Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease

Neuroinflammation plays a decisive role in neurodegenerative diseases, a role that is still largely misunderstood. Basic scientific approaches are used to investigate the extent to which chronic inflammatory processes in the central nervous system (CNS), but also in the periphery, can lead to a malfunction or even the death of nerve and glial cells in the CNS. The main focus here is on researching and modulating specific immune cells and inflammatory signaling pathways that influence the course of neurodegenerative diseases and thus enable new therapeutic approaches. Pathological protein deposits in nerve and glial cells are an important component of neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases. In previous studies, we were able to show that α-synuclein is an important component in Parkinson's and Parkinson's-like diseases, but also plays a role in inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis and can influence inflammatory reactions. To better understand the interplay between neuroinflammation, α-synuclein and cellular pathology, we are investigating different models of neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.

Parkinson's disease

"Fungal-derived semiochemical 1-octen-3-ol disrupts dopamine packaging and causes neurodegeneration" was published november 11, 2013 (5 years after this site was in the web)  in  "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences" (DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1318830110): Researchers led by Arati Inamdar from the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences investigated the connection between octenol and the activity of two genes that regulate the dopamine balance. They found that octenol affects the genes in such a way that dopamine can no longer be passed on as intended. As a result, the nerve cells degenerate and symptoms similar to Parkinson's disease appear: stiffness and uncoordinated movements.

Study of 2020 led by Diana Pisa: Identification of specific fungal and bacterial species in different CNS regions from six PD patients was accomplished using nested PCR analysis and next-generation sequencing, providing compelling evidence of polymicrobial infections in the CNS of PD. Most of the fungal species identified belong to the genera Botrytis, Candida, Fusarium and Malassezia.

In 2021, fungi began to be increasingly recognized as a cause of Parkinson's disease.

A study led by Severin Weis showed: The colonization with fungi and bacteria in the microbiome of patients with Parkinson's was investigated. A striking relative frequency of the mold Geotrichum candidum was found, which was represented with 39.7 percent of all DNA sequences, compared to only 0.05 percent in control samples. "The PD (Parkinson’s disease) samples showed a significantly lower alpha and a different beta eukaryotic diversity than the controls. Most strikingly, we observed a significantly higher relative abundance of sequence affiliated with the Geotrichum genus in the PD samples (39.7%), when compared to the control samples (0.05%)."

(Geotrichum candidum is a noble fungus that is used in the production of Camembert. Noble mold is believed to keep harmful molds away from the cheese. This fungus is also part of the human gut microbiome. It is an acid-tolerant, yeast-like fungus and is the best-known species of the genus. It is one of the most adaptable microorganisms. It is very common because it occurs on moist, nutrient-rich substrates. The habitat of this globally distributed species includes milk and dairy products as well as many crops such as cereals and maize, rice, grapes, citrus fruits, tomates, bananas, cucumbers, silage(!!). Strains of this species produce a wealth of biotechnologically important enzymes, including cellulases, β-glucanases, xylanases, lipases, proteases and α-amylases. Furthermore, there are strains that produce antimicrobial compounds and are capable of bioremediation (remediation of contaminated sites, etc.). It can also be found in bread and is used for the production of special enzymes in sourdough fermentation. G. candidum is used in milk processing as a starter culture for cheese production and in some traditional fermented milks. G. candidum is also often a normal component of kefir microflora. Geotrichum candidum used to be characterized as a transitional form between mould and yeast, but for more than 25 years it has been classified as a yeast. It is ubiquitous in soil, water and air.

Geotrichum candidum is known as milk mold. In Finland and Sweden, G. candidum is used to make a fermented milk product called Viili. Geotrichum candidum can cause geotrichosis in humans. This is an opportunistic infection that usually affects the skin, lungs and digestive tract in immunocompromised patients. Further studies are now needed to determine whether G. Candidum is really a pathogenic species in the microbiome or whether it is merely exploiting an environmental advantage in this case.)

Alzheimer's disease

Now, after almost 20 years of reading on this site that a fungus is responsible for Alzheimer's disease, in 2025 (!!) medicine is also beginning to recognize fungi as the actual cause of Alzheimer's disease. New studies on this are literally published daily. Here are just a few: "A team of researchers led by Diana Pisa from Spain: The tissue of the central nervous system of these patients contained fungal cells and fungal cell filaments. The fungal material was found in several regions of the brain. Fungal infections were also detected in the blood vessels, which could explain the vascular dementia that is often found in Alzheimer's patients. Vascular dementia is the term used to describe dementia that develops due to circulatory disorders in the brain." Several different types of fungi were involved in the process.

An US research group has now also conducted research into this: they have now identified a mechanism that links infection of the brain by Candida with the formation of amyloid plaques. The study from Texas showed that Candida albicans can cross the blood-brain barrier and that toxic compounds are produced that are associated with Alzheimer's and lead to neurodegeneration. Here is the study from 2023: https://neurosciencenews.com/alzheimers-fungus-24955/  "We found that C. albicans produces enzymes called secreted aspartic proteases that break down the blood-brain barrier, giving the fungus access to the brain, where it causes damage,"

And a study with mice also found similar results: The fungus triggered memory problems in mice. It also caused the accumulation of so-called beta-amyloid molecules in the brain.

Also 2023: The fungal pathogen Candida albicans is linked to chronic brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the molecular basis of brain anti-Candida immunity remains unknown. We show that C. albicans enters the mouse brain from the blood and induces two neuroimmune sensing mechanisms involving secreted aspartic proteinases (Saps) and candidalysin.

2022: Both immunohistochemistry and next-generation sequencing (NGS) techniques were employed to assess fungal and bacterial infections in the brain tissue of AD patients and non-AD controls, with the most prevalent fungus genera detected in AD patients being Alternaria, Botrytis, Candida, and Malassezia

Alzheimer's disease and antibiotics: Antibiotics are normally used to remove or prevent bacterial colonization in the human body, without targeting specific types of bacteria. As a result, broad-spectrum antibiotics can greatly affect the composition of the gut microbiota, reduce its biodiversity, and delay colonization for a long period after administration. Thus, the action of antibiotics in AD could be wide and even opposite, depending on the type of antibiotic and on the specific role of the microbiome in AD pathogenesis.Alteration of the gut microbiota can induce changes in brain activity, which raise the possibility of therapeutic manipulation of the microbiome in AD and other neurological disorders.

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similar studies run into the thousands

(more on german pages of this site)