*Ashwagandha (1997-2019) & Azheimer's

Ashwagandha may be especially important for brain functioning.

Ashwagandha root extract (Indian winter cherry or Indian ginseng/withania somnifera) reverses behavioral deficits and plaque load in Alzheimer models and inhibits amyloid beta fibrillation. Its withanamides reduce accumulation of beta-amyloid peptides in AD models and are neuroprotective. Extracts of ashwagandha increase acetylcholine content (which is essential to brain health) and choline acetyl transferase activity in rats which might partly explain the cognition-enhancing and memory-improving effects. The leaves also have nootropic potential with multiple benefits including reversing Alzheimer pathologies, protecting against environmental neurotoxins, and enhancing memory.

Based on research on ashwagandha and other herbs researchers are finding that combinations often provide increased benefit by providing understanding of better use of a "combination-drugs-multi-targets" strategy in treating conditions like Alzheimer's.

Research

Witter S, Witter R, Vilu R, Samoson A. (2018). Medical Plants and Nutraceuticals for Amyloid-B Fibrillation Inhibition. J Alzheimers Dis Rep. Dec 24:2(1):239-252.
Kuboyama T, Tohda C, Komatsu K. (2014). Effects of Ashwagandha (Roots of Withania somnifera) on Neurodegenerative Diseases. Biol Pharm Bull. 2014;37(6):892-7.
Jayaprakasam B, Padmanabhan K, Nair MG. (2010). Withanamides in Withania somnifera fruit protect PC-12 cells from beta-amyloid responsible for Alzheimer's disease. Phytother Res. Jun; 24(6):859-63. No author listed. (2004). Monograph. Withania somnifera. Altern Med Rev. Jun; 9(2):211-4
Parihar MS, Hemnani T. (2003). Phenolic antioxidants attenuate hippocampal neuronal cell damage against kainic acid induced excitotoxicity. J Biosci. Feb;28(1):121-8.
Uddin MS, Al Mamun A, Kabir MT, Jakaria M, Mathew B, et al. (2019). Nootropic and Anti-Alzheimer's Actions of Medicinal Plants: Molecular Insight into Therapeutic Potential to Alleviate Alzheimer's Neuropathology. Mol Neurobiol. Jul;56(7):4925-4944.
Schliebs R, Liebmann A, Bhattacharya SK, Kumar A, Ghosal S, Bigl V. (1997). Systemic administration of defined extracts from Withania somnifera (Indian Ginseng) and Shilajit differentially affects cholinergic but not glutamatergic and GABAergic markers in rat brain. Neurochem Int. Feb;30(2):181-90.
Wadhwa R, Konar A, Kaul SC. (2016). Nootropic potential of Ashwagandha leaves: Beyond traditional root extracts. Neurochem Int. May;95:109-18.
Sharma A, Kumar Y. (2019). Nature's Derivative(s) as Alternative Anti-Alzheimer's Disease Treatments. J Alzheimers Dis Rep. Nov 21;3(1):279-297.
Sahoo AK, Dandapat J, Dash UC, Kanhar S. (2018). Features and outcomes of drugs for combination therapy as multi-targets strategy to combat Alzheimer's disease. J Ethnopharmacol. Apr 6;215:42-73.