Gum infection could be linked to Alzheimer's disease: study

Washington DC: A new study published in the journal Science Advances revealed that gum infection could be a potential risk factor for Alzheimer's disease. The bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis, known as Pg, is causing chronic periodontitis of gum infection, causing chronic inflammation and possible loss of teeth, according to CNN.

The same bacterium was also found in 51 brain autopsies of patients with Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study by Dr. Stephen Dominy and Casey Lynch, founders of the pharmaceutical company Cortexyme. The pharmaceutical company, which focuses on developing therapies to alter the evolution of Alzheimer's disease, has funded the research.

The team also tested the blockage of the bacterium in the mouse by injecting small molecules targeting Pg in order to inhibit it and discovered that it could reduce neurodegeneration in the brain, showing a new potential way to fight Alzheimer's disease.

According to Lynch, his team's publication "highlights an unexpected factor in the pathology of Alzheimer's disease – the bacterium commonly badociated with chronic gum disease". Lynch added that she also indicated a "promising approach" to fight the disease.

Lynch added that although previous studies have linked the periodontal disease to Alzheimer's disease, the new research finds a "very significant" link between Alzheimer's disease and Alzheimer's disease. Oral infection and that the study on the mouse indicates a causal link.

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, characterized by memory loss that increases with time. It is thought that it is caused by an accumulation of beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles called tau in the brain. There is no cure for the disease for now.