Antibiotics might fight Alzheimer’s plaques
Mouse study links drug-induced changes in gut bacteria to reduced A-beta buildup in brain
A long course of antibiotics reduced the levels of a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease in the brains of mice, possibly by changing the species of bacteria in the gut. The results, described July 21 in Scientific Reports, suggest that gut bacteria may be linked in some way to Alzheimer’s.
The finding is preliminary, cautions neurobiologist Robert Moir of Massachusetts General Hospital, but it certainly merits more research. “It’s a nice new step in what could be a new strategy,” he says.