The impact of long-term past exposure to elemental mercury on antioxidative capacity and lipid peroxidation in mercury miners

Kobal, Alfred B.; Horvat, Milena; Prezelj, Marija; Briški, Alenka Sešek; Krsnik, Mladen; Dizdarević, Tatjana; Mazej, Darja; Falnoga, Ingrid; Stibilj, Vekoslava; Arnerić, Niko; Kobal, Darja; Osredkar, Joško

doi:10.1016/s0946-672x(04)80028-2

Cited by 160 publications

(99 citation statements)

References 67 publications

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“…Increased antioxidant capacity is considered to represent compensatory or adaptive/defence response to pro-oxidative effect of various toxic metals [22,23]. However, the inhibitory effect of mercury on antioxidative system is described more frequently [4,24]. This effect has been usually mediated by mercury-induced inhibition of antioxidant enzymes and decrease of glutahione [6,9,25,26] or vitamins such as tocopherol [27] and ascorbic acid [28].…”

Section: Hg-u Concentration and Carotid Arterial Imt O R I G I N A L mentioning

confidence: 99%

The dependence between urinary mercury concentration and carotid arterial intima-media thickness in workers occupationally exposed to mercury vapour

Skoczyńska¹,

Poręba²,

Steinmentz-Beck³

et al. 2009

International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health

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Objectives: Mechanisms of the mercury effect on arterial vessel walls include increased free radicals generation, decreased nitric oxide synthesis and increased reactivity to vasoconstrictors, leading to accelerated development of atherosclerosis and arterial hypertension. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between urinary mercury (Hg-U) concentration and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) or intraventricular septum diastolic diameter (IVSDD) to find the best markers of mercury cardiovascular toxicity. Materials and Methods: The study included 154 workers of a chemical factory using mercury in chlorine production. Urinary mercury concentration was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Serum lipids were assessed by routine methods using enzymatic assay. Serum total antioxidant status (TAS) was determined by colorimetry. Measurements of IMT and IVSDD were made by ultrasound imaging using MEDISON SA 9900 PRIME system. Results: The mean Hg-U concentration was 1.9±2.7 μg/g creatinine in women (n = 29) and 5.6±12.2 μg/g creatinine in men (n = 125). In the group of non-smokers (n = 102) there was a positive linear correlation between Hg-U concentration and IMT (r = 0.1728; p < 0.05) and a negative dependence between high density cholesterol (HDL-C) and IMT (r = -0.2109; p < 0.01). The negative linear correlation between serum total antioxidant status (TAS) and carotid IMT (r = -0.2142; p < 0.05), and the positive correlation between HDL-C and TAS (r = 0.1953; p < 0.05) were shown to be valid for the total studied group. Serum lipids in women were normal, but in men the mean triglyceride level was higher than normal. Conclusions: The occupational exposure to mercury vapour remains in a relationship with early, asymptomatic carotid atherosclerosis. The dependence between urinary mercury elimination and carotid intima-media thickness is evidenced in non-smoking workers. Defensive anti-atherosclerotic mechanisms in these workers are strongly related with HDL. In smokers, these protective mechanisms are disturbed.

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Section: Hg-u Concentration and Carotid Arterial Imt O R I G I N A L mentioning

confidence: 99%

The dependence between urinary mercury concentration and carotid arterial intima-media thickness in workers occupationally exposed to mercury vapour

Skoczyńska¹,

Poręba²,

Steinmentz-Beck³

et al. 2009

International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health

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“…Exposure to mercury increases the production of free radicals, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and superoxide anions on account of Fenton reaction [55][56][57][58][59][60]. Mercury binds to thiol (-SH) containing molecules and binds to selenium, forming selenium-mercury complexes, reducing the glutathione peroxidase, catalase and superoxide dismutase activities due to the absence of selenium in the active site of these enzymes [57,58,[60][61][62]. The increment of ROS and the reduction of antioxidant enzymes activity increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease [63,64].…”

Section: Cardiovascular Effect Of Mercurymentioning

confidence: 99%

Mercury Exposure and Heart Diseases

Genchi¹,

Sinicropi²,

Carocci³

et al. 2016

Preprint

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Environmental contamination has exposed humans to various metal agents, including mercury. It has been determined that mercury is not only harmful to the health of vulnerable populations such as pregnant women and children, but is also toxic to ordinary adults in various ways. For many years, mercury was used in a wide variety of human activities. Nowadays, the exposure to this metal from both natural and artificial sources is significantly increasing. Recent studies suggest that chronic exposure, even to low concentration levels of mercury, can cause cardiovascular, reproductive and developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, immunotoxicity, and carcinogenicity. Possible biological effects of mercury, including the relationship between mercury toxicity and diseases of the cardiovascular system, such as hypertension, coronary heart disease and myocardial infarction, are being studied. As heart rhythm and function are under autonomic nervous system control, it has been hypothesized that the neurotoxic effects of mercury might also impact cardiac autonomic function. Mercury exposure could have a long-lasting effect on cardiac parasympathetic activity and some evidence show that mercury exposure might affect heart rate variability, particularly early exposures in children. The mechanism by which mercury produces toxic effects on the cardiovascular system is not fully elucidated, but this mechanism is believed to involve an increase in oxidative stress. The exposure to mercury increases the production of free radicals, potentially because of the role of mercury in the Fenton reaction and a reduction in the activity of antioxidant enzymes, such as glutathione peroxidase. In this review we report an overview on the toxicity of mercury and focus our attention on the toxic effects on the cardiovascular system.

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“…The impact of Hg environmental contamination on human health has also attracted much scientific attention, originally directed to large-scale industrial releases or agricultural applications (Gochfeld, 2003;Kobal et al, 2004Kobal et al, , 2008. In the last couple of decades, the potential health problems associated with the use of Hg in gold mining have also been acknowledged and thoroughly investigated, particularly in South American countries with a significant gold production (Veiga and Meech, 1995;Akagi and Naganumab, 2000;Fadini and jardim, 2001;Marrugo-Negrete et al, 2008;Molina et al, 2010;Velás-quez-López et al, 2010;Medina Mosquera et al, 2011;SantosFrancés et al, 2011).…”

Section: Populatíon-related Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to the USEPA's IRIS database (USEPA, 2011), there is strong evidence of neurobehavioral toxicity (tremors, slower and attenuated brain activity, memory disturbance, sleep disorders) of low-Ievel, long-term exposure to Hg vapor, as revealed by the human occupational inhalation studies of Fawer et al (1983), Kobal et al (2004Kobal et al ( , 2008, Liang et al (1993), Ngim et al (1992), Piikivi (1989), and Piikivi and Hanninen (1989). Methyl-mercury (MeHg) is also a highly toxic substance.…”

Section: Populatíon-related Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Probabilistic meta-analysis of risk from the exposure to Hg in artisanal gold mining communities in Colombia

et al. 2014

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HIGHLIGHTSo Data of Hg in air and in fish across Colombia are evaluated in terms of risk. o Probability distribution functions are fitted to exposure and concentration data. o lnhalation of Hg contributes more to the overall risk than ingestion of fish. o The risk for the residents of mining communities greatly exceeds the threshold of 1. o The risk for miner-smelters is 200 times higher than what is deemed acceptable. A B S T R A C TColombia is one of the largest per capita mercury polluters in the world as a consequence of its artisanal gold mining activities. The severity of this problem in terms of potential health effects was evaluated by means of a probabilistic risk assessment carried out in the twelve departments (or provinces) in Colombia with the largest gold production. The two exposure pathways included in the risk assessment were inhalation of elemental Hg vapors and ingestion of fish contaminated with methyl mercury. Exposure parameters for the adult population (especially rates of fish consumption) were obtained from nation-wide surveys and concentrations of Hg in air and of methyl-mercury in fish were gathered from previous scientific studies. Fish consumption varied between departments and ranged from O to 0.3 kg d 1. Average concentrations oftotal mercury in fish (70 data) ranged from 0.026 to 3.3 I-lg g 1. A total of 550 individual measurements of Hg in workshop air (ranging from

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The impact of long-term past exposure to elemental mercury on antioxidative capacity and lipid peroxidation in mercury miners

Cited by 160 publications

References 67 publications

The dependence between urinary mercury concentration and carotid arterial intima-media thickness in workers occupationally exposed to mercury vapour

The dependence between urinary mercury concentration and carotid arterial intima-media thickness in workers occupationally exposed to mercury vapour

Mercury Exposure and Heart Diseases

Probabilistic meta-analysis of risk from the exposure to Hg in artisanal gold mining communities in Colombia

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