Special Issue "Heavy Metals and Health"

Guest Editor
Prof. Dr. Wayne Briner
Psychobiology Program, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska-Kearney, Kearney, NE 68849, USA
Website: http://www.unk.edu/acad/psychology/index.php?id=29378
E-Mail:
Interests: heavy metals; depleted uranium; developmental neurotoxicology; behavioral toxicology

Dear Colleagues,

Heavy metals have been a hazard to human and environmental health for many centuries and recent advances in human technology have not reduced that risk. In fact, increased industrialization of the developing world, the increased demand for resources, and the advent of new technologies have increased the risk of exposure to these substances. Despite this increase in risk public and professional attention is often focused on the emergence of new risks (e.g., plasticizers). This issue will focus on reaffirming the risks of well known heavy metals, such as lead and mercury, and bringing to light the risk of emerging metals such as uranium, gallium and others. Articles will address a range of issues, from epidemiology to the systemic effects and cellular mechanisms of toxicity. Treatment, prevention, biotransformation and policy issues are also viable topics.

Prof. Dr. Wayne Briner
Guest Editor

Submission

All papers should be submitted to ijerph@mdpi.org with copy to the guest editor. To be published continuously until the deadline and papers will be listed together at the special websites.

Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. All papers are refereed through a peer review process. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for submitting papers are available on the Instructions for Authors page. IJERPH is an international peer-reviewed monthly journal published by Molecular Diversity Preservation International.

Article Processing Charges (APC) for publication in this Open Access Special Issue are waived for well-prepared manuscripts submitted by 31 January 2010. English correction or formatting fees of 250 CHF (Swiss Francs) will be charged in certain cases for those paper accepted for publication, that require extensive additional formatting and/or English corrections.

• heavy metals
• lead
• uranium
• gallium
• gold
• arsenic
• chelation
• tin
• mercury

Type of Paper: Article
Title: Blood Lead Levels Among Pregnant Women: Historical Versus Contemporaneous Exposures
Authors: Marie Lynn Miranda ¹, Sharon E. Edwards ¹, Geeta K. Swamy ², Christopher J. Paul ¹ and Brian Neelon ¹
Affiliations: ¹ Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Box 90328, Durham, NC 27708, USA; E-Mail: mmiranda@duke.edu (M.L.M.)
² Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Duke University Medical Center, 2608 Erwin Rd, Suite 200 Durham, NC 27705, USA
Abstract: Blood lead among pregnant women, even at modest levels, may impair offspring cognitive development. We examine whether blood lead levels (BLLs) result from current versus historic exposures, among a cohort of pregnant women. Cumulative logit models were used to characterize the relationship between maternal risk factors and higher BLLs. Maternal blood lead levels more likely result from lead remobilization from historic versus contemporaneous exposures. Even if all lead sources were abated immediately, women and their fetuses would experience lead exposure for decades. This work emphasizes the importance of addressing sources of environmental lead exposure in the United States and internationally.
Keywords: blood lead; pregnancy; birth outcomes; lead exposure

Type of Paper: Review
Title: The Essential Toxin: Impact of Zinc on Human Health
Authors: Laura M. Plum, Lothar Rink and Hajo Haase
Affiliation: Institute of Immunology, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany; E-Mail: hhaase@ukaachen.de (H.H.)
Abstract: Compared to several other metal ions with similar chemical properties, zinc is relatively harmless. Only exposure to high doses has toxic effects, making acute zinc intoxication a rare event. In addition to acute intoxication, long-term, high-dose supplementation with zinc interferes with the uptake of copper. Hence, many of its toxic effects are in fact due to copper deficiency. While systemic homeostasis and efficient regulatory mechanisms on the cellular level generally prevent the uptake of cytotoxic doses of exogenous zinc, endogenous zinc plays a significant role in cytotoxic events in single cells. Here, zinc influences apoptosis by acting on several molecular regulators of programmed cell death, including caspases and proteins from the Bcl and Bax families. One organ where zinc is prominently involved in cell death is the brain, and cytotoxicity in consequence of ischemia or trauma involves the accumulation of free zinc. Rather than being a toxic metal ion, zinc is an essential trace element. Whereas intoxication by excessive exposure is rare, zinc deficiency is widespread and has a detrimental impact on growth, neuronal development, and immunity, and in severe cases its consequences are lethal. Zinc deficiency caused by malnutrition and foods with low bioavailability, aging, certain diseases, or deregulated homeostasis is a far more common risk to human health than intoxication.
Keywords: toxicity; zinc; essential trace element

Type of Paper: Review
Title: Gallium Compounds in the Electronics Industry and in Medicine
Author: Christopher R. Chitambar
Affiliation: Division of Neoplastic Diseases, Department of Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, 9200 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53226, USA; E-Mail: chitambr@mcw.edu
Abstract: Over the past two to three decades, gallium compounds have gained importance in the fields of electronics and medicine. Gallium arsenide is widely used in the semiconductor industry while radioactive gallium and stable gallium nitrate are used as diagnostic and therapeutic agents in cancer and in disorders of calcium and bone metabolism. Animals exposed to gallium arsenide display toxicities in the pulmonary, hematologic, renal, testicular, and immunologic systems indicating that occupational and environmental risks exist for individuals exposed to gallium arsenide in the workplace or through consumption of contaminated ground water. Patients receiving pharmacologic doses of gallium nitrate for treatment of cancer-associated hypercalcemia, lymphoma, bladder cancer, or other disorders may benefit from such therapy, but knowledge of the therapeutic index of this drug is necessary to avoid clinical toxicities. The application of older and newer gallium compounds in clinical medicine can be advanced by a better understanding of the mechanisms of action and drug resistance of these compounds and their pharmacology and side-effects. This review will discuss the applications and toxicities of gallium compounds, our current understanding of gallium’s action as a therapeutic agent, and future directions for development.
Keywords: Gallium; iron; iron proteins; electronics; semi-conductors; calcium and bone metabolism; cancer therapeutics; toxicities