Neurotoxic Mechanisms of Methylmercury: Cellular and Behavior Changes.

The effect of CH3HgOH on the thermal stability of calf thymus chromatin in Na2SO4 (10 mM Na+, pH 6.8) has been studied spectrophotometrically by heat denaturation. From changes observed in the integral and differential melting profiles, gathered via absorbance measurements at 260 nm as a function of CH3HgOH concentration, it is concluded that methylmercury at low concentrations (1 - 10 microM),...

Methylmercury poisoning occurred in four cases after passage of methylmercury through the food chain. The neurological damage in all four cases was severe. The damage was greater at younger ages with maximum involvement in the case of transplacental poisoning. Significant recovery occurred in two cases, but on six-year follow-up two cases remained severely impaired. Clinical and electrophysiolo...

Total mercury (TotHg) and methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations were determined in various environmental compartments collected from water resources of three Water Management Areas (WMAs) - viz. Olifants, Upper Vaal and Inkomati WMAs, potentially impacted by major anthropogenic mercury (Hg) sources (i.e coal-fired power stations and artisanal gold mining activities). Aqueous TotHg concentrations ...

An estuarine sediment sample, IAEA-405, was recently characterised for trace elements and methylmercury (MeHg) for ultimate use as a marine reference material. The reference values were calculated using data sets from 120 laboratories that participated in a world-wide intercomparison exercise. The data evaluation is highlighted, and includes comparisons of different analytical methods, as well ...

Fish has many health benefits but is also the most common source of methylmercury. The bioavailability of methylmercury in fish may be affected by other meal components. In this study, the effect of green tea on the bioavailability of methylmercury from an oral bolus of fish muscle tissue was studied in rats and compared to a water treated control group and a group treated with meso-2,3-dimerca...

Mercury is an extremely dangerous environmental contaminant responsible for episodes of human intoxication throughout the world. Methylmercury, the most toxic compound of this metal, mainly targets the central nervous system, accumulating preferentially in cells of glial origin and causing oxidative stress. Despite studies demonstrating the current exposure of human populations, the consequence...

and intestinal contents is also apparent from a time-course graph (Fig. 1). The amount of methylmercuric chloride produced by the caecal contents is not directly proportional to the time of incubation, but instead rises rapidly to a peak at 2670h and then falls with further incubation. In the presence of the intestinal contents, the peak (at 48h) is sharper, and virtually no HgCI, is methylated...

The aggressive display in Betta splendens is particularly prominent, and vital to its adaptation to the environment. Methylmercury is an organic variation of Hg that presents particularly pronounced neuro-behavioral effects. The present experiments aim to test the effect of acute and chronic poisoning with methylmercury on the display in Bettas. The animals were poisoned by trophic means in bot...

The environmental contaminants mercury and methylmercury cause teratogenic, nervous, and renal damage in mammals (Venugopal and Luckey 1978). Methylmercury interferes with the normal development of tadpoles (Chang et al. 1974) and with the regeneration of fins in fish (Weis and Weis 1978) and limbs in crabs (Callahan and Weis 1983). Because mercury is highly toxic, it has been measured in a wid...