Dental Health in advanced age and Alzheimer ´s Disease: A possible link with bacterial toxins entering the brain?

While abnormal deposition of amyloid beta protein in the brain is a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the debate about its pathogenetic role has undergone several twists (Maurer and Hoyer, 2006), the latest of which is a possible link with antimicrobial activity (Kumar et al., 2016). Amyloid beta oligomers have been found to exert intrinsic antibacterial and antifungal effects by binding to cell walls and inhibiting adhesion to host tissues (Kumar et al., 2016).
Source: Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Source Type: research