Background: Mercury is widespread and persistent in the environment. One organic form of mercury, Methylmercury (MeHg), can accumulate in the food chain in aquatic ecosystems and lead to high concentrations of MeHg in fish, which, when consumed by humans, can result in an increased risk of adverse effects. Currently, the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) has established...

BACKGROUND Different chemical forms of mercury occur naturally in human milk. The most controversial aspect of early post-natal exposure to organic mercury is ethylmercury (EtHg) in thimerosal-containing vaccines (TCV) still being used in many countries. Thus exclusively breastfed infants can be exposed to both, fish derived methylmercury (MeHg) in maternal diets and to EtHg from TCV. The aim o...

Homogeneously sized nanoparticles were successfully constructed based on amphiphilic porphyrin-cholesterol arrays, showing unique spectral and colourimetric response to organic mercury in water, even in the presence of Hg(2+).

Owing to the prevalence of mercury in the environment, the risk of human exposure to this toxic metal continues to increase. Following exposure to mercury, this metal accumulates in numerous organs, including brain, intestine, kidneys, liver, and placenta. Although a number of mechanisms for the transport of mercuric ions into target organs were proposed in recent years, these mechanisms have n...

Four methods of determining the concentration of mercury in human urine have been studied. A simple method suitable for general laboratory use is recommended and the requirements for accurate results are defined. The method employs mild oxidation with permanganate and HS(2)O(4) followed by dithizone extraction and measurement of absorbance at 485 nm and 620 nm.No mercury was detected in any of ...

Biogeochemical cycle of mercury (Hg) is a complicated series of biotic and abiotic reactions, from which formation of monomethylmercury (MeHg) is widely considered as the most important, due to the proven toxicity of MeHg [1]. Organomercury forms have a pronounced capability of bioaccumulation (incorporation in cells and tissues of living organisms) and biomagnification (transport through troph...

Fish and other seafood may contain organic mercury but also beneficial nutrients such as n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. We endeavored to study whether maternal fish consumption during pregnancy harms or benefits fetal brain development. We examined associations of maternal fish intake during pregnancy and maternal hair mercury at delivery with infant cognition among 135 mother-infant pairs in...

Background Mercury exists in multiple forms: elemental, organic, and inorganic. Its toxic manifestations depend on the type and magnitude of exposure. The role of colonoscopic decompression in acute mercury toxicity is still unclear. We present a case of acute elemental mercury toxicity secondary to mercury ingestion, which markedly improved with colonoscopic decompression. Clinical Case A 54...

The influence of mercury on the transformation processes in the waters and the sediments in the reservoir of a small hydroelectric power plant (SHPP) Lakatnik was simulated in laboratory conditions. SHPP Lakatnik is the first (of nine similar) SHPPs put into exploitation in the middle part of the Iskar River (Bulgaria). In previous studies of the sediments in the reservoir of SHPP Lakatnik, our...

Seven Japanese female workers exposed to mercury vapour at a concentration of < 0.02 mg Hg/m3 (8 h/day, 44 h/week) were examined for inorganic (I-Hg) and organic (O-Hg) mercury concentrations in urine, blood, and hair after 0, 4, 8, 17, and 23 months of exposure. Both I-Hg and O-Hg concentrations in urine and hair did not increase significantly even after 23 months of exposure. The concentratio...