United States: Researchers have found that a virus called cytomegalovirus (HCMV) from the gut may be linked to a special type of Alzheimer’s disease. The virus travels to the brain through a nerve and causes changes like amyloid plaques and tau tangles, which are seen in Alzheimer’s.
HCMV is a widespread virus, and your body commonly deals with it without major complications, yet this research proved that in properly chosen individuals it causes chronic encephalitis. The researchers showed that HCMV causes molecular alterations that are characteristic of Alzheimer’s in human neuronal cell cultures.
Such outcomes suggest that the antiviral approaches may be applied to this subtype of Alzheimer’s. Current research focuses are the identification of a biomarker for chronic HCMV infection by blood test, and the assessment of therapeutic intervention.
ASU and Banner Alzheimer’s Institute scientists and their colleagues have found that a provocative and chronic gut infection associated with a virus led to Alzheimer’s in some individuals.
Chronic Gut Virus May Play a Role in Alzheimer’s Development
— Neuroscience News (@NeuroscienceNew) December 20, 2024
New research has linked chronic intestinal infections from cytomegalovirus (HCMV) to a specific subtype of Alzheimer’s disease.
The virus may travel from the gut to the brain through the vagus nerve, triggering… pic.twitter.com/AGYqxdTxwi
As reported by the neurosciencenews.com, most humans, according to new evidence, get infected with this virus – cytomegalovirus or HCMV – at some point in the initial twenty years. It belongs to the family of Herpesviridae with nine types, although cytomegalovirus is not known to be a sexually transmitted disease.
One gets infected with the virus through exposure to infective bodily fluids, and the virus is only transmissible during the period of the outbreak.
In the new research, the authors wrote that in some individuals, the virus might be active in the gut and be capable of getting to the brain with the help of the vagus nerve — a major information channel between the gut and the brain. Once there, it can alter the immune system and therefore participate in other alterations seen in Alzheimer’s disease.
The details of these hypotheses are readily available online, but if the researchers find that their hypotheses are accurate, they may be in a position to assess whether future antiviral drugs will be able to treat or prevent this type of Alzheimer’s. They are in the process of developing a blood test that will determine those who have an active HCMV infection to benefit from the antiviral medication.