Can Alzheimer’s Be Reversed? New NAD+ Research Suggests It May Be Possible
- The Neuroplasticity Alliance
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
A New Study Says the Brain May Have More Repair Power Than We Thought
For more than a century, Alzheimer’s disease has been treated as a one-way road.
Once decline begins, the goal has been to slow it.Manage it.Delay it.
But never reverse it.
Now, a new study published in Cell Reports Medicine from researchers at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University, and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center is challenging that belief.
And the reason centers around something surprisingly fundamental:
Brain energy.
What Is NAD+ and Why Is It Critical for Brain Health?
At the center of this breakthrough is a molecule called NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide).
NAD+ is essential for:
Cellular energy production
DNA repair
Mitochondrial function
Cell survival
It naturally declines with age.But researchers found something more dramatic:
In both human Alzheimer’s brains and in Alzheimer’s mouse models, NAD+ levels dropped severely.
Not gradually.Not subtly.
But enough to impair the brain’s ability to maintain basic cellular function.
When brain cells lose energy balance, they struggle to:
Repair damage
Maintain synapses
Control inflammation
Support neurogenesis
And that’s when pathology accelerates.
What the Researchers Did
The team tested a powerful question:
What if we restore NAD+ balance after Alzheimer’s is already advanced?
They used two different mouse models:
One driven by amyloid mutations
One driven by tau mutations
Both developed:
Blood–brain barrier breakdown
Axonal degeneration
Neuroinflammation
Reduced hippocampal neurogenesis
Severe cognitive impairment
In other words — advanced Alzheimer’s-like pathology.
The Intervention: P7C3-A20
Instead of using over-the-counter NAD+ boosters (which can dangerously raise NAD+ levels systemically), researchers used a pharmacologic compound called P7C3-A20.
This drug:
Does not flood the body with NAD+
Helps cells maintain proper balance
Protects against NAD+ collapse under stress
And what happened next was remarkable.
The Results
In mice treated early:
Alzheimer’s pathology was prevented.
In mice treated after advanced disease had developed:
Brain structure repaired
Neuroinflammation reduced
Synaptic function restored
Cognitive function fully recovered
Not improved.
Recovered.
Blood levels of phosphorylated tau 217 — a clinical biomarker of Alzheimer’s in humans — normalized as well.
Why This Matters for Neuroplasticity
Alzheimer’s has long been framed as a structural disease:
Amyloid plaques
Tau tangles
Neuronal loss
But this study reframes it as, at least in part, a brain energy failure.
Neuroplasticity requires energy.
To:
Form new synapses
Repair damaged pathways
Generate new neurons
Strengthen existing networks
Without sufficient NAD+, those processes stall.
What this research suggests is profound:
If you restore energy balance, you may restore the brain’s ability to rewire itself.
That’s neuroplasticity reactivated.
Important Clarification
This research was conducted in animal models — not humans.
And researchers were clear:
Over-the-counter NAD+ supplements are not equivalent
Raising NAD+ indiscriminately may carry risks
This specific pharmacologic approach maintains balance rather than overloading the system
Human trials have not yet begun — but they are the next step.
A Paradigm Shift
For decades, Alzheimer’s research has aimed to:
Slow progression
Reduce symptoms
Delay decline
This study asks a different question:
What if the brain can repair itself under the right conditions?
According to senior author Andrew Pieper, MD, PhD:
“The key takeaway is a message of hope – the effects of Alzheimer’s disease may not be inevitably permanent. The damaged brain can, under some conditions, repair itself and regain function.”
That’s not just a treatment shift.
It’s a psychological shift.
Why This Matters Now
At the Rewiring Hope: The Neuroplasticity Summit (March 16–19, 2026), we are exploring one core idea:
The brain is more adaptable than we were taught.
This study reinforces that principle at the highest level of neurodegenerative disease research.
It shows:
Brain damage is not always final
Energy metabolism is central to recovery
Neuroplasticity depends on biological conditions
Recovery science is evolving
Hope in neuroscience is no longer abstract.It’s measurable.
The Bigger Question
If restoring energy balance can reopen plasticity in advanced Alzheimer’s…
What other conditions might respond to the same principle?
Traumatic brain injury
Parkinson’s
Mood disorders
Age-related cognitive decline
We are entering an era where the brain is not simply protected.
It is potentially reawakened.
Join Us
Rewiring Hope: The Neuroplasticity Summit 2026
This breakthrough in Alzheimer’s research aligns with the core theme of the Rewiring Hope:
The Neuroplasticity Summit (March 16–19, 2026) — exploring how the brain can repair, rewire, and recover under the right biological conditions.
At this year’s summit, experts will discuss:
The role of NAD+ in brain energy metabolism
Neuroplasticity and age-related cognitive decline
Emerging therapies targeting brain recovery
The science of reversing neurodegeneration
If restoring brain energy can reopen plasticity pathways, the conversation about Alzheimer’s is no longer just about slowing decline — it’s about the potential for recovery.
🔗 Join us March 16–19, 2026.
Comments