DIETARY SUPPLEMENTATION WITH PECANS DELAYS MOTOR NEURON PATHOLOGY IN TRANSGENIC MICE EXPRESSING G93A MUTANT HUMAN SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE-1

A growing body of evidence indicates that diet can modulate health in aging to the extent of delaying the manifestation of age-related diseases. Nuts are among the antioxidant-rich foods that have been demonstrated to provide a degree of protection against age-related disorders We examined herein whether or not dietary supplementation with pecans could affect the course of pathology in a mouse model of the age-related human motor neuron disorder amyotropic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Transgenic mice expressing the G93A mutation of human superoxide dismutase-1 SOD-1 have been widely utilized to study the onset and progression of familial ALS. Mice provided a diet supplemented with 0.05% pecans displayed a significant delay in decline in motor neuron Auction. which was accompanied by increased survival of motor neurons and a decrease in reactive gliosis, as compared to non-supplemented mice. These findings support inclusion of pecans and/or other nuts as part of a comprehensive nutritional therapeutic approach that may augment pharmacological approaches.