2023-11-17 19:00:00
Dementia: Can genital herpes cause brain loss?
Herpes viruses are unpleasant for a variety of reasons. They may also affect the brain and can cause dementia.
Herpes (illustration) affects many people and can cause various diseases. The brain may also be affected.
Herpes viruses are widespread in the population: around 70 percent are infected with the herpes simplex virus type 1, which can cause unpleasant blisters on the mouth. And at least a fifth of people carry herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), which is particularly noticeable in the genital area. And both have the unpleasant property of nesting in nerve cells, where they can lie dormant throughout their lives. In a correlation study, Jose Gutierrez from Columbia University in New York and his team have now discovered a connection between an infection with HSV-2 and reduced brain substance, which could even lead to Alzheimer’s dementia. The working group reports their results in the “Journal of Neuroscience”. Herpes viruses have long been suspected of at least contributing to Alzheimer’s disease – although the type 1 virus has primarily been considered.
For their work, Gutierrez and co evaluated data from a long-term observation series of 455 people from Manhattan who, at an average age of 70, had undergone a brain scan in a magnetic resonance tomograph and provided blood samples. People who tested positive for HSV-2 had, on average, a thinner cerebral cortex than HSV-2-free people. The connection remained even after the working group excluded factors such as different levels of education or smoking.
The researchers interpret the results as a sign of accelerated brain aging, which could increase the risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. The authors emphasize that this is a correlation study between viral load and brain substance and that it is not yet clear that HSV-2 causes dementia. However, previous studies had already suggested that an infection with genital herpes, among others, may have a negative effect on the brain – infected people performed worse in cognitive tests, although this could also be caused by a number of other pathogens. And in laboratory tests on brain organoids, HSV-1 triggered the formation of beta-amyloid plaques, which are also considered a sign of Alzheimer’s.
If the connection is confirmed, new approaches to prevention will open up: with the help of vaccinations against herpes viruses, the risk of dementia could perhaps be reduced. A study had already suggested that a vaccine against herpes zoster (shingles) reduces the risk of dementia.]
#Dementia #genital #herpes #brain #loss