Curcumin Helps Mice With CMT-Like Disease

April 23, 2010

by Margaret Wahl on April 21, 2010

Mice with a genetic mutation in the myelin protein zero (MPZ) gene, which

develop a disease resembling human type 1B Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT1B),

benefited from treatment with curcumin and curcumin derivatives, researchers

announced April 15, at the 2010 meeting of the American Academy of Neurology

(AAN), held in Toronto.

Agnes Patzko, a research associate at Wayne State University in Detroit,

reported the findings. MDA grantee Shy, a professor in the Center for

Molecular Medicine and Genetics at Wayne State, coordinated the study team.

About the findings

The researchers tested curcumin and curcumin derivatives in mice with a

CMT1B-like peripheral nerve disorder, based on laboratory findings showing that

curcumin appears to help break up molecular traffic jams, such as those that

occur in CMT1B-affected cells.

Curcumin is an ingredient in the spice known as turmeric that's long been used

in India for cooking and as a medicine for a variety of conditions.

Mice that were treated with oral curcumin and its derivative fluorinated

curcumin (CDF) showed a modest tendency to perform better than their untreated

littermates on a test of their ability to stay on a rotating rod, but they did

not improve on other tests of their motor function.

Mice treated with a curcumin derivative called phosphatidylcholine curcumin

(PCC), on the other hand, improved significantly on the rotating rod test and

also on tests of their grip strength. They performed as well on these tests as

mice that didn't have any neuromuscular disease.

Meaning for people with CMT1B

It's too early to say whether or not curcumin or curcumin derivatives will have

any benefit for people with CMT1B or other forms of CMT, the researchers say.

Tests of these substances will continue in mice and, if some of the tested

substances appear promising, the investigators will consider moving to human

trials.

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