Mercury exposure and Alzheimer's disease in India - An imminent threat?

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.02.168

Science of The Total Environment

Volume 589, 1 July 2017, Pages 232-235

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.02.168 Get rights and content

Highlights

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Long-term exposures to Hg are a risk to human health in India.
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Research is needed to understand the link between Hg and Alzheimer's disease
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Decreased Hg pollution is needed for sustainable development in India.

Abstract

India is an industrial giant with one of the fastest growing major economies in the world. Primary energy consumption in India is third after China and the USA. Greater energy production brings the burden of increasing emissions of mercury (Hg). India ranks second for Hg emissions. Rising atmospheric Hg release, high Hg evasion processes, and increasing monomethylmercury (highly neurotoxin) accumulations in marine food products increase the potential for human and ecosystem Hg exposure. Hg has been identified to increase the risk of getting Alzheimer's disease (AD). There are increasing reports of AD and dementia in different age groups in India. The relationship between increasing Hg exposure and increasing neurodegenerative disorder in India is not known. This commentary points to the need for better understanding of the relationship between Hg release and AD in India, and other countries, and how to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of Hg.

Graphical abstract

Section snippets

Commentary

India is an industrial giant with one of the fastest growing major economies in the world. Economic and industrial growth of a country always improves health care systems, but at the same time, they bring an unexpected rise in the number of diseases and illnesses related to increased prosperity. One of the major concerns in developing countries like India is Alzheimer's disease (AD) (Duthey, 2004), a common neurodegenerative disorder that leads to dementia and death (Goedert and Spillantini,

Acknowledgements

Author is thankful to the Director, NIO, Goa for his encouragement and support. The editor, Prof Mae Gustin is gratefully acknowledged for her constructive comments and suggestions. Help of Mr Kartheek Chennuri is acknowledged for drawing the Fig. 2. This work is a part of CSIR network project PSC-0106 (GEOSINKS). This article bears NIO contribution number 5998 .

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Mercury exposure and Alzheimer's disease in India - An imminent threat?

Highlights

Abstract

Graphical abstract

Section snippets

Commentary

Acknowledgements

Mar. Pollut. Bull.

Sci. Total Environ.

Mar. Chem.

J. Neurol. Sci.

Lancet

Free Radic. Biol. Med.

Chemosphere

Neuroscience

J. Am. Dent. Assoc.

Atmos. Environ.

Renew. Sust. Energ. Rev.

Sci. Total Environ.

Caught in the ‘net’ - fish consumption patterns of coastal regions in India

Econ. Polit. Wkly.

Atmospheric science: mid-latitude mercury loss

Nat. Geosci.

Methylmercury production below the mixed layer in the North Pacific Ocean

Nat. Geosci.

Mercury, food webs, and marine mammals: implications of diet and climate change for human health

Environ. Health Perspect.