Study reveals toxic iron nano particles in human brains

Magnetic iron nanoparticles found in traffic fumes could enter the brain, reveals a new study that found these particles were abundant in brain tissue of 37 people.

According to the researchers, the tiny grains might contribute to brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease.

The nanoparticles are a form of iron oxide called magnetite. In the study, published 5 September in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers found millions of magnetite particles in a gram of brain tissue.

A closer look at the particles revealed striking similarities to airborne magnetite, according to study author Barbara Maher, a scientist at the University of Lancaster.

''When we looked at the particles inside the brain, they were a match point for point with these magnetite particles that we see in the airborne pollution,'' Maher told The Huffington Post.

The particles are formed due to high temperatures during combustion.

''We think what's happening is that when you breathe these particles, they are small enough that they can travel up the nose and reach the brain through the olfactory bulb,'' Maher said.

The route to the brain was among the few that was not by the blood-brain barrier, which normally restricted foreign particles in the blood from gaining entry into the brain.

The detection of the particles, in brain tissue from 37 people, had raised concerns as recent research had suggested, links between these magnetite particles and Alzheimer's disease, while air pollution had been shown to significantly up the risk of the disease.

The new work however, had a long way to go to prove that the air pollution particles caused or exacerbate Alzheimer's.

Air pollution had become a global health crisis as it killed more  people than malaria and HIV/Aids combined and it had long been linked to lung and heart disease and strokes. However, research continued to uncover new impacts on health, including degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer's, mental illness and reduced intelligence.