Preferences

hodgehog11 parent
Given that recent Nature paper which claims that a lithium depletion could be responsible for Alzheimer's disease, is there any mechanism that could link increased air pollution to a reduction in lithium levels?

ethan_smith
Some research suggests air pollution may disrupt blood-brain barrier integrity, potentially affecting mineral transport including lithium, while particulate matter can also bind to metal ions in the bloodstream altering their bioavailability.
AnthonBerg
The two have been posited:

Lithium can be viewed an antioxidant – correctly or not?, I do not know.

Air pollution can be viewed as oxidative stress.

It’s interesting to search Google Scholar for “lithium antioxidant”.

cyberax
Lithium by itself is not an antioxidant. It's already oxidized in any bio-available compound, so it can't be used to reduce anything.

But it apparently somehow modulates other systems that help with oxidative stress.

AnthonBerg
Thanks!
KolibriFly
Right now, most of the pollution–dementia work points more toward inflammation, oxidative stress, and vascular impacts rather than nutrient depletion
cluckindan
Exposure to another similar metal could in theory displace lithium in biological processes.

This item has no comments currently.