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Updated: Jul 6, 2026

In Vitro Aggregation Assays Using Hyperphosphorylated Tau Protein
Published on: January 2, 2015
An emerging role for the gut microbiome in tauopathy
Yiyang Zhu1, Wade K Self1, David M Holtzman1
1Department of Neurology, Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Knight Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63110.
None:
Tauopathies constitute a group of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by abnormal aggregation of the protein tau, progressive neuronal and synaptic loss, and eventual cognitive and motor impairment. In this review, we will highlight the latest efforts investigating the intricate interplay between the gut microbiome and tauopathies. We discuss the physiological interactions between the microbiome and the brain as well as clinical and experimental evidence that suggests that the presence of tauopathy alters the composition of gut microbiota. We explore both animal and human studies that define causative relationships between the gut microbiome and tauopathy by directly manipulating or transferring gut microbiota. This review highlights future directions into identifying and mechanistically elucidating microbial species causally linked to tauopathies, with an ultimate goal of devising therapeutic targets towards the gut microbiome to treat tauopathies.
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