Selective enhancement of urinary organic mercury excretion by D-penicillamine.

Ishihara, N., Shiojima, S., and Suzuki, T. (1974). British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 31, 245-249. Selective enhancement of urinary organic mercury excretion by D-penicillamine. This report deals with the study of a patient who was suspected of having mercury vapour poisoning and was treated with D-penicillamine. D-penicillamine by mouth enhanced the urinary excretion of organic but not inorganic mercury. It was considered that D-penicillamine was ineffective because at a relatively low dose level of inorganic mercury exposure most inorganic mercury was tightly bound to sites of great affinity for mercury in tissues and resistant to replacement with D-penicillamine. On the contrary, organic mercury was considered to be easily replaced with D-penicillamine. The need to study further the different nature of tissue binding between inorganic and organic mercury is discussed.