Work

Detection of fungal sequences in human brain: rDNA locus amplification and deep sequencing

Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The aetiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are unknown and tend to manifest at a late stage in life; even though these neurodegenerative diseases are caused by different affected proteins, they are both characterized by neuroinflammation. Links between bacterial and viral infection and AD/PD has been suggested in several studies, however, few have attempted to establish a link between fungal infection and AD/PD. In this study we adopted a nanopore-based sequencing approach to characterise the presence or absence of fungal genera in both human brain tissue and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). We observed the presence of small fungal burden DNA in two AD brains and a control case (extensive amyloid angiopathy). This approach would be well-placed to investigate potential links between microbial infection and neurodegenerative disease.
Language: English
Subfield: Physiology
Field: Medicine
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,590
OpenAlex ID: W4405895886
FWCI: 0.469
Cites: 51
Cited by: 2
Related to: 10