In the News: Ozempic-Like Medications as a Potential Alzheimer’s Treatment?
Researchers at the July 28-August 1 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference presented new findings which suggest that GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Wegovy could be used as a treatment to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s symptoms.
Not only could this treatment modality help Alzheimer’s patients retain cognition and memory for longer, importantly, this research can help us to learn more about the disease and bring us closer to a permanent cure.
GLP-1 medications are analogs of a hormone secreted during digestion and are also known by the names semaglutide and tirzepatide. These drugs are powerful tools which have proven benefits for treating type 2 diabetes and inducing weight loss in patients.
As the medications become more widely used, researchers have begun to see other potential uses for GLP-1s both as direct treatments and for their ability to treat the underlying health conditions that cause or worsen chronic illnesses. Some of this research is already well underway.
From weight loss to smoking cessation
Semaglutide and tirzepatide are typically prescribed to treat type 2 diabetes, but patients have reported significant improvements in their health outside of the prescribed functions of the drugs. For example, their effectiveness at treating obesity led to off-label prescriptions for weight loss and later FDA approval for this use in 2023.
It is important to note that these medications simply act as an appetite suppressant, making it easier for patients to build healthy lifestyles through diet and exercise. Read more about how the medications work as a tool for weight loss in this article.
Not only are GLP-1s effective at inducing weight loss, but experts have seen other important benefits in patients such as lower inflammation, cholesterol, and blood pressure, improved kidney function, and more. Many people develop chronic diseases and symptoms as a result of obesity and by inducing weight loss, obesity related illnesses improve as well.
Another observed benefit of GLP-1s that has inspired further study is the anecdotal and clinical evidence that they may also treat addiction.
The theory is that because these medications interrupt the mechanisms in the brain which cause desire, primarily for highly processed foods, this same mechanism also applies to other addictions including cigarettes, drugs, and even social media addiction. Read more about that research here.
The bottom line is that these medications show great promise to help people not only reach their weight loss goals, but also to reduce the severity of chronic diseases and overcome addiction.
The next step in GLP-1 research seems to be Alzheimer’s research.
What the research shows
There was already evidence for the cognitive benefits for GLP-1 medications, when doctors noted that type 2 diabetes patients on the medications saw a reduction in their risk factors for dementia when taking semaglutide. Type 2 diabetes is a known risk factor for dementia.
These results brought into question whether GLP-1 medications could be used to lessen or slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, for which there is no cure.
The first study included over 200 Alzheimer’s patients in the United Kingdom who were provided daily injections of GLP-1 drug, liraglutide, a predecessor of current GLP-1s, or a placebo.
What researchers found was that subjects who received the liraglutide injections saw cognitive decline slow by as much as 18% over the one year study when compared to the patients receiving the placebo.
Additionally, these patients saw a 50% reduction in brain shrinkage in the parts of the brain responsible for memory, learning, and decision making. This shrinkage, known as atrophy, is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease progression.
Overall, these results are positive and warrant further study for their potential impact on Alzheimer’s patient’s longevity and quality of life.
How to interpret these findings
Alzheimer’s disease affects the brain in a few ways. Two physical symptoms include the build up of plaque made up of beta-amyloid and tangled bundles of a protein called tau. It is important to understand that GLP-1 medications do not directly reduce or remove these symptoms, but do seem to slow them down.
Researchers suggest that liraglutide might be working by treating the underlying conditions that exacerbate symptoms of Alzheimer’s.
We discussed earlier how diabetes is a predecessor for dementia. This is in part because diabetes causes inflammation in the body, including in the brain. Obese or overweight patients also have a higher amount of inflammation throughout the body.
So, while it is unclear exactly how these medications might treat Alzheimer’s directly, there is hope that if prescribed in combination with existing Alzheimer’s treatments, the reduction in inflammation will make these treatments more effective slowing the progression of the disease.
What’s next?
This research is expanding with Ozempic manufacturer Novo Nordisk in progress with two phase 3 clinical trials with over 3,000 early-stage Alzheimer’s patients. This study will compare the newer semaglutide to a placebo and expects to publish results in 2025.
This means that FDA approval for Alzheimer’s treatment could follow soon after, but experts suggest that real-world applications are already happening. Because dementia and Alzheimer’s are in part exacerbated by diabetes and obesity, many of these patients are already taking GLP-1 medications to treat their existing illnesses.
Regardless, further research is being pursued in order to get us closer to finding a cure for cognitive diseases like Alzheimer’s. If you are interested in learning more about these studies, take a look at some of the links provided in this post.
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