A relationship between viral infection and neurodegenerative pathologies has been found
Last reviewed: 07.06.2024
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
Scientists have discovered the existence of a relationship between viral invasion and the development of neurodegenerative processes, although the stages and mechanisms of this relationship have not yet been determined.
Representatives of the National Institutes of Aging, Neuropathology and Stroke have tried to find common signs between viral infections of different types and the development of any diseases in the body. Among the pathologies under consideration, special attention was paid to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, multiple and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, vascular and general dementia.
An important point is that there is a symptom complex described as dementia, but it can occur for a variety of reasons. For example, memory disorders in patients with Alzheimer's disease are associated with the formation of typical protein complexes in the brain. And in patients with vascular dementia memory disorders and other characteristic signs appear against the background of impaired cerebral blood circulation. As for general dementia, there are also disorders in the brain, but they are not directly related, neither to vascular changes, nor to toxic protein structures.
Scientists have familiarized themselves with clinical information concerning large-scale medical works conducted earlier by Finnish and English specialists. In the Finnish projects, data on 26 thousand patients suffering from any of the above pathologies were isolated. Additionally, 45 viral infections detected at one time or another in these same patients were separated. Information regarding the projects conducted in the UK allowed us to analyze the case histories of more than a hundred thousand patients. In this work, about two dozen infectious diseases were considered. Thus, the researchers were able to identify 22 viral pathologies that potentially increase the risk of neurodegeneration - in particular, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases and so on.
Such a common infection as influenza, it turns out, has a connection with the development of almost all of the above pathologies. The only exception is multiple sclerosis. And the most frequent consequence of viral infections, in general, is called general dementia. At the same time, the strongest relationship has Alzheimer's disease and viral encephalitis (the risks increase more than thirty times, while with influenza - five times).
Of course, it is not necessarily the case that a person who has survived a particular viral infection will develop dementia in the future. Perhaps the frequency of viral invasions, their severity, or other factors play a role. Subsequent studies of scientists will be aimed at studying other potential factor influences - genetic, nutritional, environmental and hygienic. Only after systematic and large-scale work will it be possible to draw a conclusion about how dangerous viruses affecting the human nervous system can be.
Information can be found at of Neuron