Newswise — New research into Alzheimer’s disease (AD) suggests that secondary infections and new inflammatory events amplify the brain’s immune response and affect memory in mice and in humans – even when these secondary events occur outside the brain.
Scientists believe that key brain cells (astrocytes and microglia) are already in an active state due to inflammation caused by AD and this new research shows that secondary infections can then trigger an over-the-top response in those cells, which has knock-on effects on brain rhythms and on cognition.
In the study, just published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, the journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, mice engineered to show features of AD were exposed to acute inflammatory events to observe the downstream effects on brain inflammation, neuronal network function and memory.
These mice showed new shifts in the output of…
