Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection

Abstract Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis have been reported to influence cognitive function in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), particularly those infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) or cytomegalovirus (CMV). This study aimed to evaluate the effects of viral infect...

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Main Authors: Sepideh Khodamoradi, Forouzan Khodaei, Taher Mohammadian, Atousa Ferdousi, Fatemeh Rafiee
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-05-01
Series:Virology Journal
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12985-025-02786-8
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author Sepideh Khodamoradi
Forouzan Khodaei
Taher Mohammadian
Atousa Ferdousi
Fatemeh Rafiee
author_facet Sepideh Khodamoradi
Forouzan Khodaei
Taher Mohammadian
Atousa Ferdousi
Fatemeh Rafiee
author_sort Sepideh Khodamoradi
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis have been reported to influence cognitive function in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), particularly those infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) or cytomegalovirus (CMV). This study aimed to evaluate the effects of viral infection on oxidative stress markers associated with these pathways in AD patients. A total of 100 adults with mild-to-moderate AD were randomly assigned to a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial and categorized into three groups: AD (uninfected), AD with HSV-1, and AD with CMV. The primary outcomes included changes in serum inflammatory markers (IL-1β and TNF-α), blood antioxidant and oxidative stress markers—glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), reactive oxygen species (ROS), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC), as well as the expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins (BAX and BCL-2). Results showed that, compared to the control group, the AD group exhibited significant alterations in inflammatory and oxidative stress markers. CMV infection led to increased antioxidant enzyme activity and decreased serum inflammatory markers relative to the uninfected AD group. However, there were significant differences in ratio BAX/BCL-2 protein expression between the CMV and HSV-1 groups when compared to the AD group. In conclusion, AD patients infected with HSV-1 or CMV demonstrated distinct alterations in inflammatory, oxidative stress, antioxidant profiles, and apoptosis markers, which may have beneficial implications for circulatory biomarkers and potentially cognitive outcomes in AD.
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spelling doaj-art-25ee2cd09e7948f79a782d02ce65d3e32025-08-20T03:16:40ZengBMCVirology Journal1743-422X2025-05-0122111010.1186/s12985-025-02786-8Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfectionSepideh Khodamoradi0Forouzan Khodaei1Taher Mohammadian2Atousa Ferdousi3Fatemeh Rafiee4Department of Microbiology, Shahr-e-Qods Branch, Islamic Azad UniversityDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Microbiology, Shahr-e-Qods Branch, Islamic Azad UniversityDepartment of Microbiology, Shahr-e-Qods Branch, Islamic Azad UniversityDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical SciencesAbstract Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis have been reported to influence cognitive function in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), particularly those infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) or cytomegalovirus (CMV). This study aimed to evaluate the effects of viral infection on oxidative stress markers associated with these pathways in AD patients. A total of 100 adults with mild-to-moderate AD were randomly assigned to a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial and categorized into three groups: AD (uninfected), AD with HSV-1, and AD with CMV. The primary outcomes included changes in serum inflammatory markers (IL-1β and TNF-α), blood antioxidant and oxidative stress markers—glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), reactive oxygen species (ROS), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC), as well as the expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins (BAX and BCL-2). Results showed that, compared to the control group, the AD group exhibited significant alterations in inflammatory and oxidative stress markers. CMV infection led to increased antioxidant enzyme activity and decreased serum inflammatory markers relative to the uninfected AD group. However, there were significant differences in ratio BAX/BCL-2 protein expression between the CMV and HSV-1 groups when compared to the AD group. In conclusion, AD patients infected with HSV-1 or CMV demonstrated distinct alterations in inflammatory, oxidative stress, antioxidant profiles, and apoptosis markers, which may have beneficial implications for circulatory biomarkers and potentially cognitive outcomes in AD.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12985-025-02786-8Oxidative stressInflammationApoptosisAlzheimer's diseaseHSV-1 infectionCMV infection
spellingShingle Sepideh Khodamoradi
Forouzan Khodaei
Taher Mohammadian
Atousa Ferdousi
Fatemeh Rafiee
Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection
Virology Journal
Oxidative stress
Inflammation
Apoptosis
Alzheimer's disease
HSV-1 infection
CMV infection
title Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection
title_full Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection
title_fullStr Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection
title_full_unstemmed Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection
title_short Oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in Alzheimer’s disease associated with HSV-1 and CMV coinfection
title_sort oxidative stress inflammation and apoptosis in alzheimer s disease associated with hsv 1 and cmv coinfection
topic Oxidative stress
Inflammation
Apoptosis
Alzheimer's disease
HSV-1 infection
CMV infection
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12985-025-02786-8
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