31 October 2017, updated 31 October 2017
Alzheimer’s may be able to spread through blood transfusions
By Jessica Hamzelou
Can you catch Alzheimer’s disease? Fear has been growing that the illness might be capable of spreading via blood transfusions and surgical equipment, but it has been hard to find any evidence of this happening. Now a study has found that an Alzheimer’s protein can spread between mice that share a blood supply, causing brain degeneration.
We already know from prion diseases like Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) that misfolded proteins can spread brain diseases. Variant CJD can spread through meat products or blood transfusions infected with so-called prion proteins, for example.
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2151909-alzheimers-may-be-able-to-spread-through-blood-transfusions/
