Table 4.
Major brain disorders. Putative environmental causes and connexin characteristics/involvements. References are indicated between brackets.
| Brain Disorders | Pathologies | Putative Environmental Causes | Connexin Characteristics and/or Possible Involvements |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Neuro
developmental |
Autism spectrum disorders |
Prenatal exposures to: -Traffic-related air pollutants [400] -Organochlorine pesticides [401] -Heavy metals (Hg and Pb) -Organic pollutants (DDT, PBDEs, PCBs) -Phthalates, BPA [402,403,404] -Nitrous oxide (N2O) [405] |
Increased Cx43 expression (superior frontal cortex and less significantly in parietal region) [406] |
| Attention deficit hyperactivity disorders |
Prenatal exposures to: -Cigarette smoke -Environmental toxins -Heavy metals (Pb) [407,408] -Air pollution [409,410,411,412] -Nitrous oxide [405] -Glyphosate [413] |
In 10–25% of cases: 1q21.1 microdeletion (Cx40 and Cx50 gene loci?) [414] |
|
| Epilepsy | -Air pollution (gaseous, fine particles) [415] -Air pollution (PM10) [416,417] -NO2 and SO2 pollution [418] -PCB (audiogenic seizures) [419,420] -PCE (in gestation, early childhood) [421] |
Lack of GJIC between astrocytes [422,423] Increased Cx43 expression in hippocampus [424] |
|
| Neurobehavioral | Migraines | -Traffic air pollution -PM2.5 [425] |
GJ-mediated Ca2+ waves and Cx43 HC activation in astrocytes [426] |
| Major depressive disorders |
Prenatal and childhood exposure: -BPA [427,428,429,430] Postnatal exposures: -Phthalates [415,431] -Heavy metals (Mn, Sn, Cd, Pb, Hg) [394,431] -PAHs [431] Prenatal and postnatal exposures: -Pesticides [394,395] -Air pollution (PM2.5) [396] |
GJIC and Cx43 HC function in astrocytes [432] | |
| Neurodegenerative | Parkinson disease | -Traffic air pollution [433,434] -BPA [435] -Pesticides [401,436] -Metals (Pb, Hg, Al, Cd, Mn, As) [434,436] -PCBs [436] |
Cx43 upregulation in rodent striatum [437] GJIC inhibition and decreased expression of Cx43 among astrocytes (Mn exposure) [438] |
| Alzheimer disease | -Air pollution [439,440] | Cx43 HC activation [441,442,443,444] | |
| Cancer | Glioma | -Pesticides (?) [445,446,447,448] | GJIC inhibition and decreased Cx43 expression in neuronal stem cells [449] |