Scientific American: Could Mitochondria Be the Key to a Healthy Brain?, 2021, Kwon

Could Mitochondria Be the Key to a Healthy Brain?

Quote:

"Some researchers suspect these bacterial ancestors living within our cells may contribute to a wide range of neurological and psychiatric disorders
[...]
A small but growing number of scientists are now turning their attention to the contributions of mitochondria in brain health. Studies in humans and lab animals — though much of it still preliminary — suggest these organelles could be key players in virtually every type of brain disorder, including neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism, psychiatric illnesses like depression and schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s. They may even be at the heart of an enduring mystery for researchers who study brain disorders: how genetic predispositions and environmental influences interact to put people at risk for developing these conditions."

The suggestion seems to be that the root of a lot of neurological problems is in mutations in mitochondrial DNA.

If that is the case, then genetic studies (including for ME/CFS) may need to broaden to look at mitochondrial DNA.
 
The features of Dementia and Alzheimer’s which include olfactory dysfunction and mitochondrial damage/dysfunction also fit with the infection hypothesis and provide another clue. Chlamydia pneumoniae steals ATP from mitochondria and has been proven to induce a state of inflammation and elicit mitochondrial damage.

https://intracellresearchgroup.com/chlamydia-pneumoniae/

I watched a program 20 years ago where a Canadian doctor said they found chlamydia pneumoniae in Alzheimer's brains and that "it should not be there'.
He also mentioned that Alzheimer's should be treated the same as heart disease.
 
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