Nutraceutical company Monteloeder, a subsidiary of Suannutra, developed its latest supplement after analyzing key botanicals for brain health in a two-phase study.
Writing in Applied Sciences, researchers from Monteloeder and Bionos Biotech in Spain noted improvements in memory and recall in participants with mild cognitive impairment who took the sage and rutin supplement, particularly at higher doses.
“Mindrevive is formulated with clinically studied ingredients to help maintain cognitive performance and support brain health,” Mariana Ortega, science marketing manager at Suannutra, said in a press release.
“This is especially relevant for older adults who are proactively looking for natural solutions to preserve mental sharpness and overall well-being.”
The study noted that some botanicals are well-known for their cognitive benefits in traditional use, but few studies back the nootropic effects.
“Sage, in particular, has often been overlooked in discussions about cognitive support, yet it stood out in our screening trials,” Jonathan Jones, chief scientific officer at Monteloeder, said in the press release.
“In fact, sage was the only extract to increase the expression of all analyzed factors associated with neuronal function and antioxidant defenses.”
The beneficial effects were enhanced when the researchers combined sage with the phenolic compound rutin.
“We observed significant enhancements in the production of BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), a key molecule involved in brain signaling and cognitive processes,” Jones said, noting that this growth factor is implicated in memory, learning and brain health.
Study details
The two-phase study consisted of in vitro analysis and a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.
The in vitro analysis was performed on nine water-ethanol extracts of botanical compounds to evaluate their nootropic effects. These included bilberry, blueberry, bacopa (Bacopa monnieri), sage, saffron, rhodiola (Rhodiola rosea), ginkgo biloba, panax ginseng roots, gotu kola and Japanese pagoda tree.
The researchers exposed human stem cell cultures to oxidative stress and analyzed each extract’s ability to suppress reactive oxygen and reactive nitrogen species (ROS and RNS) and promote cell survival and neural cell growth.
“Sage (Salvia officinalis) standardized in 4% rosmarinic acid was revealed to present the most noticeable effects on reducing oxidative stress and cell death, while increasing the gene expression of trophic factors implicated in neuronal survival,” the researchers wrote.
Additionally, they observed more significant effects on BDNF and acetylcholine esterase (AChE) when they combined sage with rutin.
Phase two was a clinical trial involving 121 participants between the ages of 50 and 65 with mild cognitive impairment who consumed either the Mindrevive supplement at a dose of 250 mg or 400 mg or a placebo every morning after breakfast for three months.
Researchers used the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) to assess cognitive function and the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-Cog) to evaluate key parameters at baseline, 6 weeks and 12 weeks.
The findings revealed that all study groups, including placebo, improved their MoCA score at 6 and 12 weeks compared to baseline.
However, the higher supplement dose showed an improvement when comparing weeks 6 and 12, which was not observed in the other groups.
“This suggests that from baseline to week 6, there was an acquired learning process, but from week 6 to 12, there was no significant improvement, and that the improvement observed in the higher dose is due to the product’s effect,” the researchers wrote.
“When analyzing the seven individual categories, both doses contribute to improving short-term memory recall, while abstract reasoning seemed to improve only in the 400 mg dose.”
They also noted that the ADAS-Cog test suggested both doses of the supplement significantly improved the global score compared to placebo.
Source: Applied Sciences 2024, 14(24), 11869. https://doi.org/10.3390/app142411869. “Development of a Herb-Based Dietary Ingredient with Potential Nootropic Properties: From Bench to Bedside”. Authors: P. Navarro et al.