Parkinson's and Alzheimer's

    After many decades in the neurology field, I have come to believe that neurodegenerative conditions like "Parkinson's" and "Alzheimer's" are marketing terms  organized around selling products for frailty.  There is some heterogeneity in the way we fall apart, but they all have in common underlying tissue and complexity changes that can be understood in basic biological terms as a consequence of impaired growth and repair.

    This first article is on rapamycin, an mTOR inhibitor used in anti aging studies (at some point I will review this promising approach to healthy aging).   The article makes a good argument that, for treating Alzheimer's, we should be treating aging itself.

    "Over the past two decades, research on the biology of aging, referred to as geroscience, has made substantial progress in elucidating the genetic, molecular, and biochemical mechanisms of aging . A small number of “hallmarks of aging,” driven by the activity of genes that regulate aging, have been identified that play important and evolutionarily conserved roles in the decline in function and increase in disease associated with old age. By targeting genes that regulate aging and the molecular processes that they represent, researchers have been able to increase life span and delay age-associated decline in every laboratory animal where this has been attempted. In principle, targeting these same processes should also be effective at delaying the onset of specific age-related diseases, including but not limited to AD, and, in some cases, perhaps even reversing specific disease-related pathologies."   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6762017

    Glutathione, through its components NAC and glycine, are known to affect growth processes (mTOR and AMPK, corresponding to anabolism and catabolism) which are more directly affected by the experimental approaches of rapamycin and senolytics.  Importantly, supplementation with the precursors of glutathione do not result in elevations of glutathione, but rather a return to youthful levels.  

     The first demonstration that glutathione can be returned to youthful levels by dietary supplementation of precursors came only in September.

     I write the noncommercial blog unchronic.ghost.io  for people I care about who want to try a supplement to broadly improve their health in old age and are interested in what I do.   There is only a smidgen of empirical human evidence, but lots of basic science supporting the Baylor approach of supplementing glutathione.  

    I suggest to people that they try the "Recipe" for one month, then continue for four months if they improve.  As always, this is my personal opinion regarding what those over 50 might consider, not medical advice for you personally.

    When you look at this approach to aging for specific effects, for example for early Parkinson's, you also see benefits. (Try also Googling NAC, glycine, theanine, melatonin, or pregnenolone and Covid risk, Alzheimer's, inflammatory arthritis, chronic sinusitis, atherosclerosis,  type 2 diabetes, immune senescence, skin wrinkles, etc.)
 

https://parkinsonsnewstoday.com/news/dietary-supplement-eases-parkinsons-symptoms-improves-dopamine-function-study-shows/#:~:text=N%2Dacetyl%2Dcysteine%20(NAC,Parkinson's%20disease%20symptoms%2C%20researchers%20report.

.https://parkinsonsnewstoday.com/news/dietary-supplement-eases-parkinsons-symptoms-improves-dopamine-function-study-shows/#:~:text=N%2Dacetyl%2Dcysteine%20(NAC,Parkinson's%20disease%20symptoms%2C%20researchers%20report.

https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/the-role-of-pregnenolone-in-inflammatory-degenerative-brain-disease-ijm.1000121.php?aid=35410

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7821347/#:~:text=NAC%20treatment%20in%20the%20drinking,peroxidase%2D1%20levels%20in%20the

https://academic.oup.com/endo/article/158/5/1064/3070537

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36502788/  

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6561714/