Enhancement of learning and memory by flavonoids

类黄酮增强学习和记忆

• 批准号: BB/F008953/1
• 负责人: Jeremy Spencer
• 金额: $ 49.33万
• 依托单位: University of Reading
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2008 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=BB%2FF008953%2F1
• 关键词: Enhancement; learning; memory; flavonoids

Representing one of the most important lifestyle factors, diet can strongly influence the incidence of cardiovascular disease and neurodegenerative diseases and thus a healthy diet is crucial for healthy ageing. Various bioactive constituents of certain foods and beverages, in particular a class of compounds called flavonoids, have generated interest over the last few years. Recent dietary intervention studies, in particular those using wine, tea, cocoa or blueberries, have begun to demonstrate beneficial effects on the function of blood vessels and on mental performance. While such foods and beverages differ greatly in chemical composition, nutrient content and calories per serving, they have in common that they are amongst the major dietary sources of two groups of flavonoids known as anthocyanins and flavanols. Dietary supplementation studies in humans and animal models using foods or extracts rich in these flavonoids have indicated that they possess an ability to enhance memory and learning. It is thought that they may do this by 1) protecting vulnerable brain cells, 2) enhancing existing brain cell function, 3) stimulating brain cell regeneration, or 4) triggering the growth of new brain cells and/or new blood vessels. Building on existing human and animal work conducted in our laboratory, this multidisciplinary study is designed to determine how specific flavonoids may enhance memory and learning by focussing on their potential to stimulate the growth of new neurons and blood vessels, and the molecular events which determine these changes. The study will also provide crucial information on the ability of flavonoid-rich foods to produce improvements in memory and learning in human older adults using both behavioural and state-of-the-art, brain imaging (fMRI) techniques. The outcomes of this proposal have implications for exploiting the potential beneficial health effects of flavonoid components of the diet, particularly with relation to counteracting the decline in human learning and memory which is associated with normal and abnormal ageing. If we are able to determine which flavonoids are the most beneficial, and how and where they work in the brain, this will help us develop future strategies to maximise these dietary agents in our foods, for example, by developing plants or novel functional food products with high levels of specific flavonoids. In addition, specific dietary advice on food consumption will be improved, as will guidelines to prevent the indiscriminate marketing of food supplements on the basis of putative protective effects. The proposal will broaden understanding of the role that diet plays in the prevention of human brain ageing and the enhancement of a range of cognitive abilities (e.g., spatial memory, long-term memory). The study will also provide the background for new and promising preventive treatments for tackling cognitive decline. The results of this study therefore have important implications for an ageing population where an increase in healthy ageing is greatly desired. Moreover, the potential benefits in terms of quality of life are relevant to the population as a whole, as are the potential savings in health care costs.

饮食是最重要的生活方式因素之一，对心血管疾病和神经退行性疾病的发病率有很大影响，因此健康的饮食对健康老龄化至关重要。某些食品和饮料中的各种生物活性成分，特别是一类被称为类黄酮的化合物，在过去几年中引起了人们的兴趣。最近的饮食干预研究，特别是那些使用葡萄酒、茶、可可或蓝莓的研究，已经开始证明对血管功能和精神表现有有益的影响。虽然这些食品和饮料在化学成分、营养成分和每份热量方面差别很大，但它们有一个共同点，那就是它们都是花青素和黄烷醇两组类黄酮的主要膳食来源之一。在人类和动物模型中使用富含这些类黄酮的食物或提取物进行的膳食补充研究表明，它们具有增强记忆和学习能力的能力。据认为，它们可能通过1)保护脆弱的脑细胞，2)增强现有的脑细胞功能，3)刺激脑细胞再生，或4)触发新脑细胞和/或新血管的生长来做到这一点。在我们实验室进行的现有人类和动物研究的基础上，这项多学科研究旨在确定特定的类黄酮如何通过关注它们刺激新神经元和血管生长的潜力以及决定这些变化的分子事件来增强记忆和学习。该研究还将利用行为和最先进的脑成像（fMRI）技术，为富含类黄酮的食物改善老年人记忆和学习能力的能力提供重要信息。该提案的结果对开发饮食中类黄酮成分的潜在有益健康影响具有重要意义，特别是与抵消与正常和异常衰老相关的人类学习和记忆能力下降有关。如果我们能够确定哪些类黄酮是最有益的，以及它们在大脑中的作用方式和位置，这将有助于我们制定未来的策略，以最大限度地提高食物中的这些膳食剂，例如，通过开发含有高水平特定类黄酮的植物或新型功能食品。此外，还将改进关于食品消费的具体膳食建议，以及防止根据假定的保护作用不分青红皂白地推销食品补充剂的准则。这一提议将扩大人们对饮食在预防人类大脑衰老和增强一系列认知能力（如空间记忆、长期记忆）方面所起作用的理解。这项研究还将为解决认知能力下降的新的和有希望的预防性治疗提供背景。因此，这项研究的结果对人口老龄化具有重要意义，其中健康老龄化的增加是非常可取的。此外，生活质量方面的潜在好处与整个人口有关，保健费用方面的潜在节省也与整个人口有关。

项目成果

Inhibition of colon adenocarcinoma cell proliferation by flavonols is linked to a G2/M cell cycle block and reduction in cyclin D1 expression

• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.07.033
• 发表时间: 2012-02-01
• 期刊: FOOD CHEMISTRY
• 影响因子: 8.8
• 作者: Gomez-Alonso, Sergio;Collins, Vanessa J.;Spencer, Jeremy P. E.
• 通讯作者: Spencer, Jeremy P. E.

Dietary levels of pure flavonoids improve spatial memory performance and increase hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor.

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0063535
• 发表时间: 2013
• 期刊: PloS one
• 影响因子: 3.7
• 作者: Rendeiro C;Vauzour D;Rattray M;Waffo-Téguo P;Mérillon JM;Butler LT;Williams CM;Spencer JP
• 通讯作者: Spencer JP

The effect of flavanol-rich cocoa on cerebral perfusion in healthy older adults during conscious resting state: a placebo controlled, crossover, acute trial.

在有意识的静息状态下，健康老年人中富含黄酮醇的可可醇对脑灌注的影响：安慰剂控制，跨界，急性试验。

• DOI: 10.1007/s00213-015-3972-4
• 发表时间: 2015-09
• 期刊: Psychopharmacology
• 影响因子: 3.4
• 作者: Lamport DJ;Pal D;Moutsiana C;Field DT;Williams CM;Spencer JP;Butler LT
• 通讯作者: Butler LT