An all-Maltese team of researchers has found the Mediterranean diet slows down the progress of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
Epidemiological studies show that food popular in the area protects against heart diseases and cancer but Maltese research has taken this scientific knowledge a step further.
The four-year project looking into which natural molecules found in food and drinks impact the process of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s has singled out chemical compounds in the typical Mediterranean diet that “very effectively” slow down the ailment.
These compounds, known as polyphenols, slow down and even prevent the deposition of plaques in the brain that cause the disease.
“When it comes to neurodegenerative diseases, treatment options tend to focus on symptomatic relief rather than the underlying cause. Through this project, we wanted to find out which polyphenols protect against the development of the diseases and how they do it,” project coordinator Neville Vassallo said.
The team replicated Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s in a laboratory environment.
They then tested 17 polyphenols found in Mediterranean food and beverages and four extracts from prickly pears, pomegranates, black tea and Mediterranean brown algae. The test results were very encouraging.
While three of the chemical compounds and the algae extract were very effective on both diseases, the black tea extract nearly stopped the development of the ailments completely.
“Our study has shown that the most powerful drugs for our bodies are indeed the food and beverages we consume every day,” Dr Vassallo said.
The findings had already been peer-reviewed and published in three renowned scientific journals, including the BBA Biomembranes, one of the top 100 most influential journals in biology and medicine, he added.
The study also drew the attention of a university in Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians Universitat), which sent two German students to Malta to base their Masters degrees on it.
The project has potential for a disease-modifying therapy and the team is ready to take the findings to the next step: a clinical trial, which will see the experiment tested out on human beings.
This obligatory step in the research is critical. The most promising compounds and extracts have to be confirmed directly on a neurodegenerative disease.
The project, funded by the Malta Council for Science and Technology, was carried out by the University of Malta in collaboration with the local SME Institute of Cellular Pharmacology.