Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team May 17, 2025 23 hours, 51 minutes ago
Medical News: Phytate Compound Found in Common Foods Shows Promise in Fighting Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
A team of Spanish researchers has uncovered how a naturally occurring phytochemical compound found in whole grains, legumes, and seeds may help protect the brain from degenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. This powerful substance, called phytate (also known as myo-inositol hexakisphosphate or IP6), appears to protect vital brain chemicals from damage and stop harmful protein clumping that contributes to brain cell death.
Phytate from Plants Could Hold the Key to Slowing Brain Degeneration
The research was led by scientists from the Interdisciplinary Group on Neurodegeneration, Vascular and Metabolic Diseases (INNoVAM), based at the University of the Balearic Islands, the Health Research Institute of the Balearic Islands (IdISBa), and the Institut Universitari d’Investigació en Ciències de la Salut (IUNICS) in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. One of the researchers was also affiliated with the CIBER Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBERObn), part of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III in Madrid.
This
Medical News report looks into their fascinating findings, which reveal how phytate defends key brain compounds such as dopamine and vitamin C (ascorbic acid) from being broken down by free iron (Fe3+), a mineral that when out of balance in the brain, plays a destructive role in neurodegenerative diseases.
The Iron Link to Brain Damage
Iron is essential for brain function but becomes dangerous when it is not properly regulated. Excess iron can spark harmful chemical reactions that destroy brain cells. In Parkinson’s disease, high levels of iron are often found in the part of the brain that controls movement—the substantia nigra. Similarly, in Alzheimer’s disease, excess iron can promote the build-up of amyloid plaques and damage memory-related brain regions.
The researchers discovered that phytate can bind to excess iron, effectively “neutralizing” it and stopping it from triggering the destruction of brain chemicals. Dopamine, which is crucial for movement and mood, and ascorbic acid, a powerful antioxidant in neurons, are both easily broken down when exposed to uncontrolled iron. The team showed that even tiny amounts of phytate were enough to shield these molecules from harm.
Stopping Harmful Protein Clumping
Another major breakthrough in this study was phytate’s role in preventing proteins from sticking together in toxic ways. In Parkinson’s disease, a protein called alpha-synuclein starts to form harmful clumps or aggregates, eventually leading to brain cell death. When the researchers added phytate to alpha-synuclein samples, they observed that it helped guide the protein into forming less toxic fibrils—reducing the formation of the dangerous, smaller protein clusters that are most harmful to brain cells.
By fast-tracking the co
nversion of toxic protein intermediates into more stable forms, phytate may offer a novel method to reduce cellular stress in the brain. This approach is unique because it doesn’t just stop protein build-up—it changes the way proteins aggregate, potentially lessening their damage.
Protection Inside and Outside Brain Cells
To better mimic what happens in actual neurons, the researchers tested how phytate performed inside artificial vesicles—tiny containers designed to act like the storage sacs in brain cells. They filled these vesicles with dopamine and iron and found that adding phytate dramatically reduced the destruction of dopamine even within these protected environments. This means that phytate could work not just in the bloodstream, but also inside neurons, where it might help maintain a healthy balance of chemicals and metals.
Fighting Oxidative Stress
Iron’s destructive power also lies in its ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), harmful molecules that cause oxidative stress and inflammation. The study found that phytate not only blocks the formation of these ROS by preventing iron from reacting with vitamin C, but it also directly scavenges these damaging molecules. Even at low doses, phytate was able to neutralize the highly reactive hydroxyl radicals that are known to damage neurons.
Why Diet Matters
Interestingly, phytate is a naturally abundant compound in many diets rich in whole grains, seeds, and legumes. However, its presence in the human body is usually low because it’s poorly absorbed by the gut. Despite this, even small amounts that do enter the brain appear to have strong protective effects. Diets high in phytate have been linked to better cognitive function in elderly people and improved learning in children.
While phytate was once thought to be anti-nutritional because it binds minerals, newer studies suggest that it does not cause significant mineral deficiencies in real-life conditions. In fact, its strong mineral-binding ability is what gives it the power to neutralize harmful iron activity in the brain.
Looking Ahead
Although this study was done in a lab setting and not in living humans, the results strongly suggest that phytate deserves further exploration as a natural, non-toxic agent for neuroprotection. Future research should aim to confirm these effects in animal models and clinical trials. Important next steps include determining how well phytate can cross the blood-brain barrier and whether it can be formulated for better absorption and delivery.
The researchers believe that phytate’s dual action—stopping iron-driven damage and controlling protein aggregation—could make it a promising tool in the fight against aging-related brain diseases. It could also be explored for use alongside other treatments, offering a new way to protect neurons without the side effects associated with synthetic drugs.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed International Journal of Molecular Sciences
https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/26/10/4799
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