Abstract: Essential metals play critical roles in maintaining human health as they participate in various physiological activities. Nonetheless, both excessive accumulation and deficiency of these metals may result in neurotoxicity secondary to neuroinflammation and the activation of microglia and astrocytes. Activation of these cells can promote the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. It is well known that neuroinflammation plays a critical role in metal-induced neurotoxicity as well as the development of neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and multiple sclerosis (MS). Initially seen as a defense mechanism, persistent inflammatory responses are now considered harmful. Astrocytes and microglia are key regulators of neuroinflammation in the central nervous system, and their excessive activation may induce sustained neuroinflammation. Therefore, in this review, we aim to emphasize the important role and molecular mechanisms underlying metal-induced neurotoxicity. Our objective is to raise the awareness on metal-induced neuroinflammation in neurological disorders. However, it is not only just neuroinflammation that different metals could induce; they can also cause harm to the nervous system through oxidative stress, apoptosis, and autophagy, to name a few. The primary pathophysiological mechanism by which these metals induce neurological disorders remains to be determined. In addition, given the various pathways through which individuals are exposed to metals, it is necessary to also consider the effects of co-exposure to multiple metals on neurological disorders.
Wei R, Wei P, Yuan H, Yi X, Aschner M, Jiang YM, Li SJ. Inflammation in Metal-Induced Neurological Disorders and Neurodegenerative Diseases. Biol Trace Elem Res. 2024 Jan 11. doi: 10.1007/s12011-023-04041-z. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38206494.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38206494/
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Tissue Response to Neural Implants: The Use of Model Systems Toward New Design Solutions of Implantable Microelectrodes
Abstract: “The development of implantable neuroelectrodes is advancing rapidly as these tools are becoming increasingly ubiquitous in clinical practice, especially for the treatment of traumatic and neurodegenerative disorders. Electrodes have been exploited in a wide number of neural interface devices, such as deep brain stimulation, which is one of the most successful therapies with proven efficacy in the treatment of diseases like Parkinson or epilepsy. However, one of the main caveats related to the clinical application of electrodes is the nervous tissue response at the injury site, characterized by a cascade of inflammatory events, which culminate in chronic inflammation, and, in turn, result in the failure of the implant over extended periods of time…”
Gulino M, Kim D, Pané S, Santos SD, Pêgo AP. Tissue Response to Neural Implants: The Use of Model Systems Toward New Design Solutions of Implantable Microelectrodes. Front Neurosci. 2019 Jul 5;13:689. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2019.00689. PMID: 31333407; PMCID: PMC6624471.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6624471/
