RESUMO
A dominant paradigm in neurological disease research is that the primary etiological factors for diseases such as Alzheimer's (AD), Parkinson's (PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are genetic. Opposed to this perspective are the clear observations from epidemiology that purely genetic casual factors account for a relatively small fraction of all cases. Many who support a genetic etiology for neurological disease take the view that while the percentages may be relatively small, these numbers will rise in the future with the inevitable discoveries of additional genetic mutations. The follow up argument is that even if the last is not true, the events triggered by the aberrant genes identified so far will be shown to impact the same neuronal cell death pathways as those activated by environmental factors that trigger most sporadic disease cases. In this article we present a countervailing view that environmental neurotoxins may be the sole sufficient factor in at least three neurological disease clusters. For each, neurotoxins have been isolated and characterized that, at least in animal models, faithfully reproduce each disorder without the need for genetic co-factors. Based on these data, we will propose a set of principles that would enable any potential toxin to be evaluated as an etiological factor in a given neurodegenerative disease. Finally, we will attempt to put environmental toxins into the context of possible genetically-determined susceptibility.
Assuntos
Doenças Neurodegenerativas/induzido quimicamente , Doenças Neurodegenerativas/genética , Neurotoxinas/toxicidade , Toxinas Biológicas/toxicidade , Esclerose Lateral Amiotrófica/induzido quimicamente , Esclerose Lateral Amiotrófica/epidemiologia , Animais , Demência/induzido quimicamente , Demência/epidemiologia , Guadalupe/epidemiologia , Guam/epidemiologia , Humanos , Intoxicação por MPTP/epidemiologia , Intoxicação por MPTP/etiologia , Doenças Neurodegenerativas/epidemiologia , Doença de Parkinson Secundária/induzido quimicamente , Doença de Parkinson Secundária/epidemiologia , Transtornos Parkinsonianos/induzido quimicamente , Transtornos Parkinsonianos/epidemiologiaRESUMO
El presente trabajo de investigación Epidemiología Integral de la Neuro y Psicotoxicidad en unn Grupo de Trabajadores pretende investigar posibles efectos tóxicos tanto neurológicos como conductuales en trabajadores expuesto a disolventes químicos en una industria de lavado en seco en la ciudad de Quito.Para iniciar la comprensión del problema, se realizó en un primer momento, una investigación documental de los estudios existentes sobre efectos de estas sustancias en el organismo.Encontramos que hay mu poca investigación alrededor de este tema en América Latina y en el Ecuador especificamente. De lo revisado, se pudo concluir que la utilización de substancias químicas tipo solventes orgánicos, para el caso que nos ocupa durante períodos largos y contínuos de exposición, produce en el organismo una variedad de sintomatología psicológica y neurológica que en la mayoría de casos no es atribuíble a los procesos laborales