Associations between Trace Elements and Cognitive Decline: An Exploratory 5-Year Follow-Up Study of an Elderly Cohort

Bianca Gerardo, Marina Cabral Pinto, Joana Nogueira, Paula Pinto, Agostinho Almeida, Edgar Pinto, Paula Marinho-Reis, Luísa Diniz, Paula I. Moreira, Mário R. Simões and Sandra Freitas
Additional contact information
Bianca Gerardo: Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPCEUC), Univ Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
Marina Cabral Pinto: Geobiotec Research Centre, Department of Geosciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Joana Nogueira: Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPCEUC), Univ Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
Paula Pinto: Psychological Assessment and Psychometrics Laboratory (PsyAssessmentLab), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPCEUC), Univ Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
Agostinho Almeida: LAQV/REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal
Edgar Pinto: LAQV/REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal
Paula Marinho-Reis: Geobiotec Research Centre, Department of Geosciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Luísa Diniz: LAQV/REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal
Paula I. Moreira: Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (CNC), University of Coimbra, 3004-504 Coimbra, Portugal
Mário R. Simões: Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPCEUC), Univ Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
Sandra Freitas: Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPCEUC), Univ Coimbra, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-18

Abstract: Trace elements (TE) homeostasis is crucial in normal brain functioning. Although imbalances have the potential to exacerbate events leading neurodegenerative diseases, few studies have directly addressed the eventual relationships between TE levels in the human body and future cognitive status. The present study aimed to assess how different TE body-levels relate to cognitive decline. This exploratory research included a study-group (RES) of 20 elderly individuals living in two Portuguese geographical areas of interest (Estarreja; Mértola), as well as a 20 subjects neuropsychological control-group (CTR). Participants were neuropsychologically assessed through the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the RES group was biomonitored for TE through fingernail analysis. After 5 years, the cognitive assessments were repeated. Analyses of the RES neuropsychological data showed an average decrease of 6.5 and 5.27 points in MMSE and MoCA, respectively, but TE contents in fingernails were generally within the referenced values for non-exposed individuals. Higher levels of Nickel and Selenium significantly predicted lesser cognitive decline within 5 years. Such preliminary results evidence an association between higher contents of these TE and higher cognitive scores at follow-up, suggesting their contribution to the maintenance of cognitive abilities. Future expansion of the present study is needed in order to comprehensively assess the potential benefits of these TE.

Keywords: cognitive decline; longitudinal study; risk for dementia; trace elements; nickel; selenium; human tissues; industrial area; mining area (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/17/6051/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/17/6051/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:17:p:6051-:d:401475

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().