Omega-3 fatty acids as an intervention for Alzheimer’s disease may not be dead in the water just yet. A new study may reinvigorate interest in the fish oils. Researchers led by Helena Chui at the University of Southern California have used PET and MRI scans to correlate markers of Alzheimer’s disease with blood levels of the essential fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). They report that people with the least amount of DHA have the most amyloid and atrophy in brain regions associated with AD. The findings, published August 8 in JAMA Neurology, do not prove that DHA blocks AD pathology, however they do mesh well with animal studies suggesting the fatty acid thwarts Aβ accumulation. “The … study has the potential to rekindle interest in the therapeutic potential of DHA,” wrote Joseph Quinn of Oregon Health & Sciences University in Portland in an editorial that accompanied the paper. Quinn headed a previous DHA clinical trial, but was not involved in the current study.
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