Recent research suggests that infections might play a role in triggering or worsening Alzheimer's disease. This theory, once considered unconventional, is gaining traction as scientists investigate the link between inflammation in the brain and microbial infections.
Even as new drugs come to market, further study appears to point to infections as a possible cause for the debilitating disease that affects more than 7 million people in the U.S. alone.Research on Alzheimer’s disease is approaching a much-needed tipping point. The media spotlight has been on newly available drugs like lecanemab and donanemab that target the protein plaques associated with the disease’s progression.
But a burgeoning consensus is emerging around a longstanding hypothesis that was once considered unorthodox and quixotic: Infections may trigger or exacerbate Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological conditions.A hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia globally, is chronic brain inflammation. For decades, Alzheimer’s disease researchers have searched for a missing puzzle piece: What drives this inflammation? Now, spurred by the prolonged neurological symptoms that many people experienced after COVID-19 infections, such as brain fog and loss of their sense of smell, scientists are. Another is an airborne bacterium, Chlamydia pneumoniae, that was first found in Alzheimer’s-diseased brains by Dr. Balin and colleagues as far back as 1998. Other microbes, such as those residing in the gut or the mouth, may impact and inflame the brain by triggering body-wide inflammatory responses. The fact that some bacteria appear to protect some people against this inflammation only reinforces the complex and important relationship between humans and our many invisible passengers.and Alzheimer’s disease. Several neurological conditions, including multiple sclerosis, have been linked with infections or changes in the collection of microbes inside all of us, but establishing a causal relationship has remained elusive.Knowing all this, why aren’t we more focused on testing and treatments for potential infectious drivers of inflammatory diseases? There are three key reasons. - Medical paradigm shifts are notoriously slow
ALZHEIMER's DISEASE INFECTIONS BACTERIA INFLAMMATION NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES
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