An alternative form of vitamin E has been found to prevent nerve cells from dying after a stroke, according to a study done by researchers at Ohio State University.

In a study using mouse brain cells, scientists found that the tocotrienol form of vitamin E stopped the cystolic calcium-dependent phospholipase A2, or cPLA2, enzyme from releasing fatty acids that eventually kill neurons.

"Our research suggests that the different forms of natural vitamin E have distinct functions. The relatively poorly studied tocotrienol form of natural vitamin E targets specific pathways to protect against neural cell death and rescues the brain after stroke injury," said the study’s lead author Chandan Sen.

Vitamin E occurs naturally in eight different forms. The best-known form of the vitamin belongs to a variety called tocopherols. The form of vitamin E in this study, tocotrienol or TCT, is not abundant in the American diet but is available as a nutritional supplement.

"What we have here is a naturally derived nutrient, rather than a drug, that provides this beneficial impact," said Sen.

The findings of the study will appear in the Journal of Neurochemistry.