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Dr. Elder featured in Nature: "Your brain is full of microplastics: are they harming you?"
Tuesday, February 11, 2025
Plastics might affect each organ or cell type differently. The dose matters, too, as well as the route of ingestion, says Alison Elder, an associate professor of environmental medicine. “The inhalation route is a major concern because if inhaled plastics can get into the deep lung and cause an inflammatory reaction, they don’t need to go anywhere to cause health outcomes.”
Read More: Dr. Elder featured in Nature: "Your brain is full of microplastics: are they harming you?"Fish, Mercury, and the Developing Brain
Monday, February 3, 2025
Decades of insights from the Seychelles Child Development study
There is a growing understanding of the role of chronic low-level exposure to environmental toxicants in human diseases. Mercury, a known neurotoxicant at a high level of exposure, is among the top chemicals identified by the World Health Organization as a “major public health concern.” The presence of mercury in fish has led the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to recommend that mothers limit fish consumption during pregnancy.
However, more than three decades of research in Seychelles, whose residents eat ten times more fish than in the U.S., has found no evidence of neurodevelopmental harm linked to mercury exposure via fish. In fact, the study suggests that the omega-3 fatty acids and other micro-nutrients found in fish, which are critical for brain development, may counteract any potential adverse effects of mercury.
“The associations between low-level mercury exposure, nutrients, fish consumption, and child neurodevelopmental outcomes are complex. Tackling these questions, which have global health and economic implications, has required an international team,” said University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) epidemiologist Edwin van Wijngaarden, PhD, the principal investigator of the Seychelles Child Development Study.
Read More: Fish, Mercury, and the Developing Brain70 countries have banned this pesticide. It’s still for sale in the US
Wednesday, January 22, 2025
The Washington Post, January 22 “The data is the data,” says Deborah Cory-Slechta, a professor of environmental medicine and of neuroscience. She says paraquat exposure is associated with the loss of dopamine neurons, which can cause slow and uncoordinated movements, tremors, and difficulty communicating, all of which are consistent with Parkinson’s disease. |
“The evidence is very strong, both based on animal studies and on epidemiological evidence the fact that it kills dopamine neurons,” she said.
Biotin May Shield Brain from Manganese Damage, Study Finds
Tuesday, January 21, 2025
While manganese is essential in many bodily functions, both deficiency and excessive exposure can cause health issues. Maintaining a balanced diet typically provides sufficient manganese for most individuals; however, high levels of exposure can be toxic, particularly to the central nervous system. Chronic manganese exposure may result in a condition known as manganism, characterized by symptoms resembling Parkinson's disease, including tremors, muscle stiffness, and cognitive disturbances.
New research published in Science Signaling employs model systems and human nerve cells to show the mechanisms by which manganese inflicts damage to the central nervous system. The study also suggests that the vitamin biotin may be protective, potentially mitigating manganese-induced damage.
“Exposure to neurotoxic metals like manganese has been linked to the development of Parkinsonism,” said Sarkar Souvarish, PhD, an assistant professor at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) Departments of Environmental Medicine and Neuroscience and lead author of the study. “In this study, we applied untargeted metabolomics using high-resolution mass spectrometry and advanced cheminformatics computing in a newly developed model of parkinsonism, leading us to the discovery of biotin metabolism as a modifier in manganese-induced neurodegeneration.”
Read More: Biotin May Shield Brain from Manganese Damage, Study FindsAir pollution and brain damage: what the science says
Tuesday, January 14, 2025
Post-mortem studies of human brains provide direct evidence that numerous pollutants—including nanoparticles and toxic metals—accumulate in brain tissue. Deborah Cory-Slechta, a professor of environmental medicine and of neuroscience, says she suspects that the brain can’t cope with the resulting metal concentrations, noting that, for decades, pathologists have seen elevated levels of various metals in the brains of people with neurodegenerative diseases. She is now studying how the metals disrupt brain chemistry.
Read More: Air pollution and brain damage: what the science says