New medicine for Alzheimer's disease from algae

Developed by the Shanghai Academy of Sciences. New medicine effective for four out of seven stages of disease. According to the World Health Organization by 2050 there will be 150 million Alzheimer's patients in the world; more than 25% will be in China, where the population is aging in a dizzying way.


Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Two days ago, the Chinese government approved a new algae based treatment for Alzheimer's disease. The medicine is called "Oligomannate" and was developed by Dr. Geng Meiyu, of the Shanghai Academy of Sciences.

"Oligomannate" would be the first treatment in almost 20 years, which has been shown to be effective in cases of "mild and moderate illness", to the point of improving patients' "cognitive functions".

With a pinch of valid rhetoric, neurologist Song Juexian stated “long in the dark, the Alzheimer’s disease has finally seen a break of dawn from the East.”".

Doctors have developed Oligomannate after noting that elderly people who consume algae have a low percentage of Alzheimer's cases.

Until today there is no cure for Alzheimer's: brain cells become weak and symptoms such as repetition of sentences, depression,  confusion in once familiar environments, non-recognition of the faces of family members appear. According to the World Health Organization by 2050 there will be 150 million Alzheimer's patients in the world; more than 25% will be in China, where the population is aging in a dizzying way.

The decline in brain function caused by the disease can be divided into seven stages. Oligomannate has been shown effective up to the 4th stage, which includes difficulty in adding small numbers; remembering what you ate for breakfast; paying bills or remembering aspects of one's past life.