Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-zzh7m Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-26T16:56:42.977Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The biochemistry of toxic elements

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 March 2009

J. M. Wood ,
Y. -T. Fanchiang  and
W. P. Ridley
J. M. Wood
Affiliation:
Freshwater Biological Institute, Department of Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota, P.O. Box 100, Navarre, Minnesota 55392, U.S.A.
Y. -T. Fanchiang
Affiliation:
Freshwater Biological Institute, Department of Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota, P.O. Box 100, Navarre, Minnesota 55392, U.S.A.
W. P. Ridley
Affiliation:
Freshwater Biological Institute, Department of Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota, P.O. Box 100, Navarre, Minnesota 55392, U.S.A.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

In 1968 it was discovered that mercury could be biomethylated to give methylmercury as the major product (Wood, Kennedy & Rosen, 1968; Jensen & Jernelöv, 1969). This discovery has proved to be important in two respects: (a) it provided us with the recognition that biological systems are capable of synthesizing very toxic organometallic compounds from relatively innocuous inorganic precursors, and (b) it opened the door to the study of organometallic compounds produced by biological mechanisms in the aqueous environment.

Type
Research Article
Information
Quarterly Reviews of Biophysics , Volume 11 , Issue 4 , November 1978 , pp. 467 - 479
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1978

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Agnes, G., Hill, H. A. O., Pratt, J. M., Ridsdale, S. C., Kennedy, F. S.Williams, R. J. P. (1971). B12-dependent methyl-transfer to metals. Biochim. biophys. Acta 252, 207–210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brinkman, R. E., Iverson, W. P. & Blair, W. R. (1976). Approaches to the study of microbial transformations of metals. Proc. 3rd Int. Biodegradation Symp. (ed. Sharply, J. M. and Kaplan, A. M.), pp. 919–936. London: Applied Science Publishers.Google Scholar
Challenger, F. (1945). Biological methylation. Chem. Rev. 36, 315–362.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Desimone, R. E., Penley, M. W., Charbonneau, L., Smith, S. G., Wood, J. M., Hill, H. A. O., Pratt, J., Ridsdale, S. & Williams, R. J. P. (1973). The kinetics and mechanism of methyl and ethyl-transfer to mercuric ion. Biochim. biophys. Acta 304, 851–863.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
D'itri, F., Andren, A., Doherty, W. & Wood, J. M. (1977). STAEP Report on Mercury. National Research Council, Environmental Research Assessment Committee. Ed. King, A., U.S. National Academy of Sciences. (1978) Washington D.C. 1–185.Google Scholar
Dizikes, L. J., Ridley, W. P. & Wood, J. M. (1978). A mechanism for the biomethylation of tin by reductive Co—C bond cleavage in alkylcobalamins. J. Am. chem. Soc. 100, 1010–1012.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Espenson, J. H. & Seelers, T. D. (1974). Free radical reactions with methylcobalamin. J. Am. chem. Soc. 96, 94–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frick, T., Francia, M. D. & Wood, J. M. (1976). Mechanism for the interaction of thiols with methylcobalamin. Biochim. biophys. Acta 428, 808–818.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jarvie, A. W. P., Markall, R. N. & Potter, H. R. (1975). Chemical alkylation of lead. Nature, Lond. 255, 217–218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jensen, S. & Jernelöv, A. (1969). Biological methylation of mercury in aquatic organisms. Nature, Lond. 223, 753–754.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McBride, B. C. & Cullen, W. R. The biosynthesis of methylarsenic compounds. J. Organometallic Chem. (In the Press.)Google Scholar
McBride, B. C. & Wolfe, R. S. (1973). Biosynthesis of dimethylarsine by methanogenic bacteria. Biochemistry, N.Y. 10, 4312–4318.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maddock, B. G. & Taylor, D. (1977). The acute toxicity and bioaccumulation of some lead alkyl compounds in marine animals. Proc. Int. Conf. on Lead in the Marine Environment (ed. Branica, M.). Yugoslavia: Rovinj.Google Scholar
Pearson, R. G. (1963). Hard and soft acids and bases. J. Am. chem. Soc. 85, 3533–3539.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ridley, W. P., Dizikes, L. J., Cheh, A. & Wood, J. M. (1977 a). Recent studies on biomethylation and demethylation of toxic elements. Environ. Health Perspect. 19, 43–46.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ridley, W. P., Dizikes, L. J. & Wood, J. M. (1977 b). Biomethylation of toxic elements in the environment. Science, N. Y. 197, 329–332.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schmidt, U. & Huber, F. (1975). Methylation of organo lead and lead(II) compounds to (CH3)4Pb by microorganisms. Nature, Lond. 259, 157–158.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scovell, W. H. (1974). The mechanism for B12-dependent methyl-transfer to palladium. J. Am. chem. Soc. 96, 3451–3456.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Segall, H. J. & Wood, J. M. (1974). Reaction of methylmercury with plasmalogens suggests a mechanism for the neurotoxicity of metalalkyls. Nature, Lond. 248, 456–458.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wong, P. T. S., Chan, Y. K. & Luxon, P. L. (1975) Methylation of lead in the environment. Nature, Lond. 253, 263–264.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wood, J. M. (1974). Biological cycles for toxic elements in the environment. Science, N.Y. 183, 1049–1054.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wood, J. M. (1976 a). Les métaux toxiques dans l'environment. LaRecherche 70, 711–716.Google Scholar
Wood, J. M. (1976 b). Biochemical and Biophysical Perspectives in Marine Biology, vol. 3 (ed. Malins, D. C. and Sargent, J. R.), chapter 7, pp. 407–431.Google Scholar
Wood, J. M., Cheh, A., Dizikes, L. J., Ridley, W. P., Rakow, S. & Lakwicz, J. R. (1978). Biological cycles for toxic elements. Fedn Proc. Fedn Am. Socs exp. Biol. 37, 16–28.Google Scholar
Wood, J. M. & Goldberg, E. D. (1977). Impact of metals on the biosphere. Dahiem Konferenzen Global Chemical Cycles and Their Alterations by Man (ed. Stumm, W.), chapter 10, pp. 137–154. Berlin: Abakon Verlagsgesellschaft.Google Scholar
Wood, J. M., Kennedy, F. S. & Rosen, C. G. (1968). The synthesis of methylmercury compounds by methanogenic bacteria. Nature, Lond. 220, 173–175.CrossRefGoogle Scholar