Wednesday July 23, 2014 (foodconsumer.org) -- Eicosanoyl-5-hydroxytryptamide (EHT), a minor ingredient of coffee which has nothing to do with caffeine, may protect against Alzheimer's disease, a new study suggests.  

In the study, this coffee compound exhibits an protective effect in a rat model for Alzheimer's disease, which had several characteristic features of the disease such as cognitive impairment, tau hyperphosphorylation, and elevated levels of cytoplasmic amyloid-β protein.

The study shows that supplementation with EHT for 6 to12 months substantially ameliorated all these featured defects.

The study concluded "These findings raise the possibility that EHT may make a substantial contribution to the apparent neuroprotective benefits associated with coffee consumption as evidenced by numerous epidemiologic studies indicating that coffee drinkers have substantially lowered risk of developing AD (Alzheimer's disease)." (David Liu)

Basurto-Islas G, Blanchard J, Tung YC, Fernandez JR, Voronkov M, Stock M, Zhang S, Stock JB, Iqbal K.  Therapeutic benefits of a component of coffee in a rat model of Alzheimer's disease.  Neurobiol Aging. 2014 Jun 17.