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Title: Arsenic-Selenium And Mercury-Selenium Bonds in Biology

Journal Article · · Coord.Chem.Rev.251:234-254,2007

When rabbits are simultaneous injected with arsenite and selenite or mercuric chloride and selenite, compounds with As-Se and Hg-Se bonds are formed in the bloodstream. The combined application of liquid chromatography-inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) has revealed the molecular structure of these toxicologically important compounds and provided insight into their mechanism of formation. The glutathione-driven formation of these compounds in the bloodstream fundamentally links the metabolism of the environmental pollutants mercuric mercury and arsenite with that of the essential ultratrace element selenium, which establishes a feasible mechanism by which the chronic low-level exposure of various human populations to these toxic metals and metalloid compounds is linked to human diseases, including cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.

Research Organization:
SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC02-76SF00515
OSTI ID:
909797
Report Number(s):
SLAC-REPRINT-2007-098; CCHRAM; TRN: US200723%%45
Journal Information:
Coord.Chem.Rev.251:234-254,2007, Vol. 251; ISSN 0010-8545
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English