Absorption of mercuric sulphide following oral administration in mice

Yeoh, T. S.; Lee, A.S.; Lee, H.S.

doi:10.1016/0300-483x(86)90108-3

Cited by 32 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…The cell loss in Purkinje layer (C; HgS 1.0 g/kg for 7 consecutive days, magnification ×200) is distinct as compared with those of HgS-treated (B; 0.1 g/kg for 7 consecutive days, magnification ×200) and control (A; magnification ×200) which remained intact in Purkinje cell layer (arrow) after H&E staining (scale bar = 500 µm) and is generally considered to be less toxic in vivo (Sin and Teh 1992). Recently, some reports suggested that HgS can be absorbed and accumulated in the kidney and liver following oral administration of cinnabar (a naturally occurring HgS used as a sedative in Chinese medicine) or HgS (Yeoh et al 1986). However, whether HgS can be accumulated in the brain is still not reported.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…For example, methyl mercury (MeHg) is more toxic and more permeable to blood-brain barrier than mercuric chloride (HgCl 2 ). Although mercuric sulfide (HgS) is insoluble in water and is generally considered to be less toxic in vivo, Yeoh et al (1986) suggested that HgS could be absorbed and accumulated in the kidney and liver following oral administration of HgS. There are only a few reports on neuro-otological disturbances caused by chronic poisoning by MeHg (Wassick and Yonovitz 1985).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Neurotoxicity of mercury sulfide in the vestibular ocular reflex system of guinea pigs

Chuu

Young

Liu

et al. 2001

Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Archives of Pharmacology

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A traditional Chinese mineral medicine, cinnabar, naturally occurring mercuric sulfide (HgS), is still occasionally prescribed, but the neurotoxic effects of HgS have not been elucidated. In this paper, an animal model of the purified HgS intoxication was established in guinea pigs in order to study neurotoxicity and pathophysiology of the vestibular ocular reflex system (VOR). Guinea pigs were dosed with HgS by gastric gavage (0.01, 0.1 and 1.0 g/kg per day) for 7 consecutive days. By means of caloric testing coupled with the electronystagmographic (ENG) recording in guinea pigs, we have found that HgS at a dose of 0.1 g/kg induced reversible caloric hypofunction pattern and at a higher dose of 1.0 g/kg induced irreversible hypofunction of caloric test. Monitoring the mercury contents of various tissues (blood, kidney, liver and cerebellum) by continuous flow and cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) revealed that a certain amount of HgS could be absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and was detectable in these tissues. In addition to the induced dysfunction of VOR system, HgS also caused disturbance of motor performance in guinea pigs. In enzyme assay, Na+/K+-ATPase activity of cerebellum was also significantly inhibited by HgS. Morphological studies showed partial cell loss only in the cerebellar Purkinje cell layer, but not in the granule cell layer, nor in the vestibular labyrinth. All of these findings suggest that cerebellar Purkinje cells are the sensitive target site responsible for HgS-inducing dysfunctions of both VOR system and the motor performance in guinea pigs. Thus, it is concluded that caloric test coupled with ENG recording in VOR system is certainly a sensitive biomarker for monitoring the neurotoxicity of HgS.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Neurotoxicity of mercury sulfide in the vestibular ocular reflex system of guinea pigs

Chuu

Young

Liu

et al. 2001

Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Archives of Pharmacology

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“…Oral administration of powered cinnabar or mercury sulfide to mice resulted in 10-to 100-fold less tissue mercury accumulation as compared to the similar dose given as mercuric chloride either acutely (21), or chronically (18). When powdered cinnabar or mercury sulfide-containing diet was given to mice for 5 days, less than 0.02% of the dose was found in the kidney and liver (22). In general, bioavailability of cinnabar is 30-to 60-fold less than mercuric chloride (23).…”

Section: Absorptionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Mercury in Traditional Medicines: Is Cinnabar Toxicologically Similar to Common Mercurials?

Liu

Shi²,

Yu³

et al. 2008

Exp Biol Med (Maywood)

195

153

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Mercury is a major toxic metal ranking top in the Toxic Substances List. Cinnabar (contains mercury sulfide) has been used in traditional medicines for thousands years as an ingredient in various remedies, and 40 cinnabar-containing traditional medicines are still used today. Little is known about toxicology profiles or toxicokinetics of cinnabar and cinnabar-containing traditional medicines, and the high mercury content in these Chinese medicines raises justifiably escalations of public concern. This minireview searched the available database of cinnabar, compared cinnabar with common mercurials, such as mercury vapor, inorganic mercury, and organic mercury, and discusses differences in their bioavailability, disposition, and toxicity. The analysis showed that cinnabar is insoluble and poorly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. Absorbed mercury from cinnabar is mainly accumulated in kidney, resembling the disposition pattern of inorganic mercury. Heating cinnabar results in release of mercury vapor, which in turn can produce toxicity similar to inhalation of these vapors. The doses of cinnabar required to produce neurotoxicity are thousands 1000 times higher than methyl mercury. Following long-term use of cinnabar, renal dysfunction may occur. Dimercaprol and succimer are effective chelation therapies for general mercury intoxication including cinnabar. Pharmacology studies of cinnabar suggest sedative and hypnotic effects, but the therapeutic basis of cinnabar is still not clear. In summary, cinnabar is chemically inert with a relatively low toxic potential when taken orally. In risk assessment, cinnabar is less toxic than many other forms of mercury, but the rationale for its inclusion in traditional Chinese medicines remains to be fully justified.

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“…Its major component is a-mercury sulphide (a-HgS) [3], almost insoluble in water (solubility product lgK sp = −52.03). However, animal experiments suggested that [4,5], oral cinnabar could be absorbed via the gastrointestinal tract, and the amount of mercury absorbed was much greater than theoretical values calculated by the solubility product. Previous research on the dissolution of processed cinnabar showed that cinnabar could dissolve in artificial gastric juice in the form of soluble mercuric salt [6]; however, cinnabar hardly dissolves in artificial intestinal juice.…”

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confidence: 87%

In vitro investigation on cinnabar dissolution

et al. 2007

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To study the effects of different chemical factors in the gastrointestinal tract, i.e. pH, proteins, amino acids, ionic strength and Na 2 S, on the dissolution of cinnabar. The content of the total mercury in various dissolutions of cinnabar was analyzed by UV/VIS Spectrophotometer. Laser Particle Size Analyzer measured the particle distributions in the dissolution of cinnabar. The chemical species of dissolved substance of cinnabar in the presence of Na 2 S were determined using ESI-MS. The results indicate that the solubility of cinnabar could be increased significantly in the presence of Na 2 S/S 0 , and strong acidic pH, respectively. While the influence of thiol amino acid on promoting dissolution remains relatively low. Cinnabar did not dissolve in the form of nanoparticle. It is postulated that cinnabar could be dissolved in the gastrointestinal tract in various forms of sulfur-containing mercury complexes.Cinnabar is an important constituent of Chinese traditional medicine used as a tranquilizer for more than two thousands years. The molecular mechanism of its pharmacological effects has not been clarified yet. Recently, the toxicity of cinnabar earned increasing attention [1,2]. The active components related to either pharmacological or toxicological action of cinnabar still remain unclear. It is necessary to investigate the potential of the dissolution and absorption mechanism of cinnabar in the gastrointestinal tract.Cinnabar is a naturally occurring mercury sulfide. Its major component is a-mercury sulphide (a-HgS) [3], almost insoluble in water (solubility product lgK sp = −52.03). However, animal experiments suggested that [4,5], oral cinnabar could be absorbed via the gastrointestinal tract, and the amount of mercury absorbed was much greater than theoretical values calculated by the solubility product. Previous research on the dissolution of processed cinnabar showed that cinnabar could dissolve in artificial gastric juice in the form of soluble mercuric salt [6]; however, cinnabar hardly dissolves in artificial intestinal juice. It has also been reported [7] that cinnabar could form complexes with cysteine and glutathione (GSH) and turn into relatively stable coordination complexes in vivo. In addition, environmental chemistry researches revealed that mercury could migrate in the form of mercuric polysulfide complexes extensively in nature [8−10]. The results above provided a new explication for the study on the dissolution of cinnabar.For further research on cinnabar dissolution upon oral administration, it is necessary to compare chemical factors in the gastrointestinal tract to postulate the dissolving forms of cinnabar in vivo. Therefore, we investigated the solubility of cinnabar in different pH, ion strength, amino acids, proteins and sulfide solutions in comparison with that of pure mercury sulphide. The results indicated that dissolved components of cinnabar may include Hg(SH) + , HgS(OH) − , HgS 2 (OH) − , HgS 3 (OH) − in intestinal environment and probably Hg 2 SOH + in gastric environm...

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Absorption of mercuric sulphide following oral administration in mice

Cited by 32 publications

References 2 publications

Neurotoxicity of mercury sulfide in the vestibular ocular reflex system of guinea pigs

Neurotoxicity of mercury sulfide in the vestibular ocular reflex system of guinea pigs

Mercury in Traditional Medicines: Is Cinnabar Toxicologically Similar to Common Mercurials?

In vitro investigation on cinnabar dissolution

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