Proximity to Water Pollutant Facilities and Risk of Incident Progressive Supranuclear Palsy

OBJECTIVES: Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a tauopathy of unknown etiology. Environmental toxin exposure is implicated as a risk factor. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether residential proximity to water pollutant-emitting industrial facilities is associated with incident PSP diagnosis. METHODS: Within the prospective, population-based UK Biobank cohort, we compared incident PSP cases and age- and sex-matched controls by baseline residential proximity to facilities in the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR). RESULTS: Among 221 incident PSP cases (mean [SD] age, 63.0 [5.5] years; 91 women [41.2%]) and 2,249 controls, increased PSP risk was associated with proximity to facilities emitting heavy metals (odds ratio [OR] 1.38; 95% CI 1.03-1.85), pesticides (OR 1.66; 95% CI 1.12-2.46), other organic pollutants (OR 1.52; 95% CI 1.13-2.04), and other inorganic pollutants (OR 1.60; 95% CI 1.19-2.15), after false discovery rate correction. Risk decreased linearly with greater distance (5-10 km), and that residence exceeding 40 years conferred increased risk for heavy metals and organic and inorganic pollutants, unlike shorter residence windows. DISCUSSION: Residential proximity to water pollutant-emitting facilities was associated with incident PSP, with possible evidence of distance-dependent and duration-dependent relationships, supporting a potential role for environmental water pollutants in PSP pathogenesis. CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE: This study provides Class III evidence that baseline residential proximity to water pollutant-emitting facilities reported in the 2007 PRTR is associated with a higher risk of subsequent diagnosis of PSP in the UK Biobank.

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Journal
Neurology
Published
2026-10-28
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000218750
Primary Topic
Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
Type
article
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article

Proximity to Water Pollutant Facilities and Risk of Incident Progressive Supranuclear Palsy

Irene Litvan, Maria Carmela Tartaglia, Marian L. Dale, James Benedict Rowe et al.
Neurology
Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
article

Proximity to Water Pollutant Facilities and Risk of Incident Progressive Supranuclear Palsy

Irene Litvan, Maria Carmela Tartaglia, Marian L. Dale, James Benedict Rowe, Ruth B. Schneider, Christopher D. Stephen, Zoltan K. Mari, Alexander Y. Pantelyat, David G. Coughlin, Anne-Marie A. Wills, Federico E Rodriguez‐Porcel, Lawrence I. Golbe, Tao Xie, Douglas David Gunzler, Charlie Weige Zhao, Burton Scott
article en

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a tauopathy of unknown etiology. Environmental toxin exposure is implicated as a risk factor. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether residential proximity to water pollutant-emitting industrial facilities is associated with incident PSP diagnosis. METHODS: Within the prospective, population-based UK Biobank cohort, we compared incident PSP cases and age- and sex-matched controls by baseline residential proximity to facilities in the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR). RESULTS: Among 221 incident PSP cases (mean [SD] age, 63.0 [5.5] years; 91 women [41.2%]) and 2,249 controls, increased PSP risk was associated with proximity to facilities emitting heavy metals (odds ratio [OR] 1.38; 95% CI 1.03-1.85), pesticides (OR 1.66; 95% CI 1.12-2.46), other organic pollutants (OR 1.52; 95% CI 1.13-2.04), and other inorganic pollutants (OR 1.60; 95% CI 1.19-2.15), after false discovery rate correction. Risk decreased linearly with greater distance (5-10 km), and that residence exceeding 40 years conferred increased risk for heavy metals and organic and inorganic pollutants, unlike shorter residence windows. DISCUSSION: Residential proximity to water pollutant-emitting facilities was associated with incident PSP, with possible evidence of distance-dependent and duration-dependent relationships, supporting a potential role for environmental water pollutants in PSP pathogenesis. CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE: This study provides Class III evidence that baseline residential proximity to water pollutant-emitting facilities reported in the 2007 PRTR is associated with a higher risk of subsequent diagnosis of PSP in the UK Biobank.

NeurologyVol. 107(10)
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey (US), MetroHealth (US), Cleveland Clinic (US), University Health Network (CA), Harvard University (US), Johns Hopkins University (US), Medical University of South Carolina (US), University of San Diego (US), Oregon Health & Science University (US), Duke University (US), University of Toronto (CA), Neurosciences Institute (US), MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit (GB), University of Cambridge (GB), Johns Hopkins Medicine (US), Lou Ruvo Brain Institute (US), Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (GB), University of California San Diego (US), University of Chicago (US), University of Chicago Medical Center (US), CurePSP (US), Mass General Brigham (US), University of Rochester (US), Case Western Reserve University (US)
Good health and well-being
Openalex Percentile: Top 14%
Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
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