Air pollution can drive devastating forms of dementia, research suggests
6 days ago
- #air-pollution
- #neurodegenerative-diseases
- #dementia
- Fine-particulate air pollution (PM2.5) triggers toxic protein clumps linked to Lewy body dementia, the second most common form of dementia.
- Long-term exposure to PM2.5 increases the risk of Lewy body dementia, as shown in a study of 56.5 million US Medicare patients.
- Mice exposed to PM2.5 developed brain shrinkage and cognitive decline, while genetically modified mice without alpha-synuclein were unaffected.
- PM2.5 pollution drives the formation of toxic alpha-synuclein clumps, similar to those found in human Lewy body dementia.
- Clean air policies are emphasized as crucial for brain health, given the modifiable risk factor of air pollution.
- The study, published in Science, highlights the urgent need to mitigate air pollution's impact on neurodegenerative diseases.
- A UK project called Rapid is investigating the role of air pollution in dementia, supporting the study's findings.