Effects of Beta Alanine on Spatial Memory

Although there is compelling evidence for the involvement of several naturally occurring amino acids in brain function, there is scarce information supporting the role of beta-alanine in spatial memory. For this reason, Sase et al. investigated the brain levels of beta-alanine in different groups of rats to assess its connection with spatial memory.[1]

In this study, male Sprague Dawley rats aged between 12 and 14 weeks were used. The rats were then grouped into trained and untrained (used as the control). Prior to the behavioral test, the trained group was allowed to swim and search for the escape platform in the Morris water maze test for 120 seconds for 4 days as part of their training. If the rats were not able to locate the platform, they were manually placed on it for 30 seconds. On day 5, both trained and untrained rats were released and allowed to swim freely in the Morris water maze. Researchers observed that trained rats spent significantly longer times in target quadrants compared to untrained rats, indicating memory formation at retrieval. After the behavioral test, all the rats in each group were sacrificed in order to assess the brain levels of beta-alanine. Researchers found that the brain levels were higher in trained rats compared to untrained rats. This result suggests that beta-alanine may be involved in spatial memory retrieval in rats and that higher levels of this non-essential amino acid is associated with better memory.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is an important molecule involved in memory formation. Studies show that higher levels of BDNF are associated with better spatial memory. For instance, Kesslak et al. reported that BDNF production is increased in the hippocampus (the brain region that is mainly associated with memory) of rats following training in the Morris water maze.[2] Interestingly, there is compelling evidence that shows that beta-alanine has the ability to boost the levels of BDNF.[3] This suggests that cortisol supplementation may help improve memory by increasing BDNF levels.