The Pollution–Heart–Brain Axis: Environmental Drivers of Cardiovascular and Neurological Disease

Environmental pollution is now recognised as one of the leading modifiable risk factors for both cardiovascular and neurological disease, yet the two are rarely studied together. The heart and brain share common vulnerability to pollutant-driven pathways: systemic inflammation, oxidative stress, autonomic dysfunction, and endothelial injury do not respect organ boundaries. A person exposed to chronic fine particulate matter (PM2.5) faces elevated risk of myocardial infarction, atrial fibrillation, stroke, and cognitive decline through overlapping mechanisms. Understanding this shared biology is not just scientifically compelling; it is essential for designing interventions that protect both systems simultaneously.Despite growing evidence, clinical practice and public health policy still treat cardiotoxic and neurotoxic pollution effects in silos. This Research Topic aims to close that gap by bringing together cardiologists, neurologists, epidemiologists, environmental health scientists, and policymakers around a single, urgent question: how does environmental pollution damage the heart and brain together, and what can we do about it?We welcome original research, reviews, meta-analyses, case reports, perspectives, and opinion pieces addressing, but not limited to:• Epidemiology: Population-level studies on pollution exposure and cardio-neurological outcomes, including burden-of-disease analyses, cohort studies, and natural experiments (e.g. clean air interventions, lockdown periods);• Mechanisms: Biological pathways linking pollutants to cardiovascular and/or neurological pathology, including inflammation, oxidative stress, autonomic dysfunction, epigenetic modification, and the gut-brain-heart axis;• Specific pollutants and exposures: Fine particulate matter (PM2.5), ultrafine particles, nitrogen oxides, heavy metals (lead, cadmium, arsenic), pesticides, wildfire smoke, and noise pollution;• Climate change interactions: How rising temperatures, extreme weather, and changing atmospheric conditions amplify pollutant exposure and cardio-neurological risk;• Vulnerable populations: Sex- and age-specific susceptibility, low- and middle-income country contexts, and occupational exposures;• Interventions: Pharmacological, lifestyle, technological, and policy-based strategies to reduce pollutant-driven cardiovascular and neurological burden;• Technology and monitoring: Wearable sensors, remote sensing, digital biomarkers, and AI-assisted tools for exposure assessment and health surveillance.This topic sits at the intersection of environmental medicine, cardiology, and neurology. We particularly encourage submissions that bridge disciplines, whether that is a neurologist examining cardiac endpoints, a cardiologist exploring cognitive outcomes, or an epidemiologist linking air quality data to hospital admissions across both systems. Topic editors: Serefnur Ozturk, Lacramioara Perju-Dumbrava Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/84607/the-pollution-heart-brain-axis-environmental-drivers-of-cardiovascular-and-neurological-disease