Mercury Exposure and Heart Diseases

Abstract

Environmental contamination has exposed humans to various metal agents, including mercury. It has been determined that mercury is not only harmful to the health of vulnerable populations such as pregnant women and children, but is also toxic to ordinary adults in various ways. For many years, mercury was used in a wide variety of human activities. Nowadays, the exposure to this metal from both natural and artificial sources is significantly increasing. Recent studies suggest that chronic exposure, even to low concentration levels of mercury, can cause cardiovascular, reproductive and developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, immunotoxicity, and carcinogenicity. Possible biological effects of mercury, including the relationship between mercury toxicity and diseases of the cardiovascular system, such as hypertension, coronary heart disease and myocardial infarction, are being studied. As heart rhythm and function are under autonomic nervous system control, it has been hypothesized that the neurotoxic effects of mercury might also impact cardiac autonomic function. Mercury exposure could have a long-lasting effect on cardiac parasympathetic activity and some evidence show that mercury exposure might affect heart rate variability, particularly early exposures in children. The mechanism by which mercury produces toxic effects on the cardiovascular system is not fully elucidated, but this mechanism is believed to involve an increase in oxidative stress. The exposure to mercury increases the production of free radicals, potentially because of the role of mercury in the Fenton reaction and a reduction in the activity of antioxidant enzymes, such as glutathione peroxidase. In this review we report an overview on the toxicity of mercury and focus our attention on the toxic effects on the cardiovascular system.

Blood mercury concentrations are associated with decline in liver function in an elderly population: a panel study

“…A recent review suggested that mercury cause neurologic disorders [ 9 ], cardiovascular disease [ 10 ], and asthma in children [ 11 ]. In addition to evidence of mercury effects on various organs, some animal studies have suggested that acute mercury exposure can damage the liver [ 12 , 13 ].…”

Human Health and Ocean Pollution

“…An expert panel convened by the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2011 concluded that methylmercury is directly linked to acute myocardial infarction and to increases in cardiovascular risk factors such as oxidative stress, atherosclerosis, decreased heart rate variability, and to a certain degree, hypertension [ 76 ]. Likewise, a 2017 systematic review found that methylmercury enhances production of free radicals resulting in a long-lasting range of effects on cardiac parasympathetic activity that increase risk for hypertension, myocardial infarction, and death [ 77 ]. Further research has confirmed these findings [ 78 79 ].…”

3D Nanoarchitecture of Polyaniline-MoS2 Hybrid Material for Hg(II) Adsorption Properties

“…Human exposure to metal ions, including Hg(II), can occur during occupational activities, mainly through inhalation and dermal routes in mining and industry, and over a lifetime, from water and food consumption and exposure to soil, dust and air [ 4 , 5 ]. Long-term consumption of drinking water contaminated with Hg(II) can be associated with increased risk of cancers, reproductive problems, detrimental effects on the human brain, blood circulation, immune and reproductive systems and cardiovascular disease [ 2 , 6 , 7 ]. Therefore, to minimize these risks, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has set the maximum permissible limit of 2 µg L −1 [ 8 ].…”