Cited by 708Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchNeuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms

Multiscale Analysis of Independent Alzheimer’s Cohorts Finds Disruption of Molecular, Genetic, and Clinical Networks by Human Herpesvirus

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Readhead, Ben, Haure-Mirande, Jean-Vianney, Funk, Cory C., Richards, Matthew A., Shannon, Paul, Haroutunian, Vahram, Sano, Mary, Liang, Winnie S. +7 more·2018·Neuron

Abstract

Investigators have long suspected that pathogenic microbes might contribute to the onset and progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) although definitive evidence has not been presented. Whether such findings represent a causal contribution, or reflect opportunistic passengers of neurodegeneration, is also difficult to resolve. We constructed multiscale networks of the late-onset AD-associated virome, integrating genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, and histopathological data across four brain regions from human post-mortem tissue. We observed increased human herpesvirus 6A (HHV-6A) and human herpesvirus 7 (HHV-7) from subjects with AD compared with controls. These results were replicated in two additional, independent and geographically dispersed cohorts. We observed regulatory relationships linking viral abundance and modulators of APP metabolism, including induction of APBB2, APPBP2, BIN1, BACE1, CLU, PICALM, and PSEN1 by HHV-6A. This study elucidates networks linking molecular, clinical, and neuropathological features with viral activity and is consistent with viral activity constituting a general feature of AD.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.05.023

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  • Recent analyses of post-mortem samples indicate HHV6 may be more abundant in the brains of AD individuals, but these results were contrasted by a re-analysis of the same samples using different bioinformatic techniques.

    “Although recent analyses of post-mortem samples indicate HHV6 may be more abundant in the brains of AD individuals, these results were contrasted by a re-analysis of the same samples using different bioinformatic techniques [43,44].”

    From What would it take to prove that a chronic infection is a causal agent in Alzheimer’s disease? (2025) · cites this paper as [44]

    The Results section reports increased HHV-6A abundance in post-mortem brain samples from people with Alzheimer’s disease. The cited paper does not report a contrasting re-analysis of the same samples using different bioinformatic techniques, so it supports only the first part of the sentence. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Many studies have linked AD to a diverse variety of bacterial and viral pathogens.

    “Many studies have linked AD to a diverse variety of bacterial and viral pathogens [529–531].”
  • A recent multi-omic study identified enrichment of HHV-6A and HHV-7 in AD patients compared to controls.

    “A recent multi-omic study identified an enrichment of HHV-6A and HHV-7 in AD patients compared to controls [529–531].”
  • Significant overlap exists between expression of AD-associated genes and genomic viral load in the CNS; viral abundance may determine AD progression through regulation of genes associated with APP processing.

    “Significant overlap exists between the expression of AD-associated genes and genomic viral load in the CNS; for example, viral abundance may determine AD progression through the regulation of genes associated with APP processing [529–531].”
  • Nucleic acids and proteins derived from bacteria, viruses, and fungi have been detected in brain tissue of Alzheimer's disease patients after death.

    “Recent studies have detected nucleic acids and proteins derived from bacteria, viruses, and fungi in the brain tissue of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients after death”

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Research works printed but not linked: 5

  1. Liang WS, (2010). Neuronal gene expression in non-demented individuals with intermediate Alzheimer’s Disease neuropathology. Neurobiol Aging, 31, 549– 66. 18572275 PMC2844804
  2. Mirra SS, (1991). The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease (CERAD). Part II. Standardization of the neuropathologic assessment of Alzheimer’s disease. Neurology, 41, 479– 86. 2011243
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  5. Pearl JR, (2017). Genome-scale transcriptional regulatory network models of psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. bioRxiv. 30772379

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Authors
Readhead, B., Haure-Mirande, J.-V., Funk, C. C., Richards, M. A., Shannon, P., Haroutunian, V., Sano, M., Liang, W. S., Beckmann, N. D., Price, N. D., Reiman, E. M., Schadt, E. E., Ehrlich, M. E., Gandy, S., & Dudley, J. T.
Affiliations
  • Arizona State University (US)
  • Institute for Systems Biology (US)
  • James J. Peters VA Medical Center (US)
  • Translational Genomics Research Institute (US)
  • Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (US)
  • Sema4 (United States) (US)
  • Mount Sinai Hospital (US)
  • Mount Sinai Health System (US)
Corresponding author
Dudley, Joel T.
Venue
Neuron
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2018-07
Volume
99
Issue
1
Pages
64-82.e7
ISSN
0896-6273 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2809045422
Cited by
708
References
128
Citations by year
2026: 48 · 2025: 63 · 2024: 72 · 2023: 59 · 2022: 85 · 2021: 105 · 2020: 113 · 2019: 105 · 2018: 57 · 2016: 1
FWCI
65.49
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Neuron (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • NIA (U01AG046139, P50 AG016574, R01 AG032990, U01 AG046139, R01 AG018023, U01 AG006576, U01 AG006786, R01 AG025711, R01 AG017216, R01 AG003949, P30AG10161, R01AG15819, R01AG17917, R01AG30146, R01AG36836, U01AG32984, U01AG46152, 1R56AG058469)
  • NIH (U54EB020406)
  • NINDS (R01 NS080820)
  • CurePSP Foundation
  • Mayo Foundation
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (U24 NS072026)
  • National Institute on Aging (P30 AG19610)
  • Arizona Department of Health Services (211002)
  • Arizona Biomedical Research Commission (4001, 0011, 05-901, 1001)
  • Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research
  • Illinois Department of Public Health
  • Translational Genomics Research Institute (U01 AG046170)
  • Katherine Gehl
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
Keywords
Alzheimer's disease, HHV-6A, human herpesvirus 7, virome, viral infection, APP metabolism, BACE1, BIN1, presenilin 1, clusterin, PICALM, postmortem brain, multi-scale network, neuropathology, transcriptomics, proteomics
MeSH terms
Alzheimer Disease, Animals, Brain, Humans, Mice, Transgenic, Nuclear Proteins, Cohort Studies, Herpesvirus 6, Human, Case-Control Studies, Herpesvirus 7, Human, Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases, Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor, Mice, Knockout, Encephalitis, Viral, Roseolovirus Infections, Viral Load, Gene Expression Profiling, Genomics, Tumor Suppressor Proteins, Monomeric Clathrin Assembly Proteins, MicroRNAs, Proteomics, Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing, Clusterin, Mice, Gene Regulatory Networks, Presenilin-1, Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases, Microbiota

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