Methylmercury (MeHg), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and sulfate (SO(4)(=)) relationships were investigated in the mining-influenced St. Louis River watershed in northeast Minnesota. Fewer wetlands and higher SO(4)(=) in the mining region lead to generally lower availability and solubility of DOC in mining streams compared to non-mining streams. MeHg concentrations, however, are similarly low ...

Methylmercury [MeHg] has long been known as a neurotoxic agent. Recent epidemiological research has also linked MeHg exposure to cardiovascular disease. However, the precise mechanisms linking MeHg toxicity to blood vessels at the cellular levels are lacking. Endothelial cells exist as a single monolayer of cells that form the inner lining of blood vessels and are crucial to the structure and f...

Rodent experiments have documented neuropathological lesions specifically located in the brainstem when toxic methylmercury (MeHg) exposure occurs at a particular time during brain development. The possible sensitivity of the brainstem to MeHg was explored in the prospective study of a Faroese birth cohort (N = 1,022), most recently examined at age 14 years. In 878 of eligible children (87%), l...

Events that disrupt the early development of the nervous system have lifelong, irreversible behavioral consequences. The environmental contaminant, methylmercury (MeHg), impairs neural development with effects that are manifested well into adulthood and even into aging. Noting the sensitivity of the developing brain to MeHg, the current review advances an argument that one outcome of early MeHg...

The methylation of mercury (Hg) is of great concern as methylmercury (MeHg), the most toxic species, is produced. This study examined the possibilities of tert-butyl compounds (tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) and tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBH)) and other alcohols serving as methyl donors for Hg photo-methylation under light irradiation. The yield of MeHg varied among the methyl donors, and it was also...

NHANES subjects self-identified as "Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, or multiracial" (A/P/N/M) have higher levels of blood organic mercury than other racial/ethnic groups; however, the reasons for this have been unclear. This research uses exposure modeling to determine the reasons for elevated blood methylmercury (MeHg) levels, and also extends previous analyses of observed NHANES blo...

Methylmercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin, and humans are mainly exposed to this pollutant through fish consumption. However, in classical toxicological studies, pure methylmercury chloride (MeHgCl) is injected, given to drink or incorporated within feed assuming that its effects are identical to those of MeHg naturally associated to fish. In the present study, we wanted to address the questi...

Marine mammals detoxify organic methylmercury (MeHg) as inorganic mercury selenide (HgSe), yet the nature of reaction intermediate species and tissue-specific redistribution Hg in body are unknown. We report that identity proportion dominant long-finned pilot whale (Globicephala melas) tissues can be obtained from bulk variation isotopic values δ202Hg against extent demethylation (percentage to...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether heart function in childhood is affected by exposure to methylmercury (MeHg) from seafood. STUDY DESIGN Prospective study of a Faroese birth cohort (N=1022). Examinations at ages 7 and 14 years included blood pressure, heart rate variability (HRV) and its frequency components of autonomic origin, and brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs). Mercury concentra...