This paper gives an overview of published data on levels of lead, cadmium, total and methyl-mercury in various food items, and of a daily dietary intake assessment in Croatia focusing on the last 10 years. It briefly describes the most reliable methods for quantitative analysis of lead, cadmium, and mercury in biological material. Lead and cadmium concentrations in vegetables and in organs of d...

During the 1950s, while Japanese researchers were seeking for the cause of a strange and fatal neurologic disease spread in Minamata city, it seemed ludicrous that an element located in the period 6 and group 12 of the periodic table would be to blame. Mercury in its organic form, i.e. methyl mercury, was released from the wastewater of a chemical company; bio-accumulated in fi sh and shellfi s...

Using synchrotron x-ray fluorescence mapping, we have examined the uptake and localization of organic mercury in zebrafish larvae. Strikingly, the greatest accumulation of methyl and ethyl mercury compounds was highly localized in the rapidly dividing lens epithelium, with lower levels going to brain, optic nerve, and various other organs. The data suggest that the reported impairment of visual...

Whereas many ecosystem characteristics and processes influence mercury accumulation in higher trophic-level organisms, the mercury flux from the atmosphere to a lake and its watershed is a likely factor in potential risk to biota. Atmospheric deposition clearly affects mercury accumulation in soils and lake sediments. Thus, knowledge of spatial patterns in atmospheric deposition may provide inf...

Mercury has long been recognized as a serious global pollutant that has a significant impact upon our ecosystem. Unlike most other pollutants, it is highly mobile, non-biodegradable, and bio-accumulative and as a result has to be closely monitored to ensure its harmful effects on local populations are minimized. Approximately 50 tons of mercury particulates are emitted into the atmosphere every...

Mercury has long been recognized as a serious global pollutant that has a significant impact upon our ecosystem. Unlike most other pollutants, it is highly mobile, non-biodegradable, and bio-accumulative and as a result has to be closely monitored to ensure its harmful effects on local populations are minimized. Approximately 50 tons of mercury particulates are emitted into the atmosphere every...

A variety of clinical manifestations of mercury intoxication may be encountered depending mainly upon the mercurial involved. Inhalation of elemental mercury results in pulmonary, central nervous system (CNS) and kidney damage. The CNS damage produces a spectrum of behavioural and neurological deficits. Ingestion of inorganic mercurials may, because of their corrosive nature, produce devastatin...

Atmospheric mercury deposition by wet and dry processes contributes mercury to terrestrial and aquatic systems. Factors influencing the amount of mercury deposited to boreal forests were identified in this study. Throughfall and open canopy precipitation samples were collected in 2005 and 2006 using passive precipitation collectors from pristine sites located across the Superior National Forest...

From a public health perspective, there is growing concern about dietary mercury intake as the most important source of mercury exposure. This study was performed to estimate dietary mercury exposure and to analyze the association between mercury intake and blood mercury levels in Koreans. The study subjects were 553 adults, comprising a 10% representative subsample of the Korean National Envir...

It is well known that mercury is ac cumulated in the kidney and causes renal failure. Mercury has been a subject of extensive study, but a definite mechanism for its biochemical toxicity remains to be elucidated. In a previous paper (1), we reported that mersalyl (mercurial diuretic) had a more powerful stimulatory effect on the lipid peroxidation in renal cortical mito chondria than any other ...