Virus Subtly Changes the Brain to 'Makes Humans More Stupid'

[william.scherk]

-- or so says the headline at International Business Times:

A virus called ATCV-1 that infects green algae (shown under a microscope) can also affect cognitive functions in mice and humans(Simon Andrews, Wikimedia Commons)

Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Medical School and the University of Nebraska have discovered an algae virus that makes us more stupid by infecting our brains.

The researchers were conducting a completely unrelated study into throat microbes when they realised that DNA in the throats of healthy people matched the DNA of a chlorovirus virus known as ATCV-1.

ATCV-1 is a virus that infects the green algae found in freshwater lakes and ponds. It had previously been thought to be non-infectious to humans, but the scientists found that it actually affects cognitive functions in the brain by shortening attention span and causing a decrease in spatial awareness.

For the first time ever, the researchers proved that microorganisms have the ability to trigger delicate physiological changes to the human body, without launching a full-blown attack on the human immune system.
However, the scientists do not yet know how ATCV-1 infects a human host and it's not as simple as just going swimming in a lake or pond, so there's no need to stop doing that yet.

Both humans and mice susceptible to virus

The study, entitled "Chlorovirus ATCV-1 is part of the human oropharyngeal virome and is associated with changes in cognitive functions in humans and mice" is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal.

The researchers analysed the throats of 92 healthy study participants and discovered the presence of ATCV-1 in 44% of them.

When they conducted tests designed to measure the brain's accuracy and speed in visual processing, as well as tests measuring attention span, the participants that tested positive for ATCV-1 achieved an average of 7-9 points lower on the tests than the participants who did not have the virus in their throats.

More at the link. I guess that this virus has been part of humanity for a long while. Would the human world be less-stupid if this piece of the virome puzzle was removed?