Scientist from the United States claim they've discovered a virus that infects the human brain and makes people more stupid.

The virus is algae in nature and has never before been observed in healthy people.

It was found to affect cognitive functions including visual processing and spatial awareness of the people it infects.

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Throat microbes were the pathway that helped scientists at the Johns Hopkins Medical School and the University of Nebraska discover this unique virus.

When the researchers were looking around the throats of people and searching for microbes, they found DNA in these healthy individuals that matched the DNA of the virus known to infect green algae.

This prompted Dr. Robert Yolken, a virologist, to lead the study.

He said this is a striking example that shows the innocuous microorganisms people are capable of carrying, and how they affect the behavior and cognition of people without these people even knowing it.

Many physiological differences between person A and person B are encoded in the set of genes each inherits from parents. Yet some of these differences are fueled by the various microorganisms we harbor and the way they interact with our genes, Yolken said.

The study gathered 90 participants and 40 of these participants tested positive for the algae virus.

Of those that tested positive for this virus, scientists found they performed worse on tests that were designed to measure the speed and accuracy of visual processing. These participants also achieved lower scores in tasks designed to measure attention.

While human bodies contain trillions of bacteria, viruses, and fungi, most of them are harmless.

This new study shows there are some microbes that could possibly have a negative effect on cognitive functions.

TagsVirus, stupid, algae