1. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of ™ Mercury An Introduction To The Health Effects of Mercury

2. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Mercury the Metal

3. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Key Words Risk = Hazard X Exposure Dose / Response Individual Sensitivity

4. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology What Is This? Hg CH 3

5. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Methyl Mercury (MeHg) Hg CH 3

6. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Hg - Inorganic & Organic Hg CH 3 Inorganic – Quick Silver Hg Organic – Methyl Mercury

7. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Hg Facts & Uses Quicksilver 13.6 times the weight of water Evaporates at room temperature Bacteria change to Methylmercury Amalgam Many Industrial uses (thermometers, chemical reactions, gold mining)

8. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Hg – Like Water

9. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Hg – Solid Enough to Sit On

10. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Alchemy Medicine - cure syphilis? Egyptian tomb -1500 BC Ancient Awareness

11. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Greek God Mercury “For then she bare a son, of many shifts, blandly cunning, a robber, a cattle driver, a bringer of dreams, a watcher by night, a thief at the gates, one who was soon to show forth wonderful deeds among the deathless gods...” Description of the birth of the Greek God Mercury

12. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Occupational Exposure Gold mining. Hatters in the felt industry. Historical Events

13. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Historical Awareness

14. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Polluting with HG Discharge in Minamata Bay

15. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Fetal Effects of MeHg

16. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Life-Long Effects of MeHg

17. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Coal Fired Plants – Hg Emissions

18. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Outbreaks of MeHg Poisoning PlaceYearCases Minamata1953-601000 Nigata1964-65646 Guatemala1963-6545 Ghana1967144 Pakistan1969100 Iraq1956100 Iraq19601,002 Iraq197140,000 On-going2001???

19. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Inorganic - elemental mercury vapor Hg 0 Biotransformation Organic - Methylmercury - CH 3 Hg + Bioaccumulatio n Mercury to Methyl Mercury

20. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Mercury Release 50-75% mercury of released in the environment related to human activities

21. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Atmospheric Hg

22. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Ambient Water Sediments Edible Fish Inorganic Mercury Methyl- Mercury In Humans Biomethylation Bioaccumulation Exposure Discharge Biotransformation of Mercury

23. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Natural Degassing of the earth Combustion of fossil fuel Industrial Discharges and Wastes Incineration & Crematories Dental amalgams Hg 0 Hg 2+ CH 3 Hg + Environmental Sources of Mercury

24. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology The Mercury Cycle

25. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology A 270-year record Major atmospheric releases Natural Background (42%) Volcanic (6%) Anthropogenic (52%) Gold rush WWII Industrialization Significantly The last 100 years anthropogenic: 70% The last 10 years an apparent decline

26. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Blindness - Deafness Cerebral Palsy - Seizures Abnormal reflexes & muscle tone Retarded motor development Visual and Auditory Deficits Delayed motor development Altered DRH performance Neurobehavioral Effects

27. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Decrease in Brain Size Cell loss Disorganization of cells Cell migration failures Effects On The Brain

28. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Mercury Fishing Advisories  In 2000, 41 States have over 2000 fish consumption advisories  An increase from 27 in 1993  Pregnant women, nursing mothers, women who intend to have children, and children under 15

29. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Reduce environmental release Restrict global production and sale Advise women of child bearing age Research mechanisms of action Assess neurodegenerative effects Recommendations

30. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology MeHg Consumption Limits US EPA – 0.1 ug/kg-day US FDA – 1 ppm (mg/kg) in tuna

31. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Mercury A Global Issue Mercury distribution and exposure is a global problem

32. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Additional Information  Web Sites  World Health Organization - global prospective on mercury health effects. http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/ GDWQ/Chemicals/mercuryfull.htm  US EPA - Main site on Mercury. http://www.epa.gov/mercury/  The Mercury Policy Project (MPP). - works to raise awareness about the threat of mercury contamination - http://www.mercurypolicy.org/

33. Small Dose of Mercury – 3/20/05 A Small Dose of Toxicology Authorship Information For Additional Information Contact Steven G. Gilbert, PhD, DABT E-mail: smdose@asmalldoseof.org Web: www.asmalldoseof.org This presentation is supplement to “A Small Dose of Toxicology”