Do dietary habits and environmental chemicals have influences on children's emotional behavior?

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25350933
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Childhood science (childhood environment science)
• Research Institution: Oita University
• Principal Investigator: Sakai Kumiko 大分大学, 医学部, 助教 (60225753)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): CHIBA Seiichi 大分大学, 医学部, 助教 (20457633) ; SAKAI Kenji 九州大学, (連合)農学研究科(研究院), 教授 (50205704)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 脳 / 情動 / 亜鉛 / 安息香酸 / メタボローム / マイクロアレイ / 行動解析

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We incidentally found that environmental zinc benzoate disrupted normal nervous transmission system. The present study was conducted to examine the effects zinc and benzoic acid on the brains of adolescent children using an experimental animal model in which mice were administered excess these materials for a long period.
Behavioral experiments showed increases in some brain functions such as memory, learning and sociality of zinc-supplemented mice compared to control ones and some neurotransmitters were significantly increased in metabolomic profiling analysis. Meanwhile, the chronic benzoic acid administration did not affect learning and memory function, but rather we observed emotional lability in the mice compared to control group. After a month benzoic acid washout period, their performance and behavior recoverd to the levels of control ones.

Free Research Field

生命科学