A superoxide dismutase (SOD) supplement, GliSODin, may reduce the loss of cognitive function linked to stress, according to a new animal study from Japan.
Mice fed the antioxidant supplement experienced lower levels of oxidative stress and performed better in a maze test after supplementation with the SOD supplement, according to results published in the journal Behavioural Brain Research.
Animals fed vitamin E also experienced lower levels of oxidative stress caused by stress, as measured by levels of lipid peroxidation, but no beneficial effects were observed in terms of the vitamin E-supplemented animals’ spatial learning, according to researchers led by Sanae Nakajima from the Nippon Medical School in Kawasaki.
SOD has a different mode of action to vitamins. Dubbed 'the enzyme of life' when first discovered in 1968, it is the first antioxidant mobilised by the cell for defence. It is thought to be more powerful than antioxidant vitamins as it activates the body's production of its own antioxidants, including catalase and glutathione peroxidase.
GliSODin, the combination of SOD extracted from cantaloupe melon and wheat gliadin, is patented and trademarked by Paris-based Isocell. In North America PL Thomas distributes the ingredient.
