Amino Acids: Brain Injury Treatment?

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Every 23 seconds, someone in the United States suffers a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Now researchers say they may be on the trail to new brain-restoring therapies for TBI patients.

TBI is the leading cause of death and disability in young children. Most of the time, the injuries are caused by accidents on the road, but a rising number of victims are also coming from the battlefield.

There is currently no way to treat the brain damage that causes a TBI patient's decline in memory, learning and other brain functions; but in a recent study, researchers discovered feeding amino acids to mice that suffered brain injuries helped restore their cognitive abilities. The mice received a cocktail of three branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) -- leucine, isoleucine and valine -- in their drinking water.

"We have shown in an animal model that dietary intervention can restore a proper balance of neurochemicals in the injured part of the brain, and simultaneously improve cognitive performance," Akiva S. Cohen, Ph.D., lead study author and a neuroscientist at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, was quoted as saying.

Earlier studies in humans show people with severe brain injuries improved mildly after receiving BCAAs intravenously. Researchers hope this new information will help unfold future therapies for TBI patients. Dr. Cohen anticipates working with other researchers within the next year on an early-phase clinical trial testing dietary BCAAs in patients with mild to moderate TBI.

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, published online December 7, 2009

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