further expand health care services in the Orange County community,
known as St. Joseph Hoag Health. Hoag has been named one of the Best Regional
Hospitals in the 2016 - 2017
U.S. News & World Report, andBecker’s Hospital Review named Hoag as one of the 2016 “100 Great Hospitals in America”
– a designation Hoag has received four times. National Research
Corporation has endorsed Hoag as Orange County’s most preferred
hospital for the past 20 consecutive years and, for an unprecedented 21
years, residents of Orange County have chosen Hoag as one of the county’s
best hospitals in a local newspaper survey. Visit
www.hoag.org for more information.
ABOUT THE JOURNAL OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE (JAD)
The Journal of Alzheimer's Disease (http://www.j-alz.com) is an international multidisciplinary journal to facilitate progress
in understanding the etiology, pathogenesis, epidemiology, genetics, behavior,
treatment and psychology of Alzheimer's disease. The journal publishes
research reports, reviews, short communications, book reviews, and letters-to-the-editor.
Groundbreaking research that has appeared in the journal includes novel
therapeutic targets, mechanisms of disease and clinical trial outcomes.
The Journal of Alzheimer's Disease has an Impact Factor of 4.151 according
to Thomson Reuters' 2014 Journal Citation Reports. The Journal is
published by IOS Press (www.iospress.com).
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To download the official press release, please click
here.