A recent study has found that low vitamin K levels may be associated with memory decline and accelerated cognitive deterioration.
Researchers believe vitamin K can affect neuron formation in the hippocampus and influence neuroinflammation.
The hippocampus is a key brain region responsible for memory formation, storage, and learning, and is known to deteriorate in function in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
A research team at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in the United States studied mice’s cognitive and learning abilities over six months, fed a vitamin K-deficient diet versus a standard diet.
As a result, male mice on the low-vitamin K diet showed reduced survival rates and lower weight gain than females. Interestingly, female mice on the same diet did not show these effects.
The team also found that the brains of mice fed the deficient diet had lower levels of menaquinone-4 (MK-4), the brain’s primary form of vitamin K. Low vitamin K levels were also observed in the liver and kidneys.
These mice showed reduced neurogenesis in the hippocampus. Vitamin K may influence cognitive functions such as learning and memory by affecting hippocampal development.
The vitamin K-deficient group also showed increased activation of microglial cells in the hippocampus, which can elevate neuroinflammation. This implies that vitamin K may help protect hippocampal neurogenesis through its anti-inflammatory effects.
In a novel object recognition test, the mice with vitamin K deficiency performed worse than the control group, indicating impaired recognition memory. In a maze navigation test, they also took three more days to complete the task than the control group.
The researchers added that vitamin K may be involved in the metabolism of sphingolipids, which are components of cell membranes and influence cell proliferation, differentiation, and neuroinflammation. However, they emphasized that more research is needed to confirm these mechanisms.
Foods rich in vitamin K include kiwis, blueberries, eggs, soybeans, and vegetable oils.
The study, published in the Journal of Nutrition, was titled “Low Vitamin K Intake Impairs Cognition, Neurogenesis, and Elevates Neuroinflammation in C57BL/6 Mice.”
Comments0