The Impact of Toxic Metals on Human Metabolism and Health
A special issue of Metabolites (ISSN 2218-1989). This special issue belongs to the section "Endocrinology and Clinical Metabolic Research".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 4
Special Issue Editor
Interests: metabolomics; exposomics; suspect screening; non-targeted screening; metabolic profile
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Metals with toxic effects include, among others, lead, mercury, arsenic, chromium, cadmium, and thallium. Main sources of those metals comprise environmental pollution (soil, water, and air), industry (metallurgy, power plants, and incinerators), transportation, certain foods (fish and root vegetables), cosmetics, medicines, batteries, tobacco smoke, and building materials. Therefore, exposure to these metals is a widespread phenomenon. These metals enter the body through the respiratory tract, the digestive system, and the skin. Changes in metabolism and adverse health effects can occur even at very low amounts. Exposure to toxic metals has been observed to lead to a range of health problems, from nonspecific symptoms such as fatigue and headaches to serious health problems such as neurological damage, organ failure, and even cancer. These effects may vary depending on the specific metal or metal mixture, the duration of exposure (acute or chronic), and the individual's susceptibility. Unfortunately, the development of civilization is associated with increasing environmental pollution, making it crucial to monitor exposure levels to various chemical compounds, including toxic metals, and their impact on metabolism and health. The health effects of acute toxicity and high metal doses are well known. Nevertheless, knowledge about changes in various metabolic pathways, particularly with chronic and low-level exposure, is very limited. The development of modern analytical techniques, such as metabolomics and lipidomics, both targeted and untargeted, offers enormous potential for detecting and comprehensively analyzing subtle changes in metabolism. These methods are often considered key to understanding metabolism in the 21st century. Therefore, this Special Issue of Metabolites is dedicated to a deeper analysis of the impact of toxic metals on changes in metabolic profile in various population groups, as well as to the search for early markers of exposure effects in terms of primary prevention of clinical symptoms.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Prof. Dr. Lucyna Kozlowska
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- metabolomics
- exposomics
- suspect screening
- non-targeted screening
- metals
- health effect
- metabolic profile
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