Abstract
The main source of mercury (Hg) exposure in the general population is fish. Another possible source is dental amalgam. Here, we compare the levels of Hg and selenium (Se) in samples of maternal and fetal origin collected shortly after childbirth of healthy postpartum women in the coastal (n = 96) and continental (n = 185) areas of Croatia related to maternal seafood/fish consumption. We also evaluated Hg concentrations and maternal serum metallothionein (MT2) concentrations in relation to the number of dental amalgam fillings, and MT2A-5A/G (rs28366003) polymorphism. The levels of Hg and Se in maternal hair and blood/serum, placenta and cord blood/serum increased in relation to increasing fish consumption with the highest values in subjects from the coast. The concentrations of each element and between elements correlated across the matrices. Increasing amalgam number correlated linearly with increased Hg levels in maternal and cord serum and was not associated with serum MT2. No association of MT2A-5A/G polymorphism and Hg or Se levels were found. The results confirmed higher fish consumption in coastal vs. continental Croatia and increases of both Hg and Se related to fish consumption in all analyzed samples. Increased blood Hg reflected the predominant MeHg share from seafood, while increased serum Hg matched exposure from dental amalgams.
Highlights
Mercury (Hg) is a pervasive pollutant and toxicant of major concern for humans and wildlife
Seafood intake, and data on newborns and placenta are presented for the cohorts from the continental (n = 185) and coastal area (n = 96), with the available data on Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) MT2A-5A/G frequency (n = 268) and the number of dental amalgams (n = 208) in participants from both study areas
We found no differences in Hg levels in either maternal or cord whole blood between the groups with and without amalgam fillings, but the results of multiple regression analysis showed that the number of dental amalgams, if >3, was a determinant of Hg levels in maternal blood, while there was no influence on Hg in hair, placenta, and cord blood
Summary
Mercury (Hg) is a pervasive pollutant and toxicant of major concern for humans and wildlife It is released in the environment via both natural and anthropogenic sources, and primary anthropogenic emissions (without re-emission processes) greatly exceed natural geogenic sources [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11]. The general population is exposed to Hg mainly by seafood consumption, including fish, which is a source of highly toxic MeHg that bioaccumulates in marine organisms during the biogeochemical cycle of Hg. fish is a highly nutritional staple food and a rich source of the essential ultra-trace element selenium (Se) [8,19,20,21,22]. Similar geographic differences in seafood (fish) consumption are known in other parts of the world, such as the United States, where the highest fish consumption was confirmed in coastal areas and the Northeast census region [24]
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