Distribution of ²⁰³Hg Labeled Mercury Compounds in Adult and Pregnant Mice Determined by Whole-Body Autoradiography

Abstract

The comparative study on the distribution of mercuric chloride (MC), phenylmercuric chloride (PhMC), ethylmercuric chloride (EtMC), and n-butylmercuric chloride (BuMC) injected intraperitoneally or subcutaneously to adult and pregnant mice was carried out by means of whole body autoradiographic method.
The remarkable accumulation of mercury in renal cortex was found for all of compounds tested, and in the case of alkyl mercury compounds, the accumulation of mercury in the liver, lung, muscle, etc, was observed more highly and long lasting than that of MC and PhMC.
It was suggested from the experimental results with pregnant mice that alkylmercury compounds passed the placental barrier more easily than MC and PhMC, and after passage of the placental barrier, mercury penetrated into the central nervous system of fetus more easily than in the case of adult mice.