An investigation in the United Kingdom was the first to confirm accidental transmission of the virus through medical treatment. Protein that causes Alzheimer’s diseasea disease that until now has only been associated with old age or, to a lesser extent, with genetic inheritance.
The discovery of this spread, no matter how extreme the circumstances under which it occurred, underscores the need to take extreme precautions, according to the authors of this study, reported this Monday in the journal Nature Medicine.
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The study confirmed that five patients who were treated with contaminated growth hormone derived from cadaveric brain tissue and out of use since 1985 eventually recovered. developing a disease without even being old nor the associated genetic inheritance. It was contaminated with beta-amyloid protein, the accumulation of which is responsible for Alzheimer’s disease.
“Contaminated” treatment
The growth hormone c-hGH, extracted from the pituitary glands of deceased people to treat growth problems, was administered to 1,848 girls and boys in the United Kingdom between 1959 and 1985.
The suspension of its use in 1985 and its replacement with a synthetic hormone was prompted by the discovery that some batches contained infectious proteins that cause Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a brain disease that often leads to dementia.
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In 2017-2018, more than 30 years after the cessation of this treatment, the authors of the present study analyzed stored samples of c-hGH growth hormone and found that they were contaminated with pathology associated with the amyloid beta protein, despite the fact that they were infected with a pathology associated with the amyloid beta protein. have been stored for decades.
When administered to mice, they saw that they developed Alzheimer’s disease, which led them to wonder what the evolution of those girls and boys who received this treatment, potentially contaminated with beta-amyloid protein, would have been like.
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“Our suspicion was that people exposed to this growth hormone who did not succumb to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and lived longer might eventually develop Alzheimer’s disease,” explained one of the authors at a press conference, neurosurgeon John Collinge. , Fellow, University College London.
What the 8 Cases Studied Show
A study of eight of these cases found that five began exhibiting symptoms of dementia between the ages of 38 and 55 and were now either diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or met all diagnostic criteria for the disease.
Of the remaining three, one person met criteria for mild cognitive impairment.
The unusually early age at which these patients developed symptoms suggests that they did not have conventional Alzheimer’s disease. old ageand in all five cases the existence of a gene which makes the disease hereditary in some cases has been ruled out.
“There is no indication that Alzheimer’s disease can be transmitted between people during daily activities or routine health care. The patients we described received specific treatment, which was interrupted in 1985,” emphasizes Collinge.
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However, the authors agree that the finding that Alzheimer’s disease can be transmitted no matter how extreme the circumstances sets a precedent and should lead to “a re-examination of measures to prevent accidental transmission through medical or surgical procedures to prevent occurrence of such cases.” in future.”
Cautions
In a response published on the Science Media Center platform, Tara Spears-Jones, president of the British Society for Neuroscience, does not question the study’s findings, but stresses that “this is not something that should concern people.”
“There is no evidence that Alzheimer’s pathology can be transmitted between people in everyday life, and there is no evidence that modern surgical procedures carry any risk of transmitting the disease,” he adds.
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In a similar vein, University of Manchester biochemistry professor Andrew Doig urges “caution” and stresses that, despite its strength, the study “only takes eight patients into account.”
“There is no reason to fear the spread of the disease, since the path of its origin – this transmission – was stopped more than 40 years ago. Transmission of disease from human brain to brain in this way should not happen again,” he argues.
(According to EFE)
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