Open AccessBlood cell delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase activity in humans exposed to methylmercury.
Author(s) -
Andrejs Schütz,
Staffan Skerfving
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of work, environment and health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.621
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1795-990X
pISSN - 0355-3140
DOI - 10.5271/sjweh.2859
Subject(s) - methylmercury , dehydratase , porphobilinogen synthase , mercury (programming language) , lead exposure , chemistry , physiology , biology , biochemistry , medicine , endocrinology , environmental chemistry , enzyme , bioaccumulation , cats , programming language , computer science
The gamma-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALA-D) activity in blood cells was studied in 15 subjects exposed to methylmercury through consumption of contaminated fish and 19 "unexposed" subjects with a similar sex and age distribution. The exposed subjects had a mean mercury level of 120 (range 15-370) ng/g blood cells while the controls had 9 (range 4-15) ng/g. Both groups had the same mean level of lead in whole blood (10+/-1 mug/100 ml). ALA-D activity decreased statistically significantly as both mercury and lead levels in the blood cells increased.