Phosphatidylserine: Why the Famous Results Came From Cow Brain
One of the most cited memory ingredients has a history that most labels leave out.
A membrane lipid
Phosphatidylserine (PS) is a phospholipid that makes up part of the inner layer of every cell membrane, and it is especially concentrated in the brain. It helps cells signal and helps mark damaged cells for removal. The body makes its own; diet supplies a little more, mainly from meat and fish.
The early, positive trials
In 1991, a trial of 149 people with age-associated memory impairment found that 100 mg of PS three times a day for 12 weeks improved learning and recall of names and faces, particularly in those with the weakest baseline memory[1]. A similar design in Alzheimer's disease showed small early gains[2], and a large Italian multicenter study in elderly people with cognitive decline also reported benefits[3]. All of these used PS extracted from cow brain.
The switch to plants
In the 1990s, concern about bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease) ended the use of cow-brain PS. Manufacturers switched to PS made from soy or sunflower lecithin, which differs in its fatty acid chains. A Dutch trial of 300 and 600 mg soy PS in older adults with memory complaints found no benefit[4]. A Japanese trial of 100 and 300 mg soy PS found modest improvement mainly in those with lower baseline memory[5]. The plant-PS evidence is weaker and more mixed than the cow-brain results that most marketing still cites.
Reading a PS label
Watch for percentages. "Phosphatidylserine 20%" means the ingredient is an extract that contains 20% PS by weight; 50 mg of such an extract delivers 10 mg of phosphatidylserine. Trials used 100 to 300 mg of PS itself.
What it means for MindVault
MindVault's reference formula uses a 20% sunflower PS extract as the fifth of eight blend ingredients, which caps it at about 51 mg of extract, or roughly 10 mg of phosphatidylserine. That is about 3% of the classic trial dose, of a form with weaker evidence. It is not a reason to choose or avoid MindVault.
Questions on this topic
Is plant phosphatidylserine as good as cow-brain PS?
The evidence suggests it is weaker and more mixed. Most of the strong positive trials used cow-brain PS, which is no longer sold.
How much PS is in MindVault?
Not published. In the reference formula, at most about 10 mg of phosphatidylserine per capsule.
Sources linked from this page
Each link opens the original record. The studies tested single ingredients at their own doses, often in people with dementia; none tested a MindVault capsule.
- 1Crook TH, Tinklenberg J, Yesavage J, Petrie W, Nunzi MG, Massari DC. Effects of phosphatidylserine in age-associated memory impairment. Neurology. 1991;41(5):644-649. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2027477/
- 2Crook T, Petrie W, Wells C, Massari DC. Effects of phosphatidylserine in Alzheimer's disease. Psychopharmacol Bull. 1992;28(1):61-66. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1609044/
- 3Cenacchi T, Bertoldin T, Farina C, Fiori MG, Crepaldi G. Cognitive decline in the elderly: a double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter study on efficacy of phosphatidylserine administration. Aging (Milano). 1993;5(2):123-133. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8323999/
- 4Jorissen BL, Brouns F, Van Boxtel MP, et al. The influence of soy-derived phosphatidylserine on cognition in age-associated memory impairment. Nutr Neurosci. 2001;4(2):121-134. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11842880/
- 5Kato-Kataoka A, Sakai M, Ebina R, et al. Soybean-derived phosphatidylserine improves memory function of the elderly Japanese subjects with memory complaints. J Clin Biochem Nutr. 2010;47(3):246-255. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21103034/
Run MindVault as a measured 60-day test
The order completes on the brand's own BuyGoods checkout. Before the first capsule, show the bottle to your pharmacist if you take any prescription, note three everyday memory slips you want to track, keep the confirmation email and the return form from the box, and decide by week seven whether to mail the bottles back while the window is still open.