Interrelationship between the concentrations of some elements in the organs of Japanese with special reference to selenium-heavy metal relationships.

Multi-element analyses were conducted on internal organs (cerebrum, cerebellum, heart, spleen, liver and kidney) of Japanese obtained from 45 forensic medical autopsy cadavers. Elements analyzed and analytical methods were as follows: Ca, Cd, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Na, P and Zn by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry; total Hg (T-Hg) and inorganic Hg (I-Hg) by cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometry; methyl Hg (MeHg) by gas chromatography; and Se by fluorometry. A significantly positive correlation between Se and T-Hg was observed in kidney, liver, heart and spleen. The T-Hg/Se molar ratio was less than 1 in all the organs examined. The correlation between Zn and Cd was significant in liver and kidney. Multiple regression analyses using Se as a dependent and I-Hg, MeHg, Zn, Cd, Cu as independent variables were conducted on each organ. Inorganic Hg was a significant independent variable in kidney, whereas in liver and spleen it was MeHg. Cadmium was significant in explaining the variations in Se in liver and kidney medulla, indicating Cd-Se co-accumulation in humans.

[1]  C. Elinder,et al.  Cadmium and zinc relationships in kidney cortex, liver, and pancreas. , 1977, Environmental research.

[2]  K. Tsuchiya,et al.  Interrelationships among zinc, copper, lead, and cadmium in food, feces, and organs of humans. , 1978, Environmental health perspectives.

[3]  Watkins Jh.  Fluorometric Determination of Selenium in Biological Material with 2,3-Diaminonaphthalene. , 1966 .

[4]  M. Cherian,et al.  Metallothionein levels in liver and kidney of Canadians--a potential indicator of environmental exposure to cadmium. , 1986, Archives of environmental health.

[5]  Tarja Kari,et al.  Mercury and selenium contents of seals from fresh and brackish waters in finland , 1978, Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology.

[6]  K. Sumino,et al.  Heavy metals in normal Japanese tissues. Amounts of 15 heavy metals in 30 subjects. , 1975, Archives of environmental health.

[7]  P. S. Tjioe,et al.  Mercury and selenium in marine mammals and birds. , 1975, The Science of the total environment.

[8]  C. Tohyama,et al.  The relationship of the increased level of metallothionein with heavy metal levels in the tissue of the harbor seal (Phoca vitulina). , 1986, Ecotoxicology and environmental safety.

[9]  H. Kawamura,et al.  Simultaneous multielement analysis of various human tissues by inductively-coupled plasma atomic-emission spectrometry. , 1986, Talanta.

[10]  T. Hanaichi,et al.  An Association of Mercury with Selenium in Inorganic Mercury Intoxication , 1985, Human Toxicology.

[11]  A. Naganuma,et al.  Body size and organ accumulation of mercury and selenium in young harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) , 1989, Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology.

[12]  T. Kjellström.  Exposure and accumulation of cadmium in populations from Japan, the United States, and Sweden , 1979, Environmental health perspectives.

[13]  L Magos,et al.  Selective atomic-absorption determination of inorganic mercury and methylmercury in undigested biological samples. , 1971, The Analyst.

[14]  K. Tsuchiya,et al.  Variation of cadmium accumulation among Japanese. , 1983, Archives of environmental health.

[15]  R. Norstrom,et al.  Heavy metals and essential elements in livers of the polar bear (Ursus maritimus) in the Canadian Arctic. , 1986, The Science of the total environment.

[16]  P. S. Tjioe,et al.  Mercury-Selenium Correlations in Marine Mammals , 1973, Nature.

[17]  J. Spickett,et al.  Cadmium concentrations in human kidney and liver tissues from Western Australia , 1979, Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology.

[18]  M. Terai,et al.  An Application of Neutron Activation Analysis to Biological Materials. III. Natural Abundance of Small and Micro Amounts of Elements and Their Interactions in Human Tissues , 1979 .

[19]  M. Yukawa,et al.  Distribution of trace elements in the human body determined by neutron activation analysis. , 1980, Archives of environmental health.

[20]  B. E. Guthrie,et al.  Selenium in human tissues from New Zealand. , 1982, Archives of environmental health.

[21]  T. Suzuki,et al.  Mercury concentration in organs of contemporary Japanese. , 1989, Archives of environmental health.

[22]  N Imura,et al.  The applicable condition of Magos' method for mercury measurement under coeixtence of selenium. , 1980, Analytical biochemistry.