3 ms·
...because Alzheimer is a dormant side effect of a virus, not of a messenger chemical. But that doesn't go well in studies and "self populism" of what funded re
by cookiengineer 6mo ago
...because Alzheimer is a dormant side effect of a virus, not of a messenger chemical. But that doesn't go well in studies and "self populism" of what funded research wanted to hear.
If you study effects and not causes due to lack of measurements for reproducibility in any field of research, that's what comes out.
Also check out how the new and promising correlation started by observing the Wales eligibility for mandatory shingles vaccination during an outbreak and the effect on that test group when it comes to alzheimer or dementia in their old age.
Note that shingles (herpes zoster) virus is a dormant virus for decades, and it's not really treated because of that.
Also note that this was only discovered because people died and their data set was publicized because of that, which I hope that can happen in an anonymous way due to it being invaluable for medical research.
[1] https://www.alzheimer-europe.org/news/analysis-electronic-health-records-people-wales-finds-link-between-shingles-vaccination-and https://www.alzheimer-europe.org/news/analysis-electronic-he...
[2] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11485228/ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11485228/
[3] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867425012565 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S009286742...
[4] https://www.alzforum.org/news/research-news/shingles-vaccine-deflects-dementia-aussies-too https://www.alzforum.org/news/research-news/shingles-vaccine...
- josh-wrale 6mo agoNot always. Genetic causes are known.
- cookiengineer 6mo ago... which kind of points to the indicator that "Alzheimer != Alzheimer", implying that too many diseases with the same side effects are categorized together? A lot of virological and parasitical components have historically been wrongly associated with genetic markers, too. Toxoplasmosis parasite comes to mind. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasmosis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasmosis [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii
- josh-wrale 6mo agoNon-sequitur
- DANmode 6mo agoNon-diagnostician
- josh-wrale 6mo agoPoint stands.
- DANmode 6mo agoSo does the lack of a model for Alzheimer’s, and other chronic illnesses, that the consumer-facing medical industry prefers to dismiss.
- josh-wrale 6mo agoI didn't argue a model beyond one cause.
- anon84873628 6mo agoThe tau hypothesis is looking like a good model.
- cookiengineer 6mo ago> Non-sequitur Not sure what you are trying to achieve with comments like this, besides intentional gas lighting. Could've commented with links to scientific articles or papers that disprove my theory. Instead you chose to be ... this?
- josh-wrale 6mo agohttps://med.stanford.edu/news/insights/2025/09/rethinking-alzheimers-gene-variant-apoe4.html https://med.stanford.edu/news/insights/2025/09/rethinking-al...
- anon84873628 6mo agoGee, that sure is a confident statement of fact. Or maybe virus activity is one way that a negative feedback loop involving protein aggregates can begin...
- nickburns 6mo agoSure is a line of inquiry worth pursuing either way, no?
- anon84873628 6mo agoIt very much has been. Which is why it's tiring to see these articles (and HN comments) portraying it otherwise. Search HN for Alzheimer's and you will find lots of updates on the research and lots of the same uninformed comment threads.
- DANmode 6mo ago“Complications due to unaddressed microbial infection” will read as pretty confident, too, but it’s still pretty vague once you’ve really dug in.
- anon84873628 6mo agoThat's why I was emphasizing "one way" and "can begin". Clearly viral infection may be a distal factor but it is not the proximate cause of Alzheimer's... which is quite conclusively due to protein aggregates.
- DANmode 6mo agoI don’t find any of it conclusive. Protein aggregates seem like the effect, with many causes.
- anon84873628 6mo agoYes, exactly. Whether it APOE mutation, traumatic injury, metabolic dysfunction, Herpes infection, or some other inflammation that upregulates kinases, you end up with hyperphosphorylated tau which in turn forms the neurofibrillary tangles that destroy nutrient transport in neurons and eventually kills them. "Neuron death by protein aggregates" is the best way to define Alzheimer's. Anything more specific refers to only one of those aforementioned causes; anything less is just "brain don't work no more." These clickbait headlines are so frustrating, especially since the article itself explains the tau mechanism and all the progress that has been made in understanding the disease.