Professor Weihong Song, Canada Research Chair in Alzheimer's Disease at the University of British Columbia, found that at least in model mice - administering Valporic Acid (VPA) as a treatment option in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease resulted in improved memory performance.

Valproic acid (VPA) is a chemical compound that has found clinical use as an anticonvulsant and mood-stabilizing drug, primarily in the treatment of epilepsy, bipolar disorder, and less commonly major depression. It is also used to treat migraine headaches and schizophrenia.

VPA works by inhibiting the activity of an enzyme that produces the neurotoxic protein beta Amyloid - the central component of neurotoxic plauques in Alzheimer's Disease. In the mice studied, this enzyme inhibition by VPA reduced plaque formation and further prevented brain cell death and axon damage.

"We are very excited about these results because we now know when VPA should be administered to be most effective and we now know how VPA is working to prevent AD," says Dr. Song, who is also a member of the Brain Research Centre at UBC and VCHRI. "A small human clinical trial is currently underway and we expect results to be available in the next year."

Read additional information from the official release.