Alzheimer's disease plaques and tangles: Cemeteries of a Pyrrhic victory of the immune defence network against herpes simplex infection at the expense of complement and inflammation-mediated neuronal destruction

▶ Amyloid plaques are heavily and significantly enriched in Herpes simplex associated proteins. ▶ Plaques and tangles also contain numerous immune-related proteins. ▶ Immune activation and the complement membrane attack complex are present in Alzheimer's disease neurones. ▶ Plaques and tangles are cemeteries for a battle between the host immune network and Herpes simplex. ▶ This battle has been won at the expense of neuronal destruction.