Infections in the gut can accelerate the onset of degenerative brain conditions

Professor Neil Mabbott (The Roslin Institute) has published a study in Scientific Reports which indicates that a systemic inflammatory response augments the progression of prion-induced neurodegeneration in the central nervous system.

Mice who already had a pre-symptomatic prion infection were then given a low dose worm infection in their gut. They developed an enhanced astrocyte activation in the brain, their prion disease was accelerated and they had reduced survival times. This suggests that systemic inflammation may augment the progression of neurodegeneration in the cns. This work is likely to have implications for the study of similar diseases in people, such as whether gastroenteritis can also worsen the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease.