Researchers from UCLA Health, in collaboration with researchers from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, have received a $9.5 million award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with support from European funding agencies; The Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and the Public Health Agency Health & Social Care (HSC) -; to study the effects of polyphenols on cognitive health and the brain-gut microbiome system.
The proposal, called MAEVE, stands for “Microbiota-mediated flavonoid metabolites for cognitive health.”
In this interdisciplinary and multicenter study, funded by the Tripartite US-Ireland Research & Development Partnership Program, researchers will examine the impact of dietary polyphenol supplements on 300 older adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Polyphenols -; an important part of Mediterranean diets and found in berries, grapes, green tea and cocoa -; may slow cognitive decline by preserving brain function and structure via metabolites of the gut microbiome by altering the physiology of host secondary bile acids, highlighting their potential role in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease.
It is a multicenter, longitudinal and translational intervention study designed to allow us to look at the mechanisms and pathways involved in cognitive decline. We look at multiple markers such as cognitive functioning, brain structure and function, the microbiome and microbial polyphenol metabolites, inflammatory markers such as interleukins and plasma markers specific to Alzheimer’s disease such as tau proteins ptau181 and ptau217.”
Aparna Church, PhD, co-director of the UCLA Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center and principal investigator
In this five-year study, Church and her co-researchers will examine the relationship between polyphenols, cognitive function and brain health across four project targets in 50+ year old adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. First, the researchers will assess the protective effects of dietary polyphenol supplements on the brain (using multimodal MRI) and cognitive parameters. They will then analyze microbiome metabolites, inflammatory markers and Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers associated with polyphenol intake. They will then use bioinformatics and machine learning approaches to investigate the associations between polyphenol intake and intestinal microbial metabolites, inflammatory and Alzheimer’s disease markers, brain parameters and cognitive function. Finally, researchers will use a reverse translational approach in which fecal transplants from individuals at high risk on polyphenol diet supplementation will be performed in mouse models to better understand the underlying mechanisms.
“We hope to better understand the role of dietary polyphenols in slowing the development of cognitive decline and how this is all influenced by the brain and gut microbiome,” Church said. “This will help us better understand and whether the improving properties of a polyphenol-rich diet [we need] dietary interventions and regimens to delay the onset and progression of cognitive decline.”
Researchers from UCLA Health, in collaboration with researchers from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, have received a $9.5 million award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with support from European funding agencies; The Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and the Public Health Agency Health & Social Care (HSC) -; to study the effects of polyphenols on cognitive health and the brain-gut microbiome system.
The proposal, called MAEVE, stands for “Microbiota-mediated flavonoid metabolites for cognitive health.”
In this interdisciplinary and multicenter study, funded by the Tripartite US-Ireland Research & Development Partnership Program, researchers will examine the impact of dietary polyphenol supplements on 300 older adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Polyphenols -; an important part of Mediterranean diets and found in berries, grapes, green tea and cocoa -; may slow cognitive decline by preserving brain function and structure via metabolites of the gut microbiome by altering the physiology of host secondary bile acids, highlighting their potential role in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease.
“It is a multicenter, longitudinal and translational intervention study designed so that we can look at the mechanisms and pathways involved in cognitive decline,” said Aparna Church, PhD, co-director of the UCLA Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center and principal investigator. “We look at multiple markers such as cognitive functioning, brain structure and function, the microbiome and microbial polyphenol metabolites, inflammatory markers such as interleukins, and plasma markers specific to Alzheimer’s disease such as tau proteins ptau181 and ptau217.”
In this five-year study, Church and her co-researchers will examine the relationship between polyphenols, cognitive function and brain health across four project targets in 50+ year old adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. First, the researchers will assess the protective effects of dietary polyphenol supplements on the brain (using multimodal MRI) and cognitive parameters. They will then analyze microbiome metabolites, inflammatory markers and Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers associated with polyphenol intake. They will then use bioinformatics and machine learning approaches to investigate the associations between polyphenol intake and intestinal microbial metabolites, inflammatory and Alzheimer’s disease markers, brain parameters and cognitive function. Finally, researchers will use a reverse translational approach in which fecal transplants from individuals at high risk on polyphenol diet supplementation will be performed in mouse models to better understand the underlying mechanisms.
“We hope to better understand the role of dietary polyphenols in slowing the development of cognitive decline and how this is all influenced by the brain and gut microbiome,” Church said. “This will help us better understand and whether the improving properties of a polyphenol-rich diet [we need] dietary interventions and regimens to delay the onset and progression of cognitive decline.”