Dead dried Chlorella vulgaris was studied in terms of its performance in binding divalent copper, cadmium, and lead ions from their aqueous or 50% v/v methanol, ethanol, and acetone solutions. The percentage uptake of cadmium ions exhibited a general decrease with decrease in dielectric constant values, while that of copper and lead ions showed a general decrease with increase in donor numbers....

The bioaccumulation of 10 metals in five fish species was experimentally evaluated following exposure to dietary or aqueous metal at environmentally realistic metal concentrations. A biokinetic model showed that, with few exceptions, >90% of a fish’s metal body burden was obtained from diet. Regulatory bodies need to consider these findings in setting appropriate water quality criteria. Metal u...

The mechanism of renal uptake of nephrotoxic heavy metals such as HgCl2 and NaAsO2 is not clear. The metals are known to react with endogenous sulfhydryls such as glutathione (GSH), so metal-GSH conjugates may be delivered to the kidney. To study this possibility, renal cortical slices from male New Zealand white rabbits were incubated with 10(-4) M HgCl2 or 10(-3) M NaAsO2 +/- stoichiometric a...

spirulina platensis, a cyanobacterium of economic important was studied for the tolerance to cadmium. the bioassay studies showed the ec50 value to be 1.53 mg/g. the cyanobacterium was very sensitive to low metal concentration and the productivity was also reduced. the chlorophyll pigments reduced with decreasing the algal biomass. the algal survival rate showed a marked reduction in their surv...

For all microorganisms, acquisition of metal ions is essential for survival in the environment or in their infected host. Metal ions are required in many biological processes as components of metalloproteins and serve as cofactors or structural elements for enzymes. However, it is critical for bacteria to ensure that metal uptake and availability is in accordance with physiological needs, as an...

This study examined the bioaccumulation of the heavy metals copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) by the giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera, by exposing meristematic kelp tissue to elevated metal concentrations in seawater within laboratory aquaria. Specifically, we carried out two different experiments. The first examined metal uptake under a single, ecologically-relevant elevation of each metal (30 ppb Cu ...

The technique of diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) has been shown to be a promising tool to assess metal bioavailability in soils under laboratory conditions. In this study we used DGT to investigate the resupply kinetics of Cu and Zn under in-situ conditions in a polluted lysimeter soil and compared the results with laboratory measurements using undisturbed soil cores at defined water co...

Transferrin receptor (TFR) 1 and 2 are expressed in the liver; TFR1 levels are regulated by cellular iron levels while TFR2 levels are regulated by transferrin saturation. The aims of this study were to 1) determine the relative importance of TFR1 and TFR2 in transferrin-bound iron (TBI) uptake by HuH7 human hepatoma cells and 2) characterize the role of metal-transferrin complexes in the regul...