News 24 Allergic patients are more likely to develop dementia and Alzheimer's disease

An American research team was able to confirm a link between fungal infections, an increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease in the elderly. The use of mice allowed to obtain scientific results and publish its results yesterday in the journal Nature Communication.

According to a study conducted at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, researchers have developed a fungal infection in the experimental rat using the "Candida" fungus, a type of yeast living in the mucous membranes and its presence in small amounts in different parts of the body is harmless and dangerous to health. After injecting into the blood of mice, he was able to cross the blood-brain barrier.

The barrier is a powerful protective mechanism used by the brain to exclude all types of small and large particles, as well as many microorganisms that can damage the brain.

According to Dr. "We thought the fungus could not cross the blood barrier, but it did and caused the activity of microglia, a kind of immune cell become," said David Corrie , professor of immunology, allergies and rheumatology in a report published by the Bailey School of Medicine. Highly active in the digestion and digestion of yeast fungi, it has also produced a number of molecules that have been captured in the structure of the granule in the brain, called a fungal-derived tumor, or FIGG.

Although mice cleared Candida infection after 10 days, microglia remained active and Vig stimulated the production of precursor proteins of amyloid and amyloid beta, two markers associated with dementia. and Alzheimer's disease. As Corrie says.

"We tested the rats' memory by comparing them to another one that was not infected, and found that the spatial memory of the infected mice was clearly weakened, suggesting that the role of the fungus on human lesions is not limited to airway damage, but can even cause chronic neurological disorders, such as dementia, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. "

For his part, says Dr. Mohamed Salem, professor of immunology at Tanta University, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the research team had made a significant diagnosis of the problem, expecting further research on the results obtained.

"We need to understand how the immune system treats the constant threat of fungi and what are its weaknesses, which appear with age and allow the passage of fungi to the cerebral haemorrhagic barrier, thereby increasing the possibility of reducing the risk of fungi. incidence of these diseases, "he said.

According to statistics from the World Health Organization in 2017, the number of people with dementia is estimated at 50 million, and every year 10 million new cases occur. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia and, according to the same report, it accounts for 60 to 70% of cases.