Mercury and methylmercury in hair of selected groups of Czech population.

As the concentration of methylmercury (MeHg) in the environment is insignificant, hair can be used as a suitable matrix to estimate endogenous MeHg exposure. Avalidated analytical method with AMA 254 spectrometer was used for the determination of inorganic mercury and methylmercury species in the hair of dentists, workers in fish industry and professionally non-exposed adults. ANOVA and QC Expert software was used for statistical evaluation. The number of amalgam fillings in oral cavity, consumption of fish, gender, smoking habits and age of the subjects were taken into account. A significantly higher level of inorganic bound mercury (Hg(in)) was found in the hair of dentists. The number of amalgam fillings had a slightly significant effect on Hg(in); fish consumption had a significant influence on MeHg and slightly also on Hg(in). Other parameters were not significant.

Selenium protects the immature rat heart against ischemia/reperfusion injury.

The aim of the study was to find out whether administration of selenium (Se) will protect the immature heart against ischemia/reperfusion.The control pregnant rats were fed laboratory diet (0.237 mg Se/kg diet); experimental rats received 2 ppm Na(2)SeO(3) in the drinking water from the first day of pregnancy until day 10 post partum. The concentration of Se in the serum and heart tissue was determined by activation analysis, the serum concentration of NO by chemiluminescence, cardiac concentration of lipofuscin-like pigment by fluorescence analysis. The 10 day-old hearts were perfused (Langendorff); recovery of developed force (DF) was measured after 40 min of global ischemia. In acute experiments, 10 day-old hearts were perfused with selenium (75 nmol/l) before or after global ischemia. Sensitivity to isoproterenol (ISO, pD(50)) was assessed as a response of DF to increasing cumulative dose.Se supplementation elevated serum concentration of Se by 16%. Se increased ischemic tolerance (recovery of DF, 32.28 +/- 2.37 vs. 41.82 +/- 2.91%, P < 0.05). Similar results were obtained after acute administration of Se during post-ischemic reperfusion (32.28 +/- 2.37 vs. 49.73 +/- 4.40%, P < 0.01). The pre-ischemic treatment, however, attenuated the recovery (23.08 +/- 3.04 vs. 32.28 +/- 2.37%, P < 0.05). Moreover, Se supplementation increased the sensitivity to the inotropic effect of ISO, decreased cardiac concentration of lipofuscin-like pigment and serum concentration of NO. Our results suggest that Se protects the immature heart against ischemia/reperfusion injury. It seems therefore, that ROS may affect the function of the neonatal heart, similarly as in adults.

Bromide transfer through mother's milk and its impact on the suckling rat.

Effects of a high bromide intake in lactating rats on the performance of the dams and on the prosperity of their young were studied. In the dams, two marked consequences undoubtedly caused by high bromide intake were observed: stagnation in the extent of diet and water consumption in the course of the lactation period, and a conspicuous drop in the production rate of mother's milk. A very high intake of bromide in the mothers in the course of the nursing period (about 220 mg Br-/d per dam) also caused a marked decrease in the body weight increments in their suckling young. Only about one-half of these young survived and their general condition was very poor. It is suggested that one of the possible reasons for the observed marked decrease in the production of mother's milk in dams with high bromide intake could be a decreased stimulation of the mammary glands as a consequence of reduced consumption of mother's milk by the suckling. Bromide ions ingested by the dams easily moved into the rat milk. Via mother's milk, bromide was transferred in a large extent to the suckling. The amount of bromide in mother's milk depended on the bromide concentration in the drinking water taken by the dams. With the addition of 5 g bromide per liter (providing the mean daily bromide dose of 220 mg), bromide ions replaced about 54% of the chloride in the milk. A rise in the concentration of both halogens caused also an increase in the concentration of sodium in mother's milk. The exact mechanism(s) of bromide interference with postnatal developmental processes in the young remain(s) unclear.

Biological half-lives of bromide and sodium in the rat are connected and dependent on the physiological state.

The parallel course of the excretion rates of sodium and bromide ions was demonstrated in adult male rats administered simultaneously with 24Na-sodium chloride and 82Br-bromide. These excretion rates were inversely proportional to the magnitude of sodium intake in the animals. The biological half-life of bromide, as a substitute for sodium or chloride, was investigated with the aid of the radionuclide 82Br in animals situated in very different physiological states (i.e., in lactating and nonlactating female rats as well as in young rats of varying ages [2, 4, 6, and 10 wk of age]). The 82Br radioactivity retained in mothers and in whole litters was measured in vivo at appropriate time intervals (up to 240 h) after the application of 82Br-bromide to the mothers. The time-course of the changes in the 82Br radioactivity of the young was calculated as the difference between the rate of 82Br intake in the mother's milk and the 82Br excretion through the kidneys into the urine. The rate of 82Br excretion through the kidneys of the dam could be calculated also. Nonweaned young rats (12 d) had the highest half-life (269 h) and lactating dams had the lowest (44 h). The determined values demonstrated that nonweaned young apparently conserve sodium, because of its relatively low concentration in mother's milk, whereas lactating dams, because of their large food intake, waste sodium.

Sampling procedure and a radio-indicator study of mercury determination in whole blood by using an AMA 254 atomic absorption spectrometer.

A sampling procedure appropriate for the determination of mercury in whole blood was tested by using both inactive controls and a 197Hg mercury radio-indicator. To exclude the influence of the instrumental device (an AMA 254 single-purpose mercury atomic absorption spectrometer) on the determination of mercury in whole blood, the function of the instrument was checked by using rat blood with metabolised 197Hg. The measurement procedure was found to be free of errors. However, the study showed that the material used for the sampling vessels is a crucial parameter for obtaining accurate analytical results. The stability of solutions and samples was tested towards polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) vessels. PE displayed a time-dependent increase in the mercury content both in the samples and in the blood control material. The probable cause of this increase was direct contamination from the material of the vessel and/or diffusion of mercury from the environment through the vessel walls related to a strong complexing affinity of the sample matrix. This assumption was confirmed by supplying the vessels with the complexing agent Na2EDTA (0.05 mol L(-1)). Commercial PP vessels for blood sampling (Sarstedt S-Monovette Metall Analytik) did not give rise to statistically significant variations in mercury content in the samples and blood control material over a 30-day period.

The effect of bromide on the ultrastructure of rat thyrocytes.

Electron microscopic examination of thyroid tissue following administration of bromide to rats showed marked hypertrophy and hyperplasia in the thyrocytes, microfollicular rearrangement and lowered volume of colloid. The luminal surface of the thyrocytes showed increased size and number of microvilli, often filling the microlumen. Most of the nuclei were irregular in shape with unusual incisions and a higher density of chromatin. Proliferation of ER was seen with significantly dilated cisterns containing low electron density material. The Golgi complex was well developed and larger in rats receiving 10 mg Br/l drinking water (16 days) and 100 mg Br/l (16 and 66 days) than in control rats. Granules and small spherical structures (50-100 nm) appeared in the subapical part of the cytoplasm and their number increased in animals after administration of 50 mg Br-/l (16 and 66 days), 100 mg Br-/l (16 and 66 days), 200 and 400 mg Br-/l (133 days). In contrast, their number was reduced in thyrocytes of rats treated with 100 mg Br/l (16, 66 and 133 days). Colloid droplets were only rarely found. There was no significant change in the amount of mitochondria, secondary lysosomes including phagolysosomes. Some thyrocytes showed signs of necrosis in animals following administration of 10 mg Br/l (16 days, 100 and 400 mg Br/l, 133 days). Clusters of thyrocytes with spongy cytoplasm and bizarre shaped nuclei were found in groups treated with 100 mg Br/l, and 400 mg Br-/l (133 days). These changes, with previously published light microscopical, radioanalytical and biochemical findings, confirm the goitrogenic effect of bromide.