Alzheimer's cold sore virus link

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7071576.stm Alzheimer's cold sore virus link The cold sore virus has been linked to Alzheimer's diseaseEvidence is building that the cold sore virus may be linked to Alzheimer's disease, an expert says. In lab tests, Manchester University found brains infected with the herpes simplex virus, HSV-1,

saw a rise in a protein linked to Alzheimer's. Scientists

believe the discovery could pave the way for a vaccine that may help

prevent the brain disorder, New Scientist magazine reported. But such a breakthrough was a long-time off, experts said. We need to carry out much more work into this, but the problem is people are quite sceptical of a viral link Dr Ruth Itzhaki, of Manchester

University The

researchers infected cultures of human brain cells with the virus and

found a "dramatic" increase in levels of the beta amyloid protein - the

building blocks of deposits, or plaques, which form in the brains of

people with Alzheimer's. A similar increase was seen in the brains of mice infected with HSV-1. In

a separate experiment, the team stained brain slices taken from dead

Alzheimer's patients and found DNA from HSV-1 attached to the plaques. Gene interaction Previous research has established that HSV-1 is found in the brains of up to 70% of people with Alzheimer's. And

a team from the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York

found that it was more likely to cause a problem in people who carry a

mutant version of a specific gene called ApoE4, which is involved in

the breakdown of fats by the body. They found the vast majority of

Alzheimer's patients they examined carried the gene - and suspect that it works to make HSV-1 more active. Scientists

have still to establish a direct link between the virus and the

disease, but the Manchester team believe the findings offer hope for

the future. Lead researcher Dr Ruth Itzhaki said: "Alzheimer's is a multi-factorial disease, there are many different causes. "But our work implies that for some a mixture of the gene variant and the virus could be contributing to it. "In

the future - although it is a long way off - people could even be

immunised against the virus which could help protect people against

Alzheimer's." "We need to carry out much more work into this, but the problem is people are quite sceptical of a viral link." Professor

Clive Ballard, director of research at the Alzheimer's Society, said:

"A link between the virus and Alzheimer's disease was first suggested

ten years ago." But he added: "More

research is needed before we can establish how relevant it may be to the treatment of people with Alzheimer's disease."