title: Platelet hyperactivity, neurobehavioral symptoms and depression among Indian women chronically exposed to low level of arsenic.
abstract: The prevalence of neurobehavioral symptoms (NBS) and depression has been investigated in premenopausal rural women of West Bengal, India enrolled from arsenic (As) endemic (groundwater As 11-50 μg/L; n = 342) and control areas (As level ≤ 10 μg/L; n = 312). The subjective symptoms questionnaire and Beck's 21-point depression inventory-II were used for the detection of NBS and depression, respectively. Platelet P-selectin expression was measured by flow cytometry, plasma neurotransmitter activity with high performance liquid chromatography and groundwater As level by atomic absorption spectroscopy. The As level in groundwater was 2.72 ± 1.18 μg/L in control and 28.3 ± 13.51 μg/L in endemic areas (p < 0.0001). Women residing in endemic areas demonstrated a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms (39.8 vs. 19.9%, p < 0.001) and anxiety (43.3 vs. 18.0% in control, p < 0.001), fatigue (68.4 vs. 23.4%, p < 0.0001), reduced sense of taste (15.8 vs. 4.5%, p<0.0001) and smell (14.9 vs. 5.8%, p < 0.001); burning sensation (36.8 vs. 5.4%, p < 0.0001) and tingling or numbness in the extremities (25.1 vs. 5.1%, p < 0.0001); and transient loss of memory (69.9 vs. 28.2%, p < 0.001). As-exposed women had 1.6-times more plasma epinephrine and norepinephrine (p < 0.05), 1.8-times higher level plasma serotonin with 28.9% lower intraplatelet serotonin (p < 0.05 for both), but their plasma dopamine level was not significantly different (p>0.05) from that of controls. Moreover, women from endemic areas had 2.3-times more P-selectin-expressing platelets in their circulation (p < 0.001). After controlling the potential confounders, chronic low level As (11-50 μg/L) exposure showed a positive association with the prevalence of neurobehavioral symptoms and depression among Indian women in their child-bearing age.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Hematology Unit, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata-700 026, India.
authors.forename: Bidisha
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mukherjee
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Hematology Unit, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata-700 026, India.
authors.forename: Banani
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bindhani
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Hematology Unit, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata-700 026, India.
authors.forename: Hirak
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Saha
authors.affiliation: Department of Receptor Biology and Tumor Metastasis, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata-700 026, India. Electronic address: donasinha2012@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Dona
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sinha
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Hematology Unit, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata-700 026, India.
authors.forename: Manas Ranjan
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Ray
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D020261:Arsenic Poisoning / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000187:drug effects*; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000097:blood; D003863:Depression / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D020258:Neurotoxicity Syndromes / Q000453:epidemiology*; D019007:P-Selectin / Q000378:metabolism*; D015995:Prevalence; D012701:Serotonin / Q000097:blood; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D002395:Catecholamines; D019007:P-Selectin; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D012701:Serotonin
keywords: Arsenic; Depression; Indian women; Neurobehavioral symptoms; Water