Living in areas with highly polluted air can cause schizophrenia and autism in children. This conclusion was made by scientists from the University of Rochester (USA), led by Professor Deborah Corey-Slecht, who studied the influence of the environment on the development of the brain of newborn mice.
Scientists have found that irreparable changes have occurred in mice in areas that are associated with the development of autism and schizophrenia in humans.
During the experiment, mice were exposed to air saturated with fine particles at a concentration that "corresponds to rush hour in a mid-sized American city." Moreover, the particles were small enough so that the nose and lungs could not filter them out. The animals breathed with this mixture for four hours a day for eight days, equally divided between the first and second weeks of their life.
It turned out that as a result of this effect, the lateral ventricles of the brain increase almost threefold against the standard size, preventing the development of other parts of the brain (moreover, the harmful effects were observed mainly in male mice).
It was also noticed that after inhalation of polluted air in the brain of the experimental animals, the level of glutamate increased, an abnormally high concentration of which is typical for people with autism and schizophrenia. Scientists note that enlargement of the ventricles of the brain is also associated with these two diseases.
Professor Corey-Slechta refrains from drawing a direct causal relationship. At the same time, the conclusions that can be drawn from the results of the experiment coincide with the results of a study by scientists from the University of California.
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Scientists have found that children who spent the first year of their life in areas with high levels of air pollution were three times more likely to subsequently suffer from autism than their peers who were born in more environmentally friendly communities.
Previously, researchers have already linked the presence of pollutants in the air with disorders in the development of the nervous system in living beings. Among other things, it has been suggested that living in regions with a highly polluted atmosphere causes depression and other diseases. Professor Corey-Slechta believes that the results of her research should raise the question of the adequacy of the current standards for air purity.
