Two herbs, commonly used in households, have the properties to enhance memory and cognitive health of an individual.
As per a study published in Antioxidants on February 28, 2025, a compound called carnosic acid commonly found in Rosemary and Sage herbs has therapeutic impact on Alzheimer’s disease, which is the leading cause of dementia, the sixth leading cause of death in the US and a global health concern.
"Carnosic acid is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound that works by activating enzymes that make up the body’s natural defense system. While pure carnosic acid is too unstable to be used as a drug, scientists at Scripps Research have now synthesized a stable form, diAcCA. This compound is fully converted to carnosic acid in the gut before being absorbed into the bloodstream," the research institute has said in a statement.
For the study the researchers used carnosic acid to treat mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. They said, "therapeutic doses of carnosic acid in the brain and led to enhanced memory and synaptic density, or more synapses (representing the connections between nerve cells), in the brain. Because the decline of neuronal synapses is also closely correlated to dementia in Alzheimer’s disease, this approach could counteract the progression of cognitive decline."
“We did multiple different tests of memory, and they were all improved with the drug,” said senior author and professor Stuart Lipton, MD, PhD, the Step Family Foundation Endowed Chair at Scripps Research and a clinical neurologist in La Jolla, California. “And it didn’t just slow down the decline; it improved virtually back to normal.” Lipton sees a potential for carnosic acid to work in tandem with Alzheimer’s treatments currently on the market. Not only could the drug work on its own by combating inflammation, but “it could make existing amyloid antibody treatments work better by taking away or limiting their side effects” such as a form of brain swelling or bleeding known as ARIA-E and ARIA-H, he said.
