Exposure Level and Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals

Dear Colleagues,

Heavy metals, including lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), chromium (Cr), arsenic (As), and others, are persistent and non-biodegradable toxic pollutants that are widely present in both environmental and occupational settings. Importantly, many heavy metals have no safe exposure threshold; even low-dose, long-term exposure can cause severe multi-system damage, such as neurotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, and reproductive toxicity. Pregnant women, fetuses, and children are particularly vulnerable. Notably, some heavy metals (e.g., lead) stored in bone can be mobilized during pregnancy and lactation, leading to secondary exposure and complicating risk assessment. This Special Issue of Toxics aims to address critical gaps in heavy metal research—such as establishing scientifically sound toxicity thresholds—by integrating interdisciplinary advances from environmental science, toxicology, and public health. It seeks to promote cutting-edge detection and assessment technologies and provide robust scientific evidence to support global heavy metal risk management. Our focus includes quantifying exposure levels, elucidating toxic molecular mechanisms, conducting population-specific risk assessments, and developing targeted prevention strategies. We warmly welcome original research articles and comprehensive reviews.

Dr. Lin Zhang
Guest Editor

Dr. Li Ma
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the Special Issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.