Service and Unit of Neurology and Toxicology, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
Neurotoxicology. 2010 Sep;31(5):608-20. doi: 10.1016/j.neuro.2010.06.009. Epub 2010 Jul 8.
The increasing exposure to environmental neurotoxicants in the last decades caused serious health problems in the world population. Some of the neurotoxic agents are being used in agriculture and household such as insecticides and rodenticides and others are of natural origin like snake and scorpion venoms. Additional group of harmful substances is the chemical warfare agents including nerve and blistering agents that are known for their disastrous effects on neuronal tissues. The present paper presents a combination of epidemiological/clinical and molecular approaches for investigating the effect of certain groups of neurotoxicants on a variety of pathologies. The work of Finkelstein and coworkers describes epidemiological and clinical studies on acute and chronic organophosphate (OP)-induced neurotoxicity in certain populations in Israel. They mainly investigated the neurotoxic effects of low-level long-term exposure to OP in agricultural areas but also dealt with acute exposures as well. A molecular approach to OP mechanism of neuronal injury was described by Milatovic and coworkers. They demonstrated OP-induced oxidative injury in pyramidal neurons in the CA1 hippocampal area and its suppression by antioxidants. Lecht and coworkers described the novel snake venom angioneurins as important mediators of the physiological cross-talk between the cardiovascular and nervous systems. They also showed that under certain conditions these angioneurins may induce pathologies such as tumor development or disruption of the vascular barrier function during envenomation. Additional mechanistic/therapeutic approach was presented by Brodsky, Rosengarten, Proscura, Shapira and Wormser. They developed a novel anti-inflammatory peptide that reduced skin irritation induced by heat and sulfur mustard (SM) stimuli. Since SM causes neuropsychiatric symptoms and alterations in neurological functions this peptide may serve as a potential treatment of neuronal injuries caused by environmental neurotoxicants. These reviews highlight different aspects of neurotoxicity, addressing epidemiology and mechanisms of toxicity; and identifying novel potential therapies.
在过去几十年中，人们越来越多地接触环境神经毒素，这导致世界人口中出现了严重的健康问题。一些神经毒素剂在农业和家庭中使用，如杀虫剂和灭鼠剂，而另一些则是天然来源的，如蛇和蝎子毒液。还有一组有害物质是化学战剂，包括神经毒剂和糜烂毒剂，它们对神经元组织有灾难性的影响。本文介绍了流行病学/临床和分子方法的结合，用于研究某些神经毒素对各种病理的影响。芬克尔斯坦及其同事的工作描述了在以色列某些人群中急性和慢性有机磷（OP）诱导的神经毒性的流行病学和临床研究。他们主要研究了农业地区长期低水平接触 OP 的神经毒性影响，但也涉及急性暴露。米拉托维奇及其同事描述了一种 OP 引起神经元损伤的分子方法。他们证明了 CA1 海马区锥体神经元中的 OP 诱导氧化损伤及其抗氧化剂抑制作用。莱希特及其同事描述了新型蛇毒血管活性神经肽作为心血管和神经系统之间生理相互作用的重要介质。他们还表明，在某些情况下，这些血管活性神经肽可能会导致肿瘤发展或血管屏障功能破坏等病理。布罗德斯基、罗森加滕、普罗苏拉、沙皮拉和沃姆瑟提出了一种新的机制/治疗方法。他们开发了一种新型抗炎肽，可减轻由热和硫芥（SM）刺激引起的皮肤刺激。由于 SM 会引起神经精神症状和神经系统功能改变，因此这种肽可能成为治疗环境神经毒素引起的神经元损伤的潜在疗法。这些综述突出了神经毒性的不同方面，涉及毒性的流行病学和机制；并确定了新的潜在治疗方法。
