Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic and Aging Sciences, Second University of Naples, Piazza Miraglia 2, Naples 80138, Italy.
Int J Mol Sci. 2013 Jul 24;14(8):15286-311. doi: 10.3390/ijms140815286.
There is a broad scientific consensus that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal neuromuscular disease, is caused by gene--environment interactions. In fact, given that only about 10% of all ALS diagnosis has a genetic basis, gene-environmental interaction may give account for the remaining percentage of cases. However, relatively little attention has been paid to environmental and lifestyle factors that may trigger the cascade of motor neuron degeneration leading to ALS, although exposure to chemicals--including lead and pesticides-agricultural environments, smoking, intense physical activity, trauma and electromagnetic fields have been associated with an increased risk of ALS. This review provides an overview of our current knowledge of potential toxic etiologies of ALS with emphasis on the role of cyanobacteria, heavy metals and pesticides as potential risk factors for developing ALS. We will summarize the most recent evidence from epidemiological studies and experimental findings from animal and cellular models, revealing that potential causal links between environmental toxicants and ALS pathogenesis have not been fully ascertained, thus justifying the need for further research.
科学界普遍认为，肌萎缩侧索硬化症（ALS）是一种致命的神经肌肉疾病，是由基因-环境相互作用引起的。事实上，鉴于所有 ALS 诊断中只有约 10%具有遗传基础，基因-环境相互作用可能解释了其余病例的原因。然而，尽管接触化学物质（包括铅和杀虫剂）、农业环境、吸烟、剧烈的体力活动、创伤和电磁场与 ALS 风险增加有关，但很少关注可能引发导致 ALS 的运动神经元退化级联反应的环境和生活方式因素。本综述概述了我们目前对 ALS 潜在毒理学病因的认识，重点介绍了蓝藻、重金属和杀虫剂作为发展为 ALS 的潜在危险因素的作用。我们将总结来自流行病学研究和动物及细胞模型的最新实验发现，揭示出环境毒物与 ALS 发病机制之间的潜在因果关系尚未完全确定，因此有必要进一步研究。
