Master student Medicine and Nutrition and Health wins thesis award Alpro Foundation

Published: Monday, February 21, 2011

‘Cognitive condition of persons ≥ 65 years benefit from lower homocysteine levels’

As part of her Master study Nutrition and Health, Hadassa Jochemsen examined whether the level of homocysteine in patients with vascular disease had an effect on a change in memory and executive functioning, for a period of four years. Furthermore, she investigated whether this effect was mediated by brain atrophy or cerebral small vessel disease. She performed this study within the Second Manifestations of ARTerial disease – Magnetic Resonance (SMART-MR) cohort of the UMC Utrecht.
Her study suggests that in patients with vascular disease older than 65 years, a higher homocysteine level is a risk factor for a decline in executive functioning, which does not appear to be mediated by brain atrophy or small vessel disease. More research is needed into other possible mechanisms by which homocysteine affects cognition and whether supplementation with the homocysteine-lowering vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid can improve cognition.
With her research Jochemsen won the Alpro Foundation Award 2010, an annual award for master's theses (2500 euros). The award was handed over on February 8, 2011, at the Fourth National Nutrition Conference in Ede.

Reference:
Homocysteine, cognition and brain measures in patients with manifest arterial, ir.H.M. Jochemsen. Supervisors: Prof. dr. ir. L.C.P.G.M. de Groot, Prof. dr .ir. E. Kampman, Wageningen University, dr. M.I. Geerlings, Julius Center, University Medical Center Utrecht.

Websites:
Alpro Foundation
Vasculair Preventie Programma