Inorganic and radiation analytical toxicology branch cdc. Human exposure to inorganic mercury salts can occur both in occupational and environmental settings. Introductionmercury in aquatic and terrestrial organismsmercury within organismsfactors affecting mercury in biotabiomagnification of mercury through food websmercury stable isotopes in bioaccumulation studiescase studykejimkujik national park and historic site, nova scotia, canadaconclusions references. Mercury can readily combine with chlorine, sulfur, and other.
Regulatory impact analysis for the final mercury and air toxics standards. The minamata convention on mercury started in august 2017. Exchange of mercury between the atmosphere and terrestrial ecosystems mae sexauer. Models and empirical data suggest that humans are responsible for a great deal of the mercury actively cycling in the environment at present.
Mercury occurs in several chemical forms, with complex pharmacokinetics. Inorganic mercurials in the periodic table of elements, mercury hg is the heaviest member of the iib group, which also contains zinc zn and cadmium cd. In 2009 intergovernmental negotiations began on the development of a global, legally binding, environmental treaty on mercury. There is an effort underway for the fda to administratively combine dental. Advances in analytical methods for environmental mercury speciation tuesday, july 18. This form of mercury toxicity in humans is now called minamata disease. The important forms from a toxicological viewpoint are the metallic form, also called the elemental form, the divalent inorganic forms and methylmercury compounds. The hg spike was thoroughly mixed into the epilimnion in nine separate events at two. Mercury fractionation, bioavailability, and ecotoxicity in. Environmental toxicology organochlorine pesticides, lead, and mercury in northern bobwhite colinus virginianus and scaled quail callipepla squamata from the rolling plains ecoregion of. Sources of mercury in a contaminated streamimplications. Mercury is the only metallic element existing in the liquid state at ordinary temperatures and pressures. This edition supersedes any previously released draft or final profile.
Mercury is found naturally in rock deposits as a native element, and bound to other elements in minerals. Article views are the countercompliant sum of full text article downloads since november 2008 both pdf and html across all institutions and individuals. Chemicalspecific health consultation for joint epaatsdr. Occupational and environmental toxicology of mercury and. Increase in mercury in pacific yellowfin tuna drevnick. Elemental mercury, hg0, is ubiquitous in water and involved in key hg biogeochemical processes. It exists in three forms that have different properties, usage, and toxicity. Limited information was located regarding gastrointestinal effects in persons who are chronically exposed to elemental mercury vapors. Mark cohen noaa air resources laboratory 15 east west highway, rarl, room 3316 silver spring, maryland. We apologize for any inconvenience caused while we fix this issue. U n ite d s ta te s e p a 4 5 2 r 9 7 0 0 5 d e ce m b.
The toxicology of mercury current research and emerging trends. In general, the dominant form of mercury in water, soil, and sediment is the inorganic hgii form while methylmercury mehg is dominant in biota, and in the atmosphere hg0 is the primary species usepa, 1997. Tackling mercury pollution in the eu and worldwide european. Latex paints sold after august 1990 must carry a warning if they contain a mercury additive a recent study by the national institutes of health indicates that the small amounts of mercury released in the mouth by dental amalgams pose no known danger to health because mercury has several forms and produces. Toxicological effects of methylmercury national research. We believe that this book will serve as an excellent resource for researchers, graduate students, environmental regulators, and others. Modeling the atmospheric transport and deposition of mercury materials assembled for mercury in maryland meeting, appalachian lab, univ. U n ite d s ta te s e n viro n m e n ta lp ro te ctio n a g e n cy a ir e p a 4 5 2 r 9 7 0 0 5 d e ce m b e r 1 9 9 7 mercury study report to congress. Environmental chemistry and toxicology of mercury wiley.
Combustion processes, especially coalfired power plants, are major sources of mercury contamination in the environment. Department of chemistry and biochemistry and southeast environmental research center, florida international university, miami, fl, usa. Concise international chemical assessment document 50. Mercury is a toxic trace metal that can accumulate to levels that threaten human and environmental health.
Mercury is a naturallyoccurring chemical element found in rock in. Bioaccumulation and biomagnification of mercury through. Most ecosystems consist of a number of interacting populations of organisms that coexist in a stable or predictable manner. Little information is available regarding nonpurgeable particulate hg0 in water, hg0 bound to suspended particulate matter spm, which is presumably present due to high affinity of hg0. The inorganic and radiation analytical toxicology irat branch conducts research, develops analytical methods, and analyzes metals such as mercury total and organic, arsenic total and speciated, cadmium, lead, cobalt, tungsten, uranium, molybdenum, antimony, and other trace, toxic, and essential metals. In the middle ages, paracelsus popularized the use of mercury for the treatment of vermin, lice, and most notably syphilis. The replacement of mercury products used for medicinal, agricultural, or industrial purposes has resulted in a decline in acute and chronic poisoning, although many wildlife species remain at risk. The toxicology of mercury and its chemical compounds. Amelioration of acute mercury toxicity by a novel, non. The toxicology of mercury and its compounds sciencedirect. For the general population, however, the main concern is the possible adverse effect of exposure to mercury throu. Elemental hg 0 mercury has a high vapor pressure and the vapor causes a number of cases of poisoning via inhalation. Modeling the atmospheric transport and deposition of mercury.
A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by crossref and updated daily. Advances in mercury toxicology rochester series on. Mercury contamination in the efpc is sustained by two separate and quite dissimilar sources. Mercury poisoning still occurs as a result of accidental and occupational exposure. In the fourth national report on human exposure to environmental chemicals fourth. Mercury vapor emitted from both natural and anthropogenic sources is globally distributed in the atmosphere. The work focused on the common loon because this species is sensitive to the toxic effects of mercury and has the greatest risk of mercury exposure among wildlife species on inland nonmarine north american aquatic systems. The major physical forms of mercury to which humans are exposed are mercury vapor, hg0, and methylmercury compounds, ch3hgx. Information about mercury, for use in responding to chemical incidents. The meeting on advances in mercury toxicology was held at the university of tokyo on august 1 to 3, 1990. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days. Mercury export from the two experimental catchments during the august 2008 storm was 0. Historically, mercury poisoning was a common occurrence in both human and animal populations.
When consumed by humans, contaminated fish represent a public health risk. Isotopically enriched hg 90% 202 hg was added to a small lake in ontario, canada, at a rate equivalent to approximately threefold the annual direct atmospheric deposition rate that is typical of the northeastern united states. Toxicological profiles are revised and republished as necessary, but no less than once every three years. It should perhaps be noted that the concentration in the fawer study as well as many other occupational studies was. If you are unable to see the pdf link please follow the direct links to the pdf available on all issue table of contents pages and latest articles listing pages. Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology. Read mercury fractionation, bioavailability, and ecotoxicity in highly contaminated soils from chlor. Pdf mercury is a toxic heavy metal which is widely dispersed in nature. Advances in analytical methods for environmental mercury speciation 1e. The invited papers are published in this book along with an overview chapter that was written by the editors at a meeting held at the university of rochester on august 1 to 2, 1991. A critical component of the model is determining the level of mercury in loon eggs that poses a population level risk.
Human exposure to the vapor of metallic mercury dates back to antiquity but continues today in occupational settings and from dental amalgam. Under certain conditions, inorganic mercury may combine with one carbon and three hydrogen atoms ch 3, which is referred to as a methyl group. Eventually mercury in its inorganic form can combine with water. The book that looks at mercurys impact on the planet today recent research by the epa has concluded that one in six women of childbearing age have unsafe. Technologies for the stabilization of elemental mercury and mercurycontaining wastes final report sven hagemann oktober 2009 remark the work being presented in this report has been funded by the german federal ministry for the environment, nature conservation and nuclear safety bmu under the support code um 09 61866. The seasonal studies conducted in 20122014 by the krai center of environmental monitoring and emergency prediction of khabarovsk krai demonstrated the increase in the content of mercury to 23.
Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology home. While several different methods are currently approved under 40 cfr part 6 for the analysis. Adsorption of mercury on solids in the aquatic environment guangliang liu, yanbin li, yong cai. Text was adopted and opened for signature in minamata, japan in october 20.
Abstractthe major physical forms of mercury to which humans are exposed are mercury vapor, hg0, and methylmercury compounds, ch3hgx. Along with our tracelevel total mercury analysis by epa 1631e, basic laboratory offers analysis of tracelevel methyl mercury in water samples by epa 1630. Toxicological effects of methylmercury the national. Environmental chemistry and toxicology of mercury, first edition. Bulletin national clearinghouse for poison control centers u. Mercury in these forms is referred to as inorganic mercury. We have been officially certified by the state of washington for this analysis.
View enhanced pdf access article on wiley online library html view. Atsdr chemical specific health consultation mercury use of a minimal loael and 10 for human variabliliy to account for the loael and individual sensitivities. Fagala and wigg 1992 reported a case of colicky abdominal pain and diarrhea in a 12yearold girl exposed to mercury vapors for approximately 6 months after a spill in her home. Mercury is an element and a metal that is found in air, water, and soil. It is extensively studied as a purgeable dissolved species, termed dissolved gaseous mercury dgm. Regulatory impact analysis for the final mercury and air. Ecosystem health ecosystem a system formed by the interaction of community of organisms with their environment. The toxicology of mercury current exposures and clinical. Methylmercury, one organic form of mercury, can accumulate up the aquatic food chain and lead to high concentrations in predatory fish. It is returned as a watersoluble form in precipitation and finds its way into bodies of fresh and ocean water. Some latex house paints release dangerous levels of mercury vapor. Special attention is paid to those forms of mercury of current public health concern.