Gazi University (GÜ) Faculty of Medicine, Department of Brain and Nerve Surgery, Assoc. Dr. Emrah Çeltikçi and faculty member of the Faculty of Fisheries, Çukurova University. DR. The scientific study conducted by Sedat Gündoğdu was featured in the documentary film made in Canada and published as an article in the New York Times.
Çeltikçi made a statement about the impact of microplastics on health and the scientific study conducted.
Pointing out that almost everything used in daily life contains plastic, Çeltikçi said that plastic is present in many products, from fabrics to car steering wheels, from asphalt to water bottles and storage containers, from vascular access devices for medical applications to to the lids of medicine boxes.
Pointing out that people have been in contact with plastics for about 100 years, Çeltikçi said: “For example, when water is poured into a plastic bottle, small pieces of plastic begin to separate, and most of the separated pieces are made of particles called nano become. which are too small to be seen with the naked eye and can therefore freely enter any part of the body.” “They are called microplastics,” he said.
Recalling that the first studies on the health effects of microplastics began on seafood and plastic was detected in fish cells, Çeltikçi explained that their effects on human tissues were studied later. Çeltikçi recalled that some of these studies found that microplastics were found in colon cancer cells and in the placenta.
Çeltikçi stated that he addressed the Microplastics Working Group in 2022 and examined the studies carried out in this area and that he turned to this topic after searching the world literature did not find any study showing whether Microplastics have been found in the brain due to environmental factors.
“We found that microplastics are everywhere in brain cells.”
Stating that the brain is very different from other organs, Çeltikçi gave the following information about the study process:
“There is a blood-brain barrier in the brain. Not everything in the blood gets to the brain in the same way. For example, in the liver there is no barrier between the vessels and the liver, but there is a barrier in the liver.” There is even a filtering in the transmission of blood in the brain, because when brain cells come into direct contact with blood, it occurs damage in the brain can also reach the brain and whether the blood-brain barrier prevents this.”
In this context, Assoc. Dr. Çeltikçi stated that they started working with Sedat Gündoğdu:
“In a preliminary study, we examined MRI images of stage 4 tumors, which are generated by the brain itself. These tumors usually damage and destroy the blood-brain barrier. We have identified the tumor that disrupts the blood-brain barrier and the MRI images that show this.” “During the operation, the blood-brain barrier in the patient's brain is damaged.” As a result of the examination we have found that microplastics were present in all damaged and non-damaged brain cells. We are currently continuing to collect samples as part of the study and will examine 50 different samples one at a time.
Stating that the results of the research will lead to separate studies in different fields, Çeltikçi said: “We have now shown that microplastics are found in brain cells. The real question is, with further studies, whether microplastics cause diseases such as dementia, MS, Alzheimer's? Also, brain hemorrhage: “Does it affect strokes? Studies will shed light on the matter.” gave his assessment.
Offer from many countries
Çeltikçi said that a group in Canada that was preparing a documentary about the effects of plastics heard about the study and contacted her.
Stating that the team that came to Turkey included this research conducted by Turkish scientists in the documentary, Çeltikçi stated that the documentary hit the audience in Canada.
Çeltikçi explained that after this process, the work done in Turkey was quickly heard all over the world and offers came from many countries, especially the United States and Canada, to continue the research and development studies in their countries.
Emphasizing that the preliminary research results were completed as a scientific article and sent for publication in an international medical journal, Çeltikçi said: “Our study was featured in the documentary “Plastic People”, which was filmed in Canada to raise awareness about the harmfulness of Plastic, and immediately afterwards it was published in an article in the New York Times. he said.
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