Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 6, 2026

Setup of Capillary Electrophoresis-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry CE-ICP-MS for Quantification of Iron Redox Species FeII, FeIII
04:48

Setup of Capillary Electrophoresis-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry CE-ICP-MS for Quantification of Iron Redox Species FeII, FeIII

Published on: May 4, 2020

8.8K

Manganese exposure and neurotoxic effects in children

Geir Bjørklund1, Max Stanley Chartrand2, Jan Aaseth3

  • 1Council for Nutritional and Environmental Medicine, Mo i Rana, Norway.

Environmental Research
|March 11, 2017
PubMed

Insights

Excess manganese (Mn) in drinking water harms children's cognitive abilities and school performance. Protecting young brains from manganese toxicity is crucial, especially in affected areas.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental Science
  • Neuroscience
  • Toxicology

Background:

  • Manganese (Mn) is an essential trace element, but excess amounts are neurotoxic.
  • Manganese toxicity can manifest as psychiatric and neurological symptoms, including cognitive deficits.
  • Children exposed to manganese in drinking water show impaired academic and neurobehavioral outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the neurotoxic effects of manganese in drinking water on children's cognitive function and academic performance.
  • To identify vulnerable populations and environmental factors contributing to manganese toxicity.

Main Methods:

  • Review of studies examining the association between manganese levels in drinking water (WMn) and neurodevelopmental outcomes in children.
  • Analysis of academic performance metrics (language, mathematics, grade average) and neurobehavioral test results in exposed children.

Main Results:

  • Children ingesting WMn at or above 0.241 mg/L for at least three years performed worse academically and on neurobehavioral tests.
  • A significant correlation was found between higher WMn levels and lower cognitive performance, verbal function, and IQ scores.
  • Young children represent a particularly vulnerable demographic to manganese neurotoxicity.

Conclusions:

  • Manganese exposure through drinking water poses a significant risk to children's neurodevelopment.
  • Toxicity is a concern in areas with industrial waste or natural manganese leaching into water supplies.
  • Cost-effective methods exist for manganese removal, emphasizing the need for protective measures for developing brains.
Keywords:
ChildrenIron deficiencyManganeseNeurological developmentNeurotoxicity

More Related Videos

Functional Neuroimaging Using Ultrasonic Blood-brain Barrier Disruption and Manganese-enhanced MRI08:36

Functional Neuroimaging Using Ultrasonic Blood-brain Barrier Disruption and Manganese-enhanced MRI

Published on: July 12, 2012

15.6K
In vivo Imaging of Optic Nerve Fiber Integrity by Contrast-Enhanced MRI in Mice11:38

In vivo Imaging of Optic Nerve Fiber Integrity by Contrast-Enhanced MRI in Mice

Published on: July 22, 2014

14.0K

Related Concept Videos

Toxic Reactions: Overview01:26

Toxic Reactions: Overview

When toxic substances penetrate the human body, they disseminate to various tissues, undergoing metabolic changes. This process yields reactive metabolites that may covalently bind with specific target molecules, resulting in toxicity.
Toxicity falls into two primary categories: local and systemic.
Local toxicity appears at the exposure site, such as protein denaturation caused by caustic substances.
In contrast, systemic toxicity requires the toxic agent's absorption and distribution,...
3.1K
Types of Toxins01:36

Types of Toxins

Humans continually engage with an environment rich in potentially harmful chemicals. These are introduced to our bodies through inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact. These chemicals exist in various forms, such as air and environmental pollutants, agricultural chemicals, organic solvents, and heavy metals.
Air pollutants, primarily gases, pose significant threats to respiratory health, leading to conditions like hypoxia, lung cancer, and in extreme cases, death.
Environmental pollutants like...
3.9K
Drug Toxicity: Dose-Dependent Reactions01:24

Drug Toxicity: Dose-Dependent Reactions

Drug toxicities can be stratified into pharmacological, pathological, or genotoxic based on their mechanisms. The incidence and severity of these toxicities generally increase with the drug's concentration in the body and exposure time.Pharmacological toxicity is evident when the therapeutic effects of drugs overshoot into adverse reactions in a predictable, dose-dependent manner. Central nervous system (CNS) depression from barbiturates is a classic example, with effects escalating from...
76
Toxicity Testing in Animals01:23

Toxicity Testing in Animals

Toxicity tests in animals are grounded on two main assumptions: first, the effects observed in laboratory animals can be extrapolated to humans, especially when adjusted for body surface area; second, high-dose exposure in animals is essential to identify potential human hazards from lower doses. This is based on the quantal dose-response concept, which faces the challenge of extrapolating results from relatively few test animals to much larger human populations. For example, a 0.01% incidence...
79