- The prevalence of neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions has increased over the past decade.
- Although some of this increase may be due to better diagnosis, experts suggest that environmental factors could play a part.
- A new study has found that some common environmental chemicals damage vital brain cells called oligodendrocytes.
- The researchers suggest that this damage could help explain the rise in conditions such as autism-spectrum and attention-deficit disorders, as well as multiple sclerosis.
The number of people diagnosed with neurodevelopmental conditions, such as
According to a new study, some common chemicals, found in personal-care and household products, damage specialized brain cells called
The study, from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, assessed the effect of a wide range of chemicals on isolated oligodendrocytes, organoid systems, and developing brains of mice. They found that two groups —
The research is published in
“This is a fascinating study in which the authors have performed screening on close to 1,900 chemicals to identify classes of compounds that may regulate toxicity or developmental defects in oligodendrocytes. The screening technique the authors used is impressive, as most tools currently used only look at cytotoxic…
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