A research team led by Associate Professor Taku Ozaki of the Course of Molecular Biomedical Sciences, Department of Life Science, Faculty of Agriculture at Iwate University, in collaboration with the Institute of Cetacean Research, revealed that "balenine," a functional ingredient abundant in baleen whale, can suppress degeneration of neurons and reduce progression of symptoms in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease.
Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease associated with tremors, fall risks and cognitive impairment. The disease is a serious problem in the aging society, affecting approximately 1 in 100 people over the age of 65.
Current therapies for the disease mainly focus on relieving the symptoms, while treatment and preventive methods for suppressing the neurodegeneration itself have yet to be established.
In this study, balenine, which was intranasally administered to ensure its direct delivery to the brain, was found to be effective in protecting dopamine neurons and suppressing inflammation. The study also proposed its new mechanism of action involved in the maintenance of mitochondrial function. The results of this study were published online in Biochimica et Biophysica Acta on April 17, 2026.
Provided by Iwate University
Research results [For non-professional readers]
Balenine is a food component obtained from meat and particularly abundant in whale meat. It belongs to a group of functional ingredients called imidazole dipeptides. Imidazole dipeptides have been approved as ingredients of Foods with Function Claims for fatigue-reducing effects. They have also attracted attention for their anti-aging effects, with reports demonstrating their effectiveness in improving mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
Recent studies have shown that, compared to other imidazole dipeptides found in meat other than whales, balenine is more stable and less degraded and thus easier to function in the human body. This suggests that balenine is potentially the most effective imidazole dipeptide for humans.
Based on these findings, the research team expected that balenine might also be effective for treating age-related diseases. They focused on "Parkinson's disease," a condition affecting an increasing number of people as the population ages.
The disease, characterized by difficulty in body movement, is caused by a decrease in neurons producing an important substance called dopamine in the brain. When dopamine is deficient, commands from the brain cannot be transmitted properly to the body.
Experiments were conducted using mice exhibiting symptoms similar to Parkinson's disease. The results showed that mice administered with balenine exhibited less abnormal behavior associated with the disease. Further analysis of their brains revealed that dopamine-producing neurons were protected by balenine.
Next, the team specifically investigated the mechanism underlying the neuron-protective effect of balenine and demonstrated the involvement of mitochondria (cellular organelles generating energy necessary for vital activities). They found that balenine activated a mechanism for breaking down functionally declined mitochondria and rebuilding new ones. They believe that this mechanism allowed the cells to retain their energy-producing capacity, resulting in the suppression of Parkinson's disease symptoms.
In the future, the team plans to test the effectiveness of balenine in neurodegenerative diseases other than Parkinson's disease as well as anti-aging to further clarify the health-related functions of balenine.
Research Results [For professional readers]
Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder in which motor and cognitive dysfunctions are caused by degeneration of dopaminergic neurons. Currently, dopamine replacement and deep brain stimulation are the main therapies used for treating the disease, but these therapies cannot delay the progression of the disease itself. Thus, there is a demand for new therapeutic and preventive methods capable of suppressing the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons.
In this study, the researchers focused on an imidazole dipeptide called balenine. Balenine has been reported to be more stable in blood compared to its structural analogs, carnosine and anserine, and exhibit higher antioxidant capacity than those of endogenous antioxidants. It is a naturally occurring ingredient abundantly found in marine mammals, especially whale meat, and thus considered promising in terms of safety.
In the experiment, balenine was intranasally administered once daily to a mouse model of MPTP-induced Parkinson's disease. Following administration, behavioral tests and histological and biochemical analyses using brain tissues were conducted. The behavioral tests showed that balenine administration significantly suppressed the increase in abnormal behavior observed in the mouse model. Histological analyses confirmed that balenine suppressed the decrease of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) expression observed in the brain striatum.
These results indicate that balenine potentially protects dopamine-producing neurons. To elucidate the mechanism of action, the researchers further performed proteome analysis of proteins extracted from mouse brains.
The results demonstrated the activation of a pathway related to neddylation, suggesting that balenine is involved in mitochondrial quality control. This suggests that the neuroprotective effects of balenine may be based on the maintenance of mitochondrial function.
This study demonstrated the effectiveness of balenine in Parkinson's disease. The incidence of Parkinson's disease increases with age, and anyone can develop it. Although the establishment of methods for delivering effective concentrations of balenine to the human brain remains a future challenge, the study has provided new insights into the usefulness of balenine.
In the future, balenine is expected to offer a new strategy for preventing and controlling progression of Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases.