Could creatine alleviate ALS?
A team of scientists from Harvard University and Cornell University Medical College report data suggesting that the amino acid creatine may have beneficial effects for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal neurological disorder characterized by progressive degeneration of motor neurons, that affects 7 of every 100,000 people and causes paralysis within 5 years of diagnosis. Flint Beal and associates found that mice modeling the disease that were fed a diet supplemented with creatine showed improved motor activity and survived longer than those on normal diets. Creatine proved more effective than riluzole, a drug approved for the human condition, at extending survival time. The researchers hypothesize that because creatine is involved in regulation of mitochondrial energy production, it is able to reverse the effects of mitochondrial dysfunction associated with some types of ALS. New compounds may be beneficial in pneumococcal meningitis Scientists at St. Jude’s Children’s Resear
