Herpes and Alzheimer's disease are too different to be related, but some experts believe that they have more in common than people think. More and more experts in Alzheimer's argue that microbes, specifically the herpes virus, chlamydia bacteria and spirochaete bacteria, are some of the major causes of dementia.
The researchers noticed that the viruses and bacteria are most common in the brains of elderly people. They say that antimicrobial drugs might be able to help moisten these viruses and bacteria that may stop or slow down the progress of dementia.
According to medicaldaily.com, one of the authors, Professor Douglas Kell from the University of Manchester's School of Chemistry and the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology explained in a statement that there is an inconvertible proof that Alzheimer's disease has a dormant microbial component. "This can be woken up by iron dysregulation. Removing this iron will slow down or prevent cognitive degeneration - we can't keep ignoring all of the evidence," he added.
It was also revealed that most Alzheimer's research are more focused on the accumulation of amyloid plaques and tau proteins in the brain that they believe keep the neurons from communicating with each other. It is at these times when memory loss and the deterioration of the brain can happen, Shape reported.
The researchers also said that these microbes can stay in the body and can be found in the blood. "The microbial presence in blood may ... play a fundamental role as a causative agent of systemic inflammation, which is a characteristic of Alzheimer's disease," said Professor Resia Pretorius of the University of Pretoria, who also worked on the editorial.
The Alzheimer's Association also said that the disease is the only one in the top 10 cause of death in America that can't be prevented, cured, or slowed down. Right now, there is approximately 5.1 million people aging 65 years old and older who is suffering from this disease, and what's worse is that the number is expected to rise to 7.1 million by 2025.
