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A study led by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill has identified several new compounds that could play a role in preventing or treating Alzheimer's disease and other degenerative conditions of the nervous system. In culture, the compounds bind with a receptor found in the brain and spinal cord called p75NTR. In the body, p75NTR is a binding site for molecules known as neurotrophins, which normally promote the growth and development of neurons and other brain cells but, according to other studies, can also kill them, depending on how and where they bind to a cell. Evidence suggests neurotrophins may play a role in Alzheimer's disease and other brain diseases and conditions, says lead and co-corresponding author Stephen M. Massa, MD, PhD, a neurologist at SFVAMC. In Alzheimer's disease, some of the brain cells that die - including neurons in the hippocampus, which plays an essential role in memory - express the p75NTR binding site, indicating they may be dying because neurotrophins are binding to them, says Massa.

Probiotic Restores Immune Response In Athletes... The term functional foods was first introduced in Japan in the mid-1980s and refers to processed foods containing ingredients that aid specific bodily functions in addition to being nutritious. To date, Japan is the only country that has formulated a specific regulatory approval process for functional foods. Known as Foods for Specified Health Use (FOSHU), these foods are eligible to bear a seal of approval from the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare (Arai, 1996). Currently, 100 products are licensed as FOSHU foods in Japan. Functional Foods: Their role in disease prevention and health promotion In the United States, the functional foods category is not recognized legally. Irrespective of this, many organizations have proposed definitions for this new and emerging area of the food and nutrition sciences. The Institute of Medicine's Food and Nutrition Board (IOM/FNB, 1994) defined functional foods as "any food or food ingredient that may provide a health benefit beyond the traditional nutrients it contains." Health-conscious baby boomers have made functional foods the leading trend in the U.S. food industry (Meyer, 1998). Estimates, however, of the magnitude of this market vary significantly, as there is no consensus on what constitutes a functional food. Decision Resources, Inc. (Waltham, 1998) estimates the market value of functional foods at $28.9 billion. More significant, perhaps, is the potential of functional foods to mitigate disease, promote health, and reduce health care costs.