The active component of Viagra is sildenafil, which also serves as the foundation for the pulmonary arterial hypertension drug Revatio. According to a recent study, sildenafil may now be useful in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers, under the direction of the Cleveland Clinic, found that individuals taking sildenafil for pulmonary arterial hypertension or erectile dysfunction had a 30–54 percent lower incidence of Alzheimer’s disease than those who did not. In terms of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease is the most prevalent. According to estimates from the Alzheimer’s Association, roughly 6:07 million Americans have Alzheimer’s. It ranks as the nation’s fifth most common cause of death and as the population ages, it is anticipated to become more common. The Alzheimer’s Association reports that between 2000 and 2019, reported deaths from Alzheimer’s increased by more than 145%, while deaths from heart disease, stroke, and HIV declined.

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive condition that worsens over time. It usually starts with memory loss and eventually causes problems interacting with others or reacting to one’s surroundings. The authors of the new study used computational models to parse the data for millions of patients in two medical databases, MarketScan Medicare Supplemental and Clinformatics. There has been a 54% decrease in Alzheimer’s cases in the MarketScan database. The Clinformatics database showed that to be thirty percent. After the data analysis, sildenafil was found to be a drug of interest, and laboratory research was conducted. Researchers who used brain samples from Alzheimer’s patients discovered that sildenafil reduced the amounts of neurotoxic tau proteins. These proteins accumulate in the brain as Alzheimer’s disease worsens. These tau proteins were long thought to be associated with amyloid plaques as potential causes of Alzheimer’s disease. However, the fundamental studies on amyloid plaques have been refuted. Neurotoxic tau proteins are still thought to be a key component of Alzheimer’s disease, despite this.

Additionally, they noticed that sildenafil-exposed neurons enhanced brain development and function, decreased inflammation, and altered metabolic processes linked to Alzheimer’s-related cognitive decline. Sildenafil is a phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor, or PDE 5 inhibitor, used to treat erectile dysfunction. PDE 5 inhibitors may be able to lower the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, according to a recent large-scale UK study. Still, there is no proof that these medications can treat the disease. The director of scientific programs at the Alzheimer’s Association, who was not involved in the new study, made this observation. Speaking about the current study, Dr. Dot Ismail stated that it is an observational study based on electronic healthcare records and that more research is necessary to determine the significance of the connection. A thorough investigation and carefully planned clinical trials are required before phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors are taken into consideration for the treatment of Alzheimer’s. According to Dr. Ismail, to definitively ascertain whether this class of medication can effectively treat Alzheimer’s disease, such trials would need to involve a diverse participant pool, including women.

He listed the lack of use of “gold standard” testing for Alzheimer’s diagnosis, such as imaging biomarkers and/or autopsy evaluation, as another significant study limitation. Dr. Neil Paulvin proposed that sildenafil may have an effect on Alzheimer’s by increasing blood flow and activating [the] part pathway. Gaining more insight into the mechanisms underlying the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway could potentially shed light on the processes involved in Alzheimer’s disease. This pathway is essential for many cellular functions and has been linked to cancer. One example of what could be possible with computer searches for useful molecules is the identification of sildenafil. Dr. Paulvin mentioned that these kinds of searches have produced medications like minocycline, which is used to treat bacterial infections, astaxanthin, an antioxidant, and gemfibrozil, which is used to control cholesterol. This study points to a possible new direction in drug repurposing. Because we already know a great deal about the safety and side effects of these treatments thanks to completed testing, repurposing current, approved treatments can be an important part of drug development. This can occasionally shorten the time and expense of the studies required for the new indication. However, he pointed out that Alzheimer’s is a particularly intricate and multidimensional illness. He pointed out that combination therapies that target various mechanisms are therefore probably required.

However, noted that it is frequently crucial to carry out fresh research over longer periods and in older subjects that represent the variety of people living with Alzheimer’s disease when thinking about repurposing an existing medication as an Alzheimer’s treatment. The Alzheimer’s Association Part The Cloud initiative, which has already contributed over $68 million to support 65 clinical trials, was mentioned by the speaker. Targeting both established and possibly undiscovered facets of the illness, these trials also aim to develop novel and repurposed therapies for dementia, including Alzheimer’s. He pointed out that the project is concentrating on various treatment avenues, including how immune responses impact brain alterations linked to Alzheimer’s disease, how brain cells use fuel and energy, how they clear debris from their structure, and how blood flow to the brain is preserved. Regarding sildenafil, Dr. Ismail emphasized that, in light of these preliminary findings, individuals should not use prescription drugs or over-the-counter [supplements and products similar to] phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors in the hopes of preventing Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia.

REFERENCES:

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/sildenafil-viagra-may-help-reduce-alzheimers-risk
https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/new-data-support-viagra-alzheimers-prevention-2024a10004md?form=fpf
https://fortune.com/well/2024/02/09/viagra-may-reduce-alzheimers-risk/https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/feb/07/viagra-may-help-to-lower-the-risk-of-alzheimers-disease-study-finds

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