Determination of cerebrospinal fluid and serum lead levels in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and other neurological diseases

Kapaki, Elisabeth; Segditsa, J.; Zournas, C.; Xenos, Dionisios S.; Papageorgiou, C.

doi:10.1007/bf01950171

Cited by 16 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Campbell et al (72) and Conradi et al (73) reexamined the hypothesis and reported elevated lead levels in blood and cerebral fluid from ALS patients. Although others have not replicated these observations, they nevertheless acknowledge that lead may be a contributing factor in the pathogenesis of disease (74)(75)(76). Recent evidence showing that occupations with exposure to welding, soldering, and electric plating increase risk of ALS by 5-to 8-fold is consistent with this suggestion (77), and the most likely factor is proposed to be exposure to lead.…”

Section: Neurodegenerative Diseasessupporting

confidence: 59%

Understanding the human health effects of chemical mixtures.

Carpenter

Arcaro

Spink

2002

Environ Health Perspect

324

198

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Most research on the effects of chemicals on biologic systems is conducted on one chemical at a time. However, in the real world people are exposed to mixtures, not single chemicals. Although various substances may have totally independent actions, in many cases two substances may act at the same site in ways that can be either additive or nonadditive. Many even more complex interactions may occur if two chemicals act at different but related targets. In the extreme case there may be synergistic effects, in which case the effects of two substances together are greater than the sum of either effect alone. In reality, most persons are exposed to many chemicals, not just one or two, and therefore the effects of a chemical mixture are extremely complex and may differ for each mixture depending on the chemical composition. This complexity is a major reason why mixtures have not been well studied. In this review we attempt to illustrate some of the principles and approaches that can be used to study effects of mixtures. By the nature of the state of the science, this discussion is more a presentation of what we do not know than of what we do know about mixtures. We approach the study of mixtures at three levels, using specific examples. First, we discuss several human diseases in relation to a variety of environmental agents believed to influence the development and progression of the disease. We present results of selected cellular and animal studies in which simple mixtures have been investigated. Finally, we discuss some of the effects of mixtures at a molecular level.

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Section: Neurodegenerative Diseasessupporting

confidence: 59%

Understanding the human health effects of chemical mixtures.

Carpenter

Arcaro

Spink

2002

Environ Health Perspect

324

198

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“…As a third example, in Boston (95 cases and 106 controls), self-reported lead exposure was associated with ALS (p = 0.02) [14]. Overall, however, results have not been consistent and many studies show negative outcomes [45]–[47]. In addition, other metals, especially mercury and cadmium, have been studied, but again results have been inconsistent [48]–[50].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Risk Factors and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS): A Case-Control Study of ALS in Michigan

Callaghan

et al. 2014

PLoS ONE

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An interim report of a case-control study was conducted to explore the role of environmental factors in the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Sixty-six cases and 66 age- and gender-matched controls were recruited. Detailed information regarding residence history, occupational history, smoking, physical activity, and other factors was obtained using questionnaires. The association of ALS with potential risk factors, including smoking, physical activity and chemical exposure, was investigated using conditional logistic regression models. As compared to controls, a greater number of our randomly selected ALS patients reported exposure to fertilizers to treat private yards and gardens and occupational exposure to pesticides in the last 30 years than our randomly selected control cases. Smoking, occupational exposures to metals, dust/fibers/fumes/gas and radiation, and physical activity were not associated with ALS when comparing the randomly selected ALS patients to the control subjects. To further explore and confirm results, exposures over several time frames, including 0–10 and 10–30 years earlier, were considered, and analyses were stratified by age and gender. Pesticide and fertilizer exposure were both significantly associated with ALS in the randomly selected ALS patients. While study results need to be interpreted cautiously given the small sample size and the lack of direct exposure measures, these results suggest that environmental and particularly residential exposure factors warrant close attention in studies examining risk factors of ALS.

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“…Some studies have observed an association with occupation in welding or soldering (Armon et al 1991; Gunnarsson et al 1992), but not all have found metals to be related to ALS (Gresham et al 1986; McGuire et al 1997). More specifically, an association has been observed with exposure to lead (Armon et al 1991; Chancellor et al 1993; Felmus et al 1976; Kamel et al 2002), but no association was observed between ALS and lead levels in various tissues (Kapaki et al 1989; Stober et al 1983) or toenails (Bergomi et al 2002); however, these studies had limited numbers of study participants. No association was observed between exposure to zinc and ALS (Vinceti et al 2002), and the evidence from biomarker studies is inconclusive, with an increased (Gellein et al 2003), decreased (Yasui et al 1993), and no association observed for levels in brain tissue (Kapaki et al 1997; Nagata et al 1985) or toenails (Bergomi et al 2002) compared with controls.…”

Section: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, many of the case–control studies use small numbers of study participants, particularly those studies measuring biomarkers of exposure (Bergomi et al 2002; Drayer et al 1986; Felmus et al 1976; Fleming et al 1994; Gellein et al 2003; Kapaki et al 1989; Kasarskis et al 1995; Miyata et al 1983; Moriwaka et al 1993; O’Mahony et al 1995; Rajput et al 1986; Sood et al 1990; Stober et al 1983; Vinceti et al 2002; Yasui et al 1991a, 1991b, 1993). This limits the amount of power to detect a statistically significant association.…”

Section: Powermentioning

confidence: 99%

Neurodegenerative Diseases: An Overview of Environmental Risk Factors

Brown

Lockwood

Sonawane

2005

Environ Health Perspect

390

226

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The population of the United States is aging, and an ever-increasing number of Americans are afflicted with neurodegenerative diseases. Because the pathogenesis of many of these diseases remains unknown, we must consider that environmental factors may play a causal role. This review provides an overview of the epidemiologic evidence for environmental etiologies for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, parkinsonian syndromes (multiple system atrophy and progressive supranuclear palsy), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Epidemiologic evidence for an association between environmental agents’ exposure and neurodegenerative diseases is not conclusive. However, there are indications that there may be causal links, and the need for more research is obvious.

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Determination of cerebrospinal fluid and serum lead levels in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and other neurological diseases

Cited by 16 publications

References 6 publications

Understanding the human health effects of chemical mixtures.

Understanding the human health effects of chemical mixtures.

Environmental Risk Factors and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS): A Case-Control Study of ALS in Michigan

Neurodegenerative Diseases: An Overview of Environmental Risk Factors

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