X-Message-Number: 24836
From: "Michael C Price" <>
References: <>
Subject: Get Smart!    ... and live longer
Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2004 21:32:13 +0100

A study of the utmost importance has been discussed on 
sci.life-extension.
Read the full text on-line at :
http://www.ebmonline.org/cgi/content/full/228/7/800
Its title is:
"A Dietary Supplement Abolishes Age-Related Cognitive 
Decline in Transgenic Mice Expressing Elevated Free 
Radical Processes"
which suggests we can eliminate Alzheimer's and
Parkinson's diseases.  But this understates the scope 
of the study in three important ways:
1) the supplemented mice not only experienced no 
cognitive decline (unlike the controls), they actually grew 
smarter as they aged, right up to death! 
2) the supplemented mice lived longer.
3) both longevity and intelligence of normal mice,
as well as the transgenic growth-hormone-boosted 
"giant" mice, was also increased by the supplements.

Some details:  the mice were tested by locating hidden food 
in an arena.  The number of trials a mouse took to learn how 
to locate the food was measured, along with the number of 
errors made.  The supplemented mice (both giants and 
normals) found the food in fewer trials and made fewer errors.  
The giant mice (who have 50% larger brains than normal mice) 
solved the problem (relative to giant controls) in considerably 
under halve the number of trials (12 vs 33 trials) and with 
considerably fewer than half the number of errors (51 vs 139 
errors).  The normal mice solved the problem in just over half 
the number of trials (18 vs 35 trials) and with just under half the 
number of errors (92 vs 200 errors), relative to normal controls.

In fact the results *understate* the degree of supplement-
induced cognitive improvement since a significant number of
both giant and normal unsupplemented controls failed to learn the 
food-finding task within 39 trials (i.e. 39 trials was the cut-off 
point, after which no further cognitive testing was performed),
whereas all supplemented mice eventually learnt the task.

The old supplemented mice were not only smarter than aged-
matched controls, they were also smarter than young controls
(18 vs 28 trials and 92 vs 140 errors).

So what was this miracle supplement?  A mixture of 31
vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.  The mice were supplied
with amounts that were mostly way, way over the RDA level
(although short of the amount I take, with the exception of
carnitine).  The supplement included the B-vitamins B1, B3, 
B6, B9 (folic acid), B12 and the minerals zinc, selenium, 
magnesium, chromium and also aspirin, carnitine, CoQ10, 
melatonin, DHEA and alpha-lipoic acid.

It did not include B5 (pantothenic acid) or dietary RNA,
which might improved the results still more, since both 
have previously been shown to extend lifespan.  Nor 
did it include riboflavin, inositol and biotin (more B-vitamins)
which is a shame since the B-vitamins tend to synergise
together.

The lifespan data is sketchy (probably because some
mice were still alive when they published) but another report
is awaiting publication which will have more details.

Cheers,
Michael C Price

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