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Aging is associated with an increased risk of
cardiovascular disease and death and a new study
shows that oral supplementation of the natural
polyamine spermidine extends the lifespan of mice
and exerts cardioprotective effects, reducing
cardiac hypertrophy and preserving diastolic
function in old mice.
Spermidine is a naturally occurring chemical that is
produced within the body. It is also found in a
large number of foods, including cheese, mushrooms,
soy and whole grains.
Early tests in mice show that spermidine restores
the immune system’s inbuilt memory enabling it to
mount a more powerful protective response following
vaccination (Link...).
Spermidine feeding enhanced cardiac autophagy,
mitophagy and mitochondrial respiration, and it also
improved the mechano-elastical properties of
cardiomyocytes in vivo, coinciding with increased
titin phosphorylation and suppressed subclinical
inflammation.
Spermidine feeding failed to provide
cardioprotection in mice that lack the autophagy-related
protein Atg5 in cardiomyocytes. In Dahl
salt-sensitive rats that were fed a high-salt diet,
a model for hypertension-induced congestive heart
failure, spermidine feeding reduced systemic blood
pressure, increased titin phosphorylation and
prevented cardiac hypertrophy and a decline in
diastolic function, thus delaying the progression to
heart failure.
In humans, high levels of dietary spermidine, as
assessed from food questionnaires, correlated with
reduced blood pressure and a lower incidence of
cardiovascular disease.
See also
New drug could make flu vaccines more effective in
the elderly (2014-11-28)
Link...
Epigenomic changes are key to innate immunological
memory (2015-09-23)
Link...
For more information
nature medicine
Cardioprotection and lifespan extension by the
natural polyamine spermidine
Link...
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