Flu May Impact Brain Health

Summary: A new mouse study reveals two different strains of influenza cause changes to both the function and structure of the hippocampus that can last for one month post infection.

Source: SfN.

Female mice infected with two different strains of the flu exhibit changes to the structure and function of the hippocampus that persist for one month after infection, according to new research published in JNeurosci.

Although influenza is considered to be a respiratory disease, it has been associated with neurological symptoms in some cases. However, the long-term effects of flu on the brain have not been studied.

Martin Korte and colleagues investigated three different flu strains (H1N1, H3N2, H7N7) in mice. Two of these strains, H3N2 and H7N7, caused memory impairments that were associated with structural changes to neurons in the hippocampus.

The infections also activated the brain’s immune cells in this region for an extended period and altered the expression of genes implicated in disorders including depression, autism and schizophrenia.

hippocampus
Long-term effect of influenza A virus infection on glial cell density and activation status within the hippocampal subregions. The neurotropic H7N7 IAV infection induced an increased microglia density in all hippocampal subregions at 30 days pi. NeuroscienceNews.com image is credited to Hosseini et al., JNeurosci (2018).

These findings suggest that some strains of the flu may pose a threat to healthy brain function.

About this neuroscience research article

Funding: The research was supported by the Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony, Helmholtz-Association.

Source: David Barnstone – SfN
Publisher: Organized by NeuroscienceNews.com.
Image Source: NeuroscienceNews.com image is credited to Hosseini et al., JNeurosci (2018).
Original Research: The study will appear in Journal of Neuroscience.

Cite This NeuroscienceNews.com Article

[cbtabs][cbtab title=”MLA”]SfN “Flu May Impact Brain Health.” NeuroscienceNews. NeuroscienceNews, 27 February 2018.
<https://neurosciencenews.com/flu-brain-health-8570/>.[/cbtab][cbtab title=”APA”]SfN (2018, February 27). Flu May Impact Brain Health. NeuroscienceNews. Retrieved February 27, 2018 from https://neurosciencenews.com/flu-brain-health-8570/[/cbtab][cbtab title=”Chicago”]SfN “Flu May Impact Brain Health.” https://neurosciencenews.com/flu-brain-health-8570/ (accessed February 27, 2018).[/cbtab][/cbtabs]

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