schizophrenia link to lead petrol

[Guest guest]

Schizophrenia link to lead petrol

 

 

 

By Richard Black

BBC science correspondent, in Seattle

 

 

 

Lead was widely used in petrol in the 1960s

 

 

US scientists say they have found a link between exposure to lead in the womb

and schizophrenia in adulthood. The discovery is based on a study of blood

samples taken from pregnant American women in the 1960s when lead was still

widely used in vehicle fuel. People whose mothers were exposed to high levels of

the metal in exhaust fumes were more than twice as likely to develop

schizophrenia as adults. The research was led by Dr Ezra Susser, from Columbia

University in New York. He presented the work to the annual meeting of the

American

Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington State. " It's a

preliminary finding, but an intriguing one, " he told the BBC. " We think that

people

will now look at a variety of environmental toxins which can disrupt brain

development, and see whether they are also related to the risk of

schizophrenia. "

Complex condition Dr Susser believes that lead may interfere with the growth of

nerve cells in the baby's brain during a developmental period known as

synaptogenesis, when brain cells make many connections to one another.

 

It's the first time that any environmental toxin has been related to the

later risk of schizophrenia

 

 

Dr Susser

 

 

The suggestion is that cells start to commit suicide when they should not. He

believes lead may operate through the same mechanism which some researchers

think gives rise to foetal alcohol syndrome. In this, a baby's brain is damaged

prenatally through the mother's consumption of significant amounts of

alcohol. The search is now on for other samples collected during the era of

leaded

petrol which could confirm the finding. If it is confirmed, it would have huge

implications for the study of schizophrenia, a condition whose origins have

baffled researchers for decades. Schizophrenia is the most chronic and disabling

of the major mental illnesses. It is a highly complex condition, and

scientists are not even sure if it is one disorder, or a range of disorders,

with

different causes. People with schizophrenia may hear internal voices not heard

by

others, or believe that other people are reading their minds, controlling their

thoughts, or plotting to harm them. This may make a person with schizophrenia

feel anxious and confused. A sufferer may seem distant, detached, or

preoccupied. Sometimes they may sit motionless and silent for hours. Still in

use If

lead does disturb early brain development, then scientists will be able to

focus on other factors which may do the same thing. The finding also adds extra

weight to the arguments of organisations campaigning to have leaded petrol

phased out everywhere in the world. The dataset used in the research came from

the

Childhood Health and Development Study which ran between 1959 and 1966 in

Oakland and enrolled almost 20,000 mothers. Dr Susser and his colleague's

research

is scheduled for publication in a forthcoming edition of the journal

Environmental Health Perspectives. Paul Corry, head of policy and campaigns at

Rethink

severe mental illness, said: " We welcome any new research or progress into

understanding the causes of schizophrenia, but much more research would be

needed before it could make a difference to the thousands of people living with

severe mental illness in the UK. " In the meantime, reaching people early with

the

right care and treatment is the best way of recovering a meaningful and

fulfilling life. "

 

 

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3489037.stm