An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease
As one of the leading causes of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a condition in which individuals experience progressive cognitive decline. Although it is known that beta-amyloid (Aβ) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) of tau fibrils are hallmark characteristics of AD, the exact causes...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-12-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/10/1/56 |
| _version_ | 1797491734551199744 |
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| author | Sandhya T. Chakravarthi Suresh G. Joshi |
| author_facet | Sandhya T. Chakravarthi Suresh G. Joshi |
| author_sort | Sandhya T. Chakravarthi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | As one of the leading causes of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a condition in which individuals experience progressive cognitive decline. Although it is known that beta-amyloid (Aβ) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) of tau fibrils are hallmark characteristics of AD, the exact causes of these pathologies are still mostly unknown. Evidence that infectious diseases may cause AD pathology has been accumulating for decades. The association between microbial pathogens and AD is widely studied, and there are noticeable correlations between some bacterial species and AD pathologies, especially spirochetes and some of the oral microbes. <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> has been seen to correlate with Aβ plaques and NFTs in infected cells. Because of the evidence of spirochetes in AD patients, <i>Treponema pallidum</i> and other oral treponemes are speculated to be a potential cause of AD. <i>T. pallidum</i> has been seen to form aggregates in the brain when the disease disseminates to the brain that closely resemble the Aβ plaques of AD patients. This review examines the evidence as to whether pathogens could be the cause of AD and its pathology. It offers novel speculations that treponemes may be able to induce or correlate with Alzheimer’s disease. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:53:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2df7787fc96e4f77a39a6bcd3e6fc1ad |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:53:35Z |
| publishDate | 2021-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-2df7787fc96e4f77a39a6bcd3e6fc1ad2023-11-23T14:46:35ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072021-12-011015610.3390/microorganisms10010056An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s DiseaseSandhya T. Chakravarthi0Suresh G. Joshi1Center for Surgical Infection and Biofilm, College of Medicine, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USACenter for Surgical Infection and Biofilm, College of Medicine, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USAAs one of the leading causes of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a condition in which individuals experience progressive cognitive decline. Although it is known that beta-amyloid (Aβ) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) of tau fibrils are hallmark characteristics of AD, the exact causes of these pathologies are still mostly unknown. Evidence that infectious diseases may cause AD pathology has been accumulating for decades. The association between microbial pathogens and AD is widely studied, and there are noticeable correlations between some bacterial species and AD pathologies, especially spirochetes and some of the oral microbes. <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> has been seen to correlate with Aβ plaques and NFTs in infected cells. Because of the evidence of spirochetes in AD patients, <i>Treponema pallidum</i> and other oral treponemes are speculated to be a potential cause of AD. <i>T. pallidum</i> has been seen to form aggregates in the brain when the disease disseminates to the brain that closely resemble the Aβ plaques of AD patients. This review examines the evidence as to whether pathogens could be the cause of AD and its pathology. It offers novel speculations that treponemes may be able to induce or correlate with Alzheimer’s disease.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/10/1/56Alzheimer’s diseasebeta-amyloid<i>Borrelia</i>dementiainfectious agentmicrobial biofilm |
| spellingShingle | Sandhya T. Chakravarthi Suresh G. Joshi An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease Microorganisms Alzheimer’s disease beta-amyloid <i>Borrelia</i> dementia infectious agent microbial biofilm |
| title | An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease |
| title_full | An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease |
| title_fullStr | An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease |
| title_full_unstemmed | An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease |
| title_short | An Association of Pathogens and Biofilms with Alzheimer’s Disease |
| title_sort | association of pathogens and biofilms with alzheimer s disease |
| topic | Alzheimer’s disease beta-amyloid <i>Borrelia</i> dementia infectious agent microbial biofilm |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/10/1/56 |
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