‘카레의 강황 성분’, 알츠하이머병(치매) 예방해준다 Common Curry Ingredient Could Help The Brain Battle The Affects Of Alzheimer’s
source redorbit
카레에 들어있는 강황 성분이 알츠하이머병(치매)을 예방해준다는 연구결과가 발표됐다.
독일 신경과학, 의학 연구소 연구팀은 생쥐에서 채취한 신경줄기세포를 시험관에서 배양해 방향성 정유에 노출하는 방법으로 연구한 결과, 카레의 강황에 뇌 손상 치유 성분이 포함됐다는 결과를 도출했다. 방향성 정유 노출량이 많을수록 신경줄기세포 증식 효과는 더욱 컸다.
이어 연구팀은 방향성 정유를 주입한 신경줄기세포를 쥐의 뇌에 넣고 증식하는 신경줄기세포와 결합할 수 있도록 브로모디옥시우리딘이라는 추적자를 투여했다.
7일 후, 양전자방출단층촬영(PET)로 쥐의 뇌를 관찰한 결과, 뇌실하 영역(SVZ)이 넓어지고 기억을 담당하는 해마가 확대된 것으로 나타났다.
이에 대해 연구팀은 카레의 원료인 강황에 들어있는 방향성 정유는 내인성 신경줄기세포의 증식과 분화를 촉진하고 뇌 손상을 치유하는 성분이 들어있어 알츠하이머와 같은 심경변성질환 환자의 뇌 건강을 회복시킨다고 설명했다.
아델레 뤼거 박사는 이번 연구를 토대로 뇌 질환 환자를 대상으로 임상시험이 가능한지 검토하고 있다고 밝혔다.
이번 연구결과에 대해 영국치매연구학회 로라 팝스 박사는 “이 연구결과가 사람에게 적용할 수 있을지, 치매 치료에 도움이 될 수 있을지는 미지수다”라고 전했다.
한편, 강황은 맵고 쓴맛이 나는 황색의 약재로, 통증 완화와 월경불순에 효능이 있다. 인도에서는 타박상이나 염좌에 바르는 약으로 쓰며 카레 가루의 향신료로 쓰기도 한다. 강황의 커큐민 성분은 항암효과, 콜레스테롤 수치저하, 치매 예방, 뇌졸중 예방, 골다공증 개선 등 다양한 효능을 보이는 성분이다.
다만, 시중에 판매되고 있는 카레 가루의 경우에는 강황뿐만 아니라 밀가루, 인공첨가물이 많이 들어있는 단점이 있다.
이 연구결과는 ‘줄기세포 연구와 치료(Stem Cell Research & Therapy)’에 실렸고 영국 데일리메일이 보도했다.
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Common Curry Ingredient Could Help The Brain Battle The Affects Of Alzheimer’s
Republish ReprintRepublish OnlineRepublish OfflineReprintGet Syndication FeedChuck Bednar for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
Eating spicy Indian food could help boost the brain’s ability to heal itself, according to new research published in Friday’s edition of the journal Stem Cell Research and Therapy.
According to Damian Gayle of The Daily Mail, aromatic turmerone, a compound found in the popular curry spice turmeric, could encourage the growth of nerve cells believed to help repair the brains of those suffering from neurodegenerative conditions such as dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
In lab tests involving rats, researchers from the Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3) in Germany, the University Hospital of Cologne Department of Neurology and the Max Planck Institute for Neurological Research found that aromatic turmerone promoted the proliferation of brain stem cells and their development into neurons.
The study authors believe it could help scientists develop new ways to treat conditions that kill brain cells, which include strokes and Alzheimer’s. However, they told BBC News health reporter Smitha Mundasad that additional trials are required to see if the affect is applicable to humans.
The researchers injected the rodents with the compound, and then scanned their brains, Mundasad explained. They found that activity increased in the regions of the brain known to be involved in nerve cell growth following infusion with the bioactive compound. Specifically, they found that the subventricular zone (SVZ) was wider and the hippocampus had expanded in the brains of rats injected with aromatic turmerone.
In a different part of the trial, the researchers bathed rodent neural stem cells (NSCs) in different concentrations of aromatic tumerone extract. NSCs are stem cells found within adult brains that differentiate into neurons, and play a vital role in the self-repair and recovery of brain function in neurodegenerative diseases, the authors explained.
Rat fetal NSCs were cultured and grown in six different concentrations of aromatic tumerone during a 72-hour period, and at some concentrations, the compound was shown to increase stem cell proliferation by as much as 80 percent without having any impact on cell death. Furthermore, the cell differentiation process also became accelerated in cells treated with the aromatic tumerone compound when compared to untreated controls.
In a statement, lead author and INM-3 researcher Dr. Maria Adele Rueger said, “While several substances have been described to promote stem cell proliferation in the brain, fewer drugs additionally promote the differentiation of stem cells into neurons, which constitutes a major goal in regenerative medicine. Our findings on aromatic turmerone take us one step closer to achieving this goal.”
Dr. Laura Phipps of Alzheimer’s Research UK told the BBC that it is “not clear whether the results of this research would translate to people, or whether the ability to generate new brain cells in this way would benefit people with Alzheimer’s disease.” Until additional research reveals the compound’s impact on neurodegenerative diseases, she that that people should not take the new study as “a sign to stock up on supplies of turmeric for the spice rack.”
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