Huperzine A

Background

Huperzine A is a compound found withinHuperzia serrata leaf,also known astoothed clubmoss, a plant known as a firmoss (1). 

Scientific effects

Huperzine A can be used as a method to help enhance short and long term memory through boosting Acetylcholine (ACh) levels. ACh is the main neurotransmitter in the brain involved with memory.   Huperzine A is an acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibititor, which means it inhibits the enzyme that breaks down ACh in the brain (AChE) (1). 

Clinical research in Huperzine A has shown that it can enhance both memory and learning performance. In a study of 68 adolescents, Sun et al (1999) found that Huperzine A capsules of 100mcg early AM and night enhanced the memory and learning performance of the adolescent students when compared to placebo, and also result in an improvement in their IQ scores when tested after Huperzine A administration for a month when compared to placebo (2).

Benefits

Supplementing with huperzine a can lead to:

• An increase in acetylcholine in the brain 
• Enhanced performance on learning and memory oriented tasks 
• An increase in alertness 

Safety profile

Please consult with a physician before using huperzine a or any other supplement.

References

1. Cheng, D. H., Ren, H., & Tang, X. C. (1996). Huperzine A, a novel promising acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Neuroreport, 8(1), 97–101. 
2. Sun, Q. Q., Xu, S. S., Pan, J. L., Guo, H. M., & Cao, W. Q. (1999). Huperzine-A capsules enhance memory and learning performance in 34 pairs of matched adolescent students. Acta Pharmacologica Sinica.