Health Hazard Iron oxides act in the brain - Can particulate matter cause Alzheimer's?

Iron oxide of fine dust penetrates to the brain
It has long been known that particulate matter poses a health hazard and can cause cancer, among other things, at high levels of stress. A research group has now found that fine dust particles also deposit in the brain and may be involved in the development of Alzheimer's.

Millions killed by air pollution
In Germany alone, around 35,000 people die every year from the effects of air pollution, according to an international research team in the journal Nature. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are approximately seven million deaths worldwide each year. The most harmful part is in the opinion of experts fine dust. It is known that the inhaled tiny dust particles damage the lungs and significantly increase the risk, inter alia, for cancer, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack.

It has long been known that high particulate matter pollution represents a health hazard. Researchers have now discovered that air pollution could also be a risk factor for Alzheimer's. (Image: Ralf Geithe / fotolia.com)

Fine dust acts up to the brain
In recent years, studies have also indicated that it could possibly come through dirty air to brain damage. For example, researchers from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the Boston University School of Medicine reported that the brain in a study appeared to be the older the more it was exposed to particulate matter.

Several years ago, the results of a scientific study published in the "British Medical Journal" showed that particulate matter penetrates into the brain.

Major part of humanity endangered
More than 80 percent of people worldwide live in cities whose air pollution has reached dangerous levels, according to the WHO. One of these cities is Mexico City. From this metropolis come samples that suggest that air pollution could also be a risk factor for Alzheimer's.

Possible risk factor for Alzheimer's
The "Ärzte Zeitung" reports on a study by Barbara Maher of the University of Lancaster (Great Britain) and her colleagues, which provides an indication that the increased inhalation of fine dust is linked to the onset of Alzheimer's. The results of the study were published in the journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences" (PNAS).

The scientists had studied a total of 37 brain samples from patients with neuro-degenerative diseases from Manchester and Mexico City. They discovered accumulations of iron oxide particles in all samples. "Iron oxide is associated with the formation of free oxygen radicals - and the formation of oxygen radicals is associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's," the researchers said.

Only a few Alzheimer's cases are hereditary
According to the information, the iron oxide particles (up to 150 nanometers) in the brain samples had the same composition and surface characteristics as iron oxide particles in fine dust samples. Therefore, they were probably of external origin and did not come from the deceased themselves. The researchers pointed out that less than five percent of all Alzheimer's cases were hereditary, environmental factors therefore played an important role in the development and progression of Alzheimer's.

Interpretation of study authors
Dr. Wolfgang G. Kreyling from the Institute of Epidemiology at the Helmholtz Center Munich and external scientific advisor to the study said, "The study results are an important step in understanding how iron oxide nanoparticles might play a role in the brain of patients with neurodegenerative diseases , On the other hand, the studies show that it is likely that the accumulation of nanoparticles in the brain come from the polluted air there. "

So far, however, a comparison of the examined Alzheimer's brains with age-matched deceased from a control group is missing, which died for other reasons. Therefore, the alleged relationship between the iron oxide nanoparticles in the brains of patients and the development of Alzheimer's disease is not yet to be regarded as evidence, but as a mere interpretation of the authors. (Ad)