Posted on 01/27/2021 11:54:08 AM PST by Red Badger
Researchers at Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) in Japan show that melatonin and its metabolites promote the formation of long-term memories in mice and protect against cognitive decline.
Researchers at Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) showed that melatonin’s metabolite AMK can enhance the formation of long-term memories in mice. Memory of objects were tested after treatment with melatonin or two of its metabolites. Older mice that normally performed poorly on the memory task showed improvements as dosage increased. The metabolite AMK was found to be the most important as melatonin failed to improve memory if it was blocked from metabolizing into AMK.
Walk down the supplement aisle in your local drugstore and you’ll find fish oil, ginkgo, vitamin E, and ginseng, all touted as memory boosters that can help you avoid cognitive decline. You’ll also find melatonin, which is sold primarily in the United States as a sleep supplement. It now looks like melatonin marketers might have to do a rethink. In a new study, researchers led by Atsuhiko Hattori at Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) in Japan have shown that melatonin and two of its metabolites help memories stick around in the brain and can shield mice, and potentially people, from cognitive decline.
One of the easiest ways to test memory in mice is to rely on their natural tendency to examine unfamiliar objects. Given a choice, they’ll spend more time checking out unfamiliar objects than familiar ones. The trick is that for something to be familiar, it has to be remembered. Like in people, cognitive decline in mice manifests as poor memory, and when tested on this novel object recognition task, they behave as if both objects are new.
Acute AMK Effects on Long-Term Object Memory Three 1-minute training trials (A) revealed age-associated object memory decline in middle-aged and old mice at 1 day post-training (B). Systemic AMK (1 mg/kg) administered after a single 1-minute training trial enhanced object memory at 1 and 4 days post-training in all age groups (D-F). Data are presented as mean ± standard error. *P < .05 and **P < .01 indicate significantly different than chance performance (50%). Discrimination index (%) = time exploring novel object/ total object exploration time during test X 100. Credit: Department of Biology,TMDU
The group of researchers at TMDU were curious about melatonin’s metabolites, the molecules that melatonin is broken down into after entering the body. “We know that melatonin is converted into N1-acetyl-N2-formyl-5-methoxykynuramine (AFMK) and N1-acetyl-5-methoxykynuramine (AMK) in the brain,” explains Hattori, “and we suspected that they might promote cognition.” To test their hypothesis, the researchers familiarized mice to objects and gave them doses of melatonin and the two metabolites 1 hour later. Then, they tested their memory the next day. They found that memory improved after treatment, and that AMK was the most effective. All three accumulated in the hippocampal region of the brain, a region important for turning experiences into memories.
For young mice, exposure to an object three times in a day is enough for it to be remembered the next day on the novel object recognition task. In contrast, older mice behave as if both objects are new and unfamiliar, a sign of cognitive decline. However, one dose of AMK 15 min after a single exposure to an object, and older mice were able to remember the objects up to 4 days later.
Lastly, the researchers found that long-term memory formation could not be enhanced after blocking melatonin from being converted into AMK in the brain. “We have shown that melatonin’s metabolite AMK can facilitate memory formation in all ages of mice,” says Hattori. “Its effect on older mice is particularly encouraging and we are hopeful that future studies will show similar effects in older people. If this happens, AMK therapy could eventually be used to reduce the severity of Mild Cognitive Impairment and its potential conversion to Alzheimer’s disease.”
Reference: “The melatonin metabolite N1‐acetyl‐5‐methoxykynuramine facilitates long‐term object memory in young and aging mice” by Hikaru Iwashita, Yukihisa Matsumoto, Yusuke Maruyama, Kazuki Watanabe, Atsuhiko Chiba and Atsuhiko Hattori, 30 October 2020, Journal of Pineal Research. DOI: 10.1111/jpi.12703
>I wish melatonin worked for me. Or CBD oil, or chamomile tea, or Advil PM, or anything.
Just play some Al Gore speeches
Ha ha!
You could try Benadryl as a short-term or Bonine (Meclizine) the anti sea-sick drug.
Been taking it for weeks! What, what’s this about?
Careful there. Does it affect GABA receptors?
Try exercise.
Knowing you are not alone in this can help, and prayer. FR should have a special caucus for such sufferers.
Hi, the only brand I take is Hostdefense.com, grown and extracted locally (in my state) and in tincture firm only. This particular formulation has both the fruiting body and the mycellium extract (very important). I tried a capsule form and I couldn’t tell it was doing anything..
https://selfhacked.com/blog/all-about-lions-mane/
As the other comment noted, cbd with thc works for me (vaped oil — only 4 inhales), almost every time. Great if it’s legal where you are. Indica strains are best for sleep, not sativa.
Failing that, mirtazapine or doxepin (both Rx) will do the trick, even at extremely low doses. Those are both considered antidepressants but the dose used as a sedative can be much lower, at least if only used occasionally.
Lol....the Golf channel does it, for me. 😴
“Not that it mattered, all I could think of was cheese.”
This was a reference to the study—using mice. J/k
I take capsules. I couldn’t always find it in supermarkets, so i regularly order it on-line now. Comes in a day or two.
Bump for later
Bookmark
If I remember to come back.
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