CENTER FOR CAM RESEARCH IN AGING

近年来，越来越多的美国人开始使用替代传统医学的方法。这包括39%的50岁及以上的人。衰老并非从65岁开始，而是贯穿我们的一生。中年时期发生的生理、社会和心理变化会对健康产生重大影响，从而影响到余生的质量和持续时间。这种变化对女性来说尤其重要，因为雌激素水平的下降会导致生理特征的变化。尽管雌激素疗法被广泛推荐给中年女性，以长期预防心脏病、骨质疏松症和阿尔茨海默病，但雌激素疗法也与癌症风险增加有关，而且有副作用，大多数女性选择不服用。我们提议的哥伦比亚大学老年CAM研究中心最初的重点是对绝经后妇女临床关注的植物和饮食方法，目的是严格评估这些方法的疗效、作用机制和可能的风险。该中心包括三个高度互动的临床研究项目和一个基础科学项目，由行政、生物统计和临床研究核心提供支持。项目一：与在常规饮食中添加单一食物相比，研究长寿饮食对可能受雌激素影响的各种生化和心血管参数的影响。项目二评估这些天然的膳食雌激素来源是否能预防绝经后骨质流失，这是当前最重要的公共卫生挑战之一。最先进的测量骨形成和骨吸收标志物的方法将与高度敏感的骨量定量相结合。项目三旨在确定黑升麻治疗是否有效减少更年期宿主闪光的频率和强度。项目四研究了一种广泛使用的中草药配方在细胞培养和体内的生物活性、作用机制和潜在风险。所有的项目都由对补充和替代医学有积极兴趣的首席研究员领导，他们在临床人群和基础研究方面都有丰富的经验。虽然拟议中的老年CAM中心将首先评估绝经后妇女的饮食和草药治疗，但工作的评分将通过发展研究计划扩大，包括其他CAM模式。此外，还提出了一个强有力的职业发展计划，这将为哥伦比亚大学对CAM感兴趣的研究人员和更大的CAM社区提供重要的联系。该中心将利用哥伦比亚大学独特的机构资源，开发一个跨学科的研究项目，针对老龄化的重大健康问题，并将对未来的CAM研究人员进行及时的教育和培训。

In recent years increasing numbers of Americans are using alternative approaches to conventional medicine. This includes 39% of people age 50 and older. Aging does not begin at age 65 but occurs across our life span. Physiological, social and psychological changes that occur during midlife can have major effects on health and thereby, the quality and duration of the rest of life. Such changes are particularly significant for women, where declining estrogen levels result in changes in the physiologic profile. Although estrogen therapy is widely recommended to midlife women with long term protection against heart disease, osteoporosis and Alzheimer's disease in mind, estrogen therapy is also associated with increased cancer risk and has side effects and most women choose not to take it. The initial focus of our proposed Center for CAM Research in Aging at Columbia University is on botanical and dietary approaches to clinical concerns of post menopausal women with the goal of rigorous evaluation of the efficacy, mechanisms of action, and possible risks of these approaches. The proposed Center contains three highly interactive clinical research projects and one basic science project, supported by administrative, biostatistical, and clinical research cores. Project One examines the influence of a macrobiotic diet, as compared to the addition of a single food to a typical diet, on various biochemical and cardiovascular parameters that may be influenced by estrogens. Project Two assesses whether these natural, dietary sources of estrogen prevent postmenopausal bone loss, one of the most important current public health challenges. State-of-the-art approaches to measurement of markers of bone formation and bone resorption will be combined with highly sensitive quantitation of bone mass. Project Three is designed to determine whether treatment with herb black cohosh is effective in reducing the frequency and intensity of menopausal host flashes. Project Four examines the bioactivity, mechanisms of action, and potential risks of a widely-used Chinese Herbal formula in cell culture and in vivo. All of the Program Projects are led by Principal Investigators with an active interest in complementary and alternative medicine and extensive experience with both clinical populations and basic research. While the proposed Center for CAM in Aging will initially evaluate dietary and herbal treatments in postmenopausal women, the score of work will be expanded through the Developmental Research Program to include other CAM modalities. In addition, a strong Career Development Program is proposed that will provide a critical link between researchers with an interest in CAM at Columbia and the larger CAM community. The proposed Center will take advantage of the unique institutional resources available at Columbia, will develop an interdisciplinary research program that targets significant health problems of aging, and will conduct the timely education and training of future CAM researchers.