A fresh approach to cognitive improvement.

Brain and memory enhancers have recently become of great interest to the nutrition industry. The growth of the over-50 segment of the population and an overall increase in life expectancy, coupled with the desire and need to function mentally and physically at old age (while facing the prospect of physical and mental deterioration), rapid changes in diet and disease prevalence and the ability to maintain a fulfilling lifestyle at old age, have all been important drivers of the supplement industry. Phosphatidylserine (PS) is a well-known ingredient in the field of cognitive research. Historically, it was extracted from bovine brain; soon enough, however, because of safety concerns, it was replaced by a PS form derived from soybean lecithin and rapidly became a semigeneric compound. Thus, although a significant body of literature supports its true effect on mental/ cognitive restoration for the elderly, this unique compound has found itself stuck between two market hurdles: a lack of market/science leadership and a relatively high price.

PS and Diet

Phospholipids are key cell membrane building molecules in human, animal and plant tissues. They are reported to be involved in numerous cellular functions, such as monitoring different metabolites, ions, hormones and antibodies, as well as cell signalling processes such as survival, growth, differentiation and death. Although it is well documented that phospholipids are important components in our diet, because they can be synthesized within the organism itself, they are not considered to be essential nutrients. By contrast, ageing processes are known to result in diminished levels of nutrient self-synthesis. So, population ageing in the 20th century has contributed to the apparent increase in the dependency on dietary phospholipids. Generally, a high content of dietary phospholipids is associated with animal-derived foodstuffs, as compared with vegetable products.

The most abundant acidic phospholipid is phosphatidylserine; it is an essential constituent of brain membranes and an important player in brain-related biochemical pathways. (1) It is found in small quantities in various foods, such as meat, fish and even breast milk. However, the frequency of these animal-derived foodstuffs in our diet has decreased during the last few decades because of recent trends in nutrition--such as vegetarianism or veganism, and fat- or cholesterol-conscious eating--as well as the incidence of infectious (foot and mouth disease, avian flu) and neurodegenerative diseases (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) in global food crises. Therefore, it is not surprising that, during the past century, the average dietary consumption of PS has markedly decreased; that is, from the previous daily consumption of ~250 mg PS, the Western society diet provides between 180 mg (carnivores) and 50 mg (vegetarian) of PS per day.

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A Fresh Look at PS

PS's main dietary function is to help adults slow down age-related cognitive decline, as described in two qualified health claims recently approved by the US FDA. (2) PS may also benefit other population segments. In the Far East, for example, it is added to infant formulas. The major share of PS being sold today is made from soy lecithin. As mentioned earlier, in the past, PS was extracted from bovine brain, which is characterized by relatively high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, particularly docasahexaenoic acid (DHA). See Figure 1. PS-DHA is the naturally occurring form of PS, as found in mammalian brain and in breast milk. In actual fact, the majority of the clinical evidence establishing PS's unique value proposition is based on this PS form, rather than soy-derived PS (SB-PS). SharpPS GOLD by Enzymotec represents contemporary state-of-the-art technology and research, based on the PS-DHA concept. It is an exclusive, conjugated PS-DHA compound that is set to offer even greater cognitive benefits than the currently available SB-PS.

Clinical Evidence for PS-DHA

Recently, the beneficial effect of PS-DHA supplementation was demonstrated in an Enzymotec-sponsored preclinical trial. Following a short feeding period, the cognitive performance of rats was evaluated using a Morris Water Maze with or without the administration of scopolamine. This agent, known to induce amnesia via choline system impairment, is extensively used as a model for memory decline or dementia. In this study, only the PS-omega-3-fed group resisted the scopolamine-induced cognitive impairment. In fact, their learning and memory abilities were noticeably unaffected by scopolamine as compared with the different treatments, as well as other control groups, such as SB-PS, fish oil or a mixture of SB-PS and fish oil. These observations reinforce the application potential of PS-conjugated DHA compared with fish-oil triglycerides or SB-PS mixtures. In addition, the results were further correlated with higher levels of brain DHA obtained for the PS-omega-3 group (Figure 2), when compared with different treatments, suggesting that phospholipids are a more effective supplementation platform for long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) for the brain.

The benefits of PS on cognitive performance were also observed in a recently concluded, open-label pilot study. In this study, eight subjects (mean age: 69 years) with subjective memory complaints were treated with SharpPS Gold (300 mg/d) for 6 weeks. A computerized cognitive assessment tool, administered at baseline and study termination, was utilized to assess participants' cognitive capabilities, such as memory and attention. Results showed that treatment with SharpPS Gold significantly improved memory recall (p<0.05), whereas favourable trends were observed for memory recognition and secondary memory (p<0.15 and p<0.22, respectively) (Figure 3). In conclusion, despite of the small study population, our findings indicate that providing SharpPS Gold may benefit cognitive function in subjects with memory complaints.

Summary

To summarize, the current global cognitive sector is relatively small when compared with markets such as CVD or sports nutrition; nevertheless, it holds huge potential. It is relevant to the whole human lifecycle and many physical conditions; as such, application possibilities exist in virtually every type of food product. It seems that this market has significant growth potential, as a result of the increase in the ageing global population and parents' awareness of the need for proper mental development and school performance of their children. Enzymotec believes that some of the most promising ingredients are the various phospholipids--especially PS and its novel derivatives--that carry conjugated long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids.

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References

(1.) G. Pepeu, I.M. Pepeu and L. Amaducci, "A Review of Phosphatidylserine Pharmacological and Clinical Effects. Is Phosphatidylserine a Drug for the Ageing Brain?" Pharmacol. Res. 33(2), 73-80 (1996).

(2.) www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/ds-ltr36.html.

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Orly Farkash

Marketing Communications Manager

Enzymotec Ltd

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