Sea squirt plasmalogens reverse aging signs in mice — SkimNews
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- Researchers from Stanford University, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences found that plasmalogen supplements derived from edible sea squirts reversed multiple signs of aging in aged mice.
- Plasmalogens are lipid compounds abundant in the brain, heart, and immune cells, whose levels naturally decline with age and are reduced in patients with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
- In Morris water maze tests, aged mice given plasmalogen supplements located a hidden platform significantly faster than untreated aged mice after five days of training.
- Treated mice developed more and healthier synapses, showed substantially lower brain inflammation, and grew thicker, glossier black hair compared to untreated aged controls.
- Professor Lei Fu, the corresponding author, called it "a feasible therapeutic strategy to improve cognitive function in older people" and disclosed he personally takes a plasmalogen supplement every day.
- Published in Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences (2022), the study proposes three possible mechanisms: increased molecules aiding neuron growth, enhanced synaptic membrane fluidity, and effects on the gut-brain microbiome axis.
Why it matters: Results are confined to mice, but the source attests that plasmalogen levels drop with age and are already depleted in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients, making supplementation a plausible intervention angle for the roughly 55 million people worldwide living with dementia. The lead author is so convinced he self-administers the compound daily, though human dosing, safety, and efficacy remain untested.
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