Title:Ketogenic Diet: A Promising Neuroprotective Composition for
Managing Alzheimer’s Diseases and its Pathological Mechanisms
Volume: 22
Issue: 7
Author(s): Badrinathan Sridharan and Meng-Jen Lee*
Affiliation:
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Chaoyang University of Technology, 168 Jifeng East Road, Taichung,
Taiwan, ROC
Keywords:
Ketogenic diet, neurodegenerative disorders, Alzheimer’s disease, metabolic diseases, β- hydroxybutyrate (BHB), endothelial dysfunction.
Abstract: Ketogenic diet and ketone bodies gained significant attention in recent years
due to their ability to influence the specific energy metabolism and restoration of
mitochondrial homeostasis that can help in hindering the progression of many metabolic
diseases, including diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases. A ketogenic diet consists
of high fat and low carbohydrate contents, which makes the body glucose deprived and
rely on alternative sources (ketone bodies) for energy. It has been initially designed and
supplemented for the treatment of epilepsy, and, later, its influence on many energyderiving
biochemical pathways made it a highly sorted food supplement for many
metabolic diseases and even for bodybuilding and calorie restriction in healthy
individuals. Among the reported therapeutic action over a range of diseases,
neurodegenerative disorders, especially Alzheimer’s disease, gained the attention of
many researchers and clinicians because of the higher benefits of the ketogenic diet on
this disease. Complex pathology and multiple influencing factors of Alzheimer’s disease
make exploration of its therapeutic strategies a demanding task. It was a common
phenomenon that energy deprivation in neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s
disease, progress rapidly. The ability of ketone bodies to stabilize the mitochondrial
energy metabolism makes it a suitable intervening agent. In this review, we will discuss
various research progress made with regards to ketone bodies/ketogenic diet for the
management of Alzheimer’s disease and elaborate in detail about the mechanisms that
are influenced during their therapeutic action.
