A federally funded clinical trial of huperzine A as a treatment for mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease needs more volunteers to meet its enrollment goals at more than 20 study sites nationwide. The trial is designed so all participants will have an opportunity to take the medication after completing an initial 4 months of randomized treatment. Full details and a list of study sites and contact information are posted on ClinicalTrials.gov.

Huperzine (HOOP-ur-zeen) is an herbal supplement derived from the plant Huperzia serrata. It has been used for centuries in Chinese traditional medicine as a treatment for swelling, fever and blood disorders. Recent clinical trials in China have reportedly shown that huperzine also offers significant benefits in Alzheimer’s disease.

Research suggests that huperzine A functions in the same way as one class of drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat Alzheimer symptoms. These drugs, called cholinesterase (coh-lin-ESS-tur-ace) inhibitors, help maintain brain levels of a cell-to-cell messenger chemical important in learning and memory. Huperzine A may also have chemical properties that help protect nerve cells.

Galantamine (Razadyne), one of the FDA-approved cholinesterase inhibitors, was originally derived from the snowdrop plant Galanthus nivalis, but it is now made synthetically.

This National Institute on Aging (NIA) study is the first U.S. clinical trial comparing a standardized preparation of huperzine with a placebo (dummy pill) in treating mild to moderate Alzheimer’s. Participants will initially be randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups: (1) those receiving 200 micrograms of huperzine twice a day, (2) those receiving 400 micrograms of huperzine twice a day, (3) those receiving a placebo. After completing 16 weeks of treatment, all participants will be given the opportunity to take the huperzine A for eight months.