- A recent study from the University of Verona in Italy asks whether espresso could possibly help reduce the risk of dementia.
- The preliminary research, which was conducted in vitro, in the laboratory, found an association between higher concentrations of caffeine and the inhibition of tau protein aggregates, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
- It remains unclear whether drinking coffee could actually keep dementia at bay for longer.
A high concentration of caffeine — which some might associate with drinking an espresso — might help reduce the risk of dementia, according to a study published in the ACS Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
In preliminary in vitro laboratory tests, researchers found that espresso compounds might inhibit tau protein aggregation, a process believed to be involved in the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia.
The scientists first pulled espresso shots from store-bought beans. Then, they characterized the chemical makeup and chose several molecules, including caffeine.
The test included the molecules and the complete extract. They were incubated alongside a shortened form of the tau protein for at least 40 hours.
As the caffeine concentration increased, tau fibrils did not form larger sheets, with the complete extract showing the most dramatic results. Ultimately, the fibrils were nontoxic to cells and did not act as seeds for further aggregation.
“This was an interesting study by a group of scientists in Verona, Italy, who are trying to help change espresso coffee use from a potential health risk to a health benefit,” explained Clifford Segil, a board-certified neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, not involved in the study.
“[The researchers] noted that, in test tubes, adding coffee brew to a protein called tau, made the tau protein stop from forming into something that has been shown to present in neurological diseases which cause
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