Experimental Studies on Mercury Poisoning with the Use of Hg203(NO3)2
II. A study on the distribution of mercury combined with protein in the intracellular granules
1962 Volume 74 Issue 8-9 Pages 701-712
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1962 Volume 74 Issue 8-9 Pages 701-712
This experiment was conducted in order to elucidate the distribution of mercury combined with protein in the intracellular granules in the case of mercury poisoning, one of the most important heavy-metal industrial poisonings that occur quite frequently. For this purpose, radio isotope Hg203(NO3)2 was injected at varying concentration into the dorsal muscle of guinea pigs, and the distribution of mercury combined with protein in the intracellular granules of kidney and liver was studied. The results of observations were as follows.
1. Injected mercury has been found combined with protein of all cell fractions such as nucleus, mitochondria, microsomes, and soluble protein in kidney and liver.
2. Twenty-four hours after the injection of 6, 000, 000 c. p. m./kg of Hg203(NO3)2 (0.13 mg/kg of mercury), the radio activity of mercury combined with protein per 1.0 mg. of the intracellular granules of the kidney in dry weight is distributed in the descending order of soluble protein>microsomes>mitochondria>nucleus.
The distribution of mercury combined with protein in the liver cell fractions proves to be in the descending order of soluble protein>nucleus>microsomes>mitochondria.
3. A lesser dose of the radio active mereury injected, rather than a larger dose of it, showes a higher activity of mercury combined with protein per 1.0 mg of kidney soluble protein in dry weight against the activity of mercury injected. In contrast to this, in the nucleus, mitochondria, and microsomes the distribution of the activity of mercury combined with protein per 1.0 mg of dry weight hardly differ irrespective of the does of mercury injectd.
4. The changes in the order on the distribution of the radioactive mercury combined with protein in the intracellular granules of the kidney and the liver can not be observed by injection of 12, 000, 000 c. p. m./kg of Hg203(No3)2, (0.26 mg/kg of mercury) and 1, 200, 000 c. p. m./kg of Hg203(NO3)2, (0.026 mg/kg of mercury).
