Scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital found that the hormone irisin, produced in response to physical activity, can reduce the amount of plaque in the brain in Alzheimer’s disease. The research was published in the journal Neuron.
The main symptom of Alzheimer’s disease is the accumulation of beta-amyloid protein aggregates. Previous studies have shown that exercise reduces beta-amyloid deposits in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease. It has been suggested that this may be due to increased levels of the hormone irisin. It regulates the metabolism of glucose and lipids in adipose tissue and also increases energy consumption. Experiments have shown that hormone levels decrease in patients with dementia.
To test whether there is a cause-effect relationship between the decrease in beta-amyloid levels and physical activity, scientists tested the effect of the hormone in a 3D human cell culture model they developed for Alzheimer’s disease.
Treatment of cells with irisin led to a significant reduction in beta-amyloid deposits. This effect was associated with an increase in the activity of neprilysin, a protein produced by astrocytes in brain cells that can break down beta-amyloid.
Previous studies have shown that irisin administered into the bloodstream in mice can travel to the brain, making it a potentially useful therapeutic agent for Alzheimer’s disease.
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