Brain health is a rapidly expanding field. WHO’s position paper on optimizing brain health across the life course is a technical complement to the recently-adopted Intersectoral global action plan on epilepsy and other neurological disorders 2022–2031. Many determinants are known to affect brain health at different stages of life. The …
A growing body of evidence suggests pesticides may play a role in Parkinson’s disease (PD) in humans. Selfreported PD has been associated with lifetime use of pesticides, and animal studies have suggested that the pesticides paraquat and rotenone can cause oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction, respectively—posited mechanisms of action in …
Little is known about environmental causes and contributing factors for autism. Basic science and epidemiologic research suggest that oxidative stress and inflammation may play a role in disease development. Traffic-related air pollution, a common exposure with established effects on these pathways, contains substances found to have adverse prenatal effects. The …
Calls in Canada for trials of a contentious treatment for multiple sclerosis illustrate how social media can affect research priorities, say Roger Chafe and his colleagues. http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v472/n7344/full/472410a.html
Long-term exposure to pesticides dulls the human brain. In fact it can even be linked to onset of dementia. Scientists at Victor Segalen University, Bordeaux, France studied 614 vineyard workers from the region. The intellectual capacity was monitored for six years as part of PHYTONER study. The team categorised the …
With the death of Veronica Rodrigues on 10 November, India has lost a leading figure in the resurgence of research and teaching in the biological sciences in the subcontinent. Her scientific influence was widely felt, but she was also intimately connected with fostering and advancing research in molecular biology and …
Luc Montagnier is applying unorthodox ideas to the treatment of autism. With support from the Autism Research Institute (ARI), based in San Diego, California, the Nobel laureate is about to launch a small clinical trial of prolonged antibiotic treatment in children with autism disorders.
Childhood diet is important for brain development. Furthermore, the quality of breakfast is thought to affect the cognitive functioning of well-nourished children. To analyze the relationship among breakfast staple type, gray matter volume, and intelligence quotient (IQ) in 290 healthy children, we used magnetic resonance images and applied voxel-based morphometry. …
The purpose of this study is to explore whether sustained exposure to vehicular air pollution affects the behavior and activities of children. The prevalence of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was assessed in two childhood populations. In a cross-sectional study 969 school-going children (9–17 years) and 850 age- and sex-matched children …
Yoga and exercise have beneficial effects on mood and anxiety. g-Aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic activity is reduced in mood and anxiety disorders. The practice of yoga postures is associated with increased brain GABA levels. This study addresses the question of whether changes in mood, anxiety, and GABA levels are specific to …
Studies using reconstructed exposure histories have suggested an association between heavy metal exposures, including lead, and Parkinson's disease (PD), and a study that used bone lead as a biomarker of cumulative lead exposure also reported a nonsignificant association with PD. Weisskopf et al. estimated the association between bone lead and …
LEAD poisoning is one of the oldest occupational and environmental hazards. Present in everything from house paints to toys, even a small amount of lead can interfere with children’s developing brain and nervous system and affect their learning and cognitive ability. But the precise mechanism by which lead affects brain …
This new study confirms that children in Faridkot area have for long been exposed to a large number of heavy metals, including lead, barium, cadmium, manganese and uranium. It has the study has been conducted by Baba Farid Center for Special Children. <br> Our test results documented that hair and …
Here is a reason why people should eat organically grown food. A study in the US has linked attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd) in children to pesticide residues in commercially grown fruits and vegetables they consume. Till now the disorder was either labelled as a hereditary disease or linked to …
Long-term neurotoxicity risks resulting from prenatal exposures to pesticides are uncertain, but a previous study of Ecuadorian schoolchildren suggested that blood pressure and visuospatial processing may be vulnerable to these exposures. Harari et al. conducted a cross-sectional study of cardiovascular and neurobehavioral functions among 84 Ecuadorian children 6
What do US soldiers deployed in Iraq face? Severe mental problems. The dominant one is ptsd. It leads to depression, manic depression, paranoia and other mental health imbalances. The most specific survey I have come across was conducted by the non-profit research institute rand Corporation. Though a bit dated the …
static magnetic fields produced by natural or artificial magnets are believed to relieve arthritic pains, help heal wounds and even add to vitality. Several in the medical establishment call such treatments pseudoscientific. Historical records show that magnetic therapy was used as early as the fourth century BC by the ancient …
Water supplies in many regions of the world are contaminated with arsenic, which is known to cause several diseases including cancer and skin lesions. Less is known about effects of arsenic on the nervous system, especially following developmental exposure. Wang et al. used neuro-2a neuroblastoma cells as a model to …
Recent epidemiological studies suggest that diabetes mellitus is a strong risk factor for Alzheimer disease. However, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. In this study, to investigate the pathophysiological interaction between these diseases, we generated animal models that reflect the pathologic conditions of both diseases. We crossed Alzheimer transgenic mice …
