Timing dose and duration of exposure along with other genetic and environmental factors is crucial in determining who develops the disease and who doesn’t
New Delhi: Inhalation of certain pesticides, common dry cleaning chemicals, and air pollution predispose a person to brain changes that can trigger Parkinson’s Disease, a new theory about the disease claims.
The theory from Danish researchers who hypothesized that it is either the smell centre of the brain or the intestine that is the first point of contact for the body to these substances, has been published in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease.
“In both the brain-first and body-first scenarios the pathology arises in structures in the body closely connected to the outside world,” said Ray Dorsey, MD, a professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Center and co-author of the piece. “Here we propose that Parkinson’s is a systemic disease and that its initial roots likely begin in the nose and in the gut and are tied to environmental factors increasingly recognized as major contributors, if not causes, of the disease. This further reinforces the idea that Parkinson’s, the world’s fastest growing brain disease, may be fueled by toxicants and is therefore largely preventable.”
In addition to Parkinson’s, these models of environmental exposure may advance understanding of how toxicants contribute to other brain disorders, including autism in children, ALS in adults, and Alzheimer’s in seniors. Dorsey and his colleagues at the University of Rochester have organized a symposium on the Brain and the Environment in Washington, DC, on May 20 that will examine the role toxicants in our food, water, and air are playing in all these brain diseases.
“These environmental toxicants are widespread and not everyone has Parkinson’s disease,” said Dorsey. “The timing, dose, and duration of exposure and interactions with genetic and other environmental factors are probably key to determining who ultimately develops Parkinson’s. In most instances, these exposures likely occurred years or decades before symptoms develop.”
