The Korea National Institute of Health (KNIH) under the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) announced today (June 25) that it has confirmed that ultrafine particles generated during indoor cooking can induce a decline in cognitive function.

The research team conducted the study using mice to determine how ultrafine particles produced during cooking affect brain health.

Transgenic mice (an Alzheimer's disease animal model), which are widely used in the development of Alzheimer's treatments by mimicking human brain pathology and dementia symptoms, were used for the study.

The results showed changes in the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for memory, in the animal models exposed to ultrafine particles.

Abilities related to spatial memory and the recognition of environmental changes also declined.

Furthermore, the expression of proteins responsible for memory formation and connections between neurons decreased, leading to a disruption in normal cellular signaling pathways.

The research team explained that while further verification is needed to determine the impact on humans as the study was conducted on animal models, it is significant in that it experimentally suggests the possibility that indoor environmental factors can trigger the onset and progression of neurodegenerative diseases.

Kim Young-yeol, head of the Division of Respiratory and Allergic Diseases who led the study, stated, "Improving indoor air quality and strengthening ventilation during cooking to reduce indoor ultrafine particles could be a potential preventive strategy to lower the risk of degenerative brain diseases such as dementia."

The findings of this study were published in the online edition of the international journal in the field of indoor environment and health, 'Indoor Air.'