Smokers’ Brain can’t be Healthy
Researchers found that the main cause of brain damage is smoking cigarettes. Researchers from the Indian National Brain Research Center (NBRC) have found that a blend in tobacco provokes white blood cells in the central nervous system which attack the healthy cells.
This study was investigated by the researcher centers on a compound known as NNK, 4-(methylnitrosamino) – 1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (abbreviated NNK) is a nitrosamine present in tobacco that is a potent procarcinogen. It is activated by CYP2A6. It is a biomarker of exposure to cigarette smoke. It is produced upon the curing of tobacco. NNK is also a chemical substance which becomes carcinogenic when it is altered by the metabolic process of the body.
Human brain is damaged by alcohol and drugs, but unlike them NNK does not appear to harm brain cells directly, but the research team believe it may cause neuroinflamation, a condition which leads to mess such as Sclerosis.
That’s why researchers decided to prove if exist a link between smoking and brain damage. The team researchers conducted two types of tests, one outside of a living mouse in glass and one in laboratory mice. The team used stigma analysis techniques which showed that the introduction of NNK outcome in a clear increase in proinflammatory signaling proteins, proinflammatory executor proteins and other stress related proteins.
This shows that NNK provokes an enlarged response from the brain’s immune cells, known as microglia. Microglia is a type of glial cell that are the resident macrophages of the brain, and thus act as the first and main form of active immune defense in the central nervous system.
Microglia constitutes 20% of the total glial cell population within the brain. Microglia cells act as destroyer. However, when it is agitated by NNK, these cells start to attack healthy brain cells rather than the unhealthy cells they are supposed to attack.
While other injurious side effects of smoking, such as lung disease, usually derive from tar or smoke this research suggests that the damage is not confined only to smoking. NNK is present in all forms of tobacco and therefore it can also enter the body through chewing.
The study also showed that second-hand smoking may lead to the same neuroinflamation conditions. Researchers showed again that consuming tobacco in any form has never been a smart move, and it’s not like anyone needs another reason to quit using it.
