Neurotoxicology is a field of study within the field of toxicology concerned specifically with the interactions between exogenous substances and the nervous system.
Neurotoxicants are synthetic chemicals with the inherent ability to damage the nervous system.
Neurodegenerative diseases are neurological disorders that progress relentlessly resulting in permanent damage to the nervous system.
As Paracelsus aptly noted, only the dosage differentiates a therapeutic from a poison. The billions of dollars that have been spent trying to identify chemicals that can be used as drugs to slow the progression of neurodegenerative disease naturally leads one to the logical counter argument that there must also be chemicals with the inherent ability to hasten the progression of neurodegenerative diseases via additive and/or synergistic effects of mechanisms of actions shared in common with those implicated in these debilitating diseases.
When exposure to neurotoxicants and neurodegenerative disease occurs in the same individual, the interaction between the two can hasten the clinical course of the later resulting in a younger age at onset of overt symptoms that interfere with activities of daily living.
The public health implications of delaying the onset of neurogenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and the identification of factors to facilitate this delay in onset such as reducing exposure to neurotoxicants has been recognized for many years (Brookmeyer et al., 1998).
Dr. Ratner has devoted her career to understanding these interactions. She has carefully documented and summarized the peer reviewed literature on these relationships in the various pages of this website for your information.
Last update: March 19, 2019.
Neurotoxicants are synthetic chemicals with the inherent ability to damage the nervous system.
Neurodegenerative diseases are neurological disorders that progress relentlessly resulting in permanent damage to the nervous system.
As Paracelsus aptly noted, only the dosage differentiates a therapeutic from a poison. The billions of dollars that have been spent trying to identify chemicals that can be used as drugs to slow the progression of neurodegenerative disease naturally leads one to the logical counter argument that there must also be chemicals with the inherent ability to hasten the progression of neurodegenerative diseases via additive and/or synergistic effects of mechanisms of actions shared in common with those implicated in these debilitating diseases.
When exposure to neurotoxicants and neurodegenerative disease occurs in the same individual, the interaction between the two can hasten the clinical course of the later resulting in a younger age at onset of overt symptoms that interfere with activities of daily living.
The public health implications of delaying the onset of neurogenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and the identification of factors to facilitate this delay in onset such as reducing exposure to neurotoxicants has been recognized for many years (Brookmeyer et al., 1998).
Dr. Ratner has devoted her career to understanding these interactions. She has carefully documented and summarized the peer reviewed literature on these relationships in the various pages of this website for your information.
Last update: March 19, 2019.
