Direct and indirect impacts on human neurocognition, resulting from methylmercury poisoning and its health problems for public health

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v9i12.8005

Keywords:

Intoxication; Mercury; Methylmercury; Neurocognition.

Abstract

Mercury (Hg) is a liquid, toxic, heavy, silvery-white and odorless metal. Its use is identified by several ancient peoples, with its use evidenced mainly for the extraction of gold, alchemy, among others. This metal can be presented in several chemical forms: metallic, ionic Hg +, Hg ++ and organic compounds, highly volatile and soluble in water and lipids; factor that intensifies contamination by transposition through pulmonary alveoli and the blood-brain barrier, as well as fixation and damage to the nervous system, resulting in great reactivity with sulfhydryl groups, inhibition of several enzymes and autoimmune action. Thus, the objective of this study is to describe the main direct and indirect impacts on human neurocognition, resulting from poisoning by mercury (methylmercury). It was possible to verify that in the literature, many studies demonstrate that women, children and individuals who deal directly with mercury display sources, are the main targets for this intoxication. In addition, it can be seen that neurological damage is serious and can even reach the fetus, by breaking barriers in the placenta. Thus, studies that demonstrate and emphasize the neurodegenerative effects caused by high doses of mercury in the body are of fundamental importance, in addition to strengthening information about this metal, which is very harmful to human health.

Author Biography

Keulle Oliveira da Souza, Universidade Federal do Pará

Mestranda vinculada ao Programa de Pós-Graduação em Estudos Antrópicos na Amazônia - PPGEAA / UFPA (2019). Especialista em Gestão e Docência no Ensino Superior pela Faculdade Atual - FAAT / AP (2014). Licenciatura e Bacharela em Ciências Sociais pela UNIFAP (2013). Professora na Universidade Paulista (2016-2017) ministrando diversas disciplinas nos cursos de Serviço Social, Administração e Gestão de Recursos Humanos. Participei desta Instituição de Ensino Superior, da Organização de Diversos Eventos Acadêmicos, dos seguintes cursos em que atuei, tais como: Semanas Acadêmicas; Momentos de Recepção e Orientação aos Calouros; Semana do Assistente Social. Integração dos Grupos de Pesquisa: Saúde, Sociedade e Ambiente (GPSSA / UFPA) e Laboratório de Educação, Meio Ambiente e Saúde - LEMAS / UFPA. Sou integrante dos projetos de pesquisa: Implantação de grandes projetos de desenvolvimento na Amazônia Brasileira: análises de ações antrópicas e suas implicações socioambientais e de saúde na população e Fatores Antrópicos e Ambientais Associados à Anemia Ferropriva e Hipovitaminoses em Crianças Residentes em Comunidades Ribeirinhas da Cidade de Belém-PA. De 2010 a 2015 fui Bolsista Voluntário no Grupo de Pesquisa

References

Bacila, D. M., Fischer, K. & Kolicheski, M. B. (2014). Estudo sobre reciclagem de lâmpadas fluorescentes. Eng. Sanit. Ambient, 19:21-30.

Bose-O'reilly, S., Macarty. K.M., Steckling, N. & Lettmeier B. (2010). Mercury exposure and children's health. Curr Probl Pediatr Adolesc Health Care, 40(8), 186-215.

Camara, V. M., et al. (2009) Confiabilidade de questionário de conhecimento sobre exposição ao mercúrio na produção de ouro. Rev. Saúde Pública, 43(2), 373-376.

Cardoso, N. A., et al (2014). Zumbido em uma população ribeirinha exposta ao metilmercúrio. Audiology Communication Research, 19(1), 40-44.

Carocci, A., Rovito, N., Sinicropi, M. S., & Genchi, G. (2014). Mercury Toxicity and Neurodegenerative Effects. In D. M. Whitacre (Ed.), Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology,229, 1-18.

Carvalho, C. F. (2013) Efeitos Neuropsicológicos da Exposição ao Manganês em Crianças. Dissertação de Mestrado. Universidade Federal da Bahia.

Castoldi, A. F., et al. (2008). Neurodevelopmental toxicity of methylmercury: Laboratory animal data and their contribution to human risk assessment. Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, 51, 215–229.

Ceccatelli, S., Zhang, C. T. Q. & Chen, M. (2007). Mechanisms and modulation of neural cell damage induced by oxidative stress. Physiology & Behavior, 92:87–92.

De Capitani, E. M. et al (2009). Dermatite de contato por mercúrio elementar com reação a distância. An. Bras. Dermatol, 84(1), 75-77.

Dutra, M. S., et al. (2016) Effects of prenatal exposure to methylmercury in children auditory processing. Cadernos de Saúde Coletiva, 24(1), 70-76.

Drum, D. A. (2009). Are toxic biometals destroying your children’s future? Biometals, 22, 697–700.

Faria, M. M. (2003). Mercuralismo metálico crônico ocupacional. Rev. Saúde Pública, 37(1), 116-127.

Farina, M., Avila, D. S., Rocha, J. B., & Aschner, M. (2013). Metals, Oxidative Stress and Neurodegeneration: A focus on Iron, Manganese and Mercury. Neurochem Int, 62(5), 575-594.

Gil, A.C.(2008). Métodos e Técnicas de Pesquisa Social. São Paulo: Atlas

Gomes, A. L., et al. (2009). A first evaluation on the use of Ardea albus feathers as bioindicators of mercury burden in Amazonian ecosystems. Acta Amaz, 39(4), 969-971.

Huang, C. F., Hsu, C. J., Liu, S. H. & Lin-Shiau, S. Y. (2008). Neurotoxicological mechanism of methylmercury induced by low-dose and long-term exposure in mice: Oxidative stress and down-regulated Na+/K+-ATPase involved. Toxicology Letters,176, 188–197.

Hoshino, A. C. H. et al (2012). A systematic review of mercury ototoxicity. Cad. Saúde Pública, 28(7), 1239-1248.

Khoury, E. D. T., Souza, G. S., Silveira, L. C. L., Costa, C. A., Araújo, A. A., Pinheiro, M. C. N. (2013) Neurological manifestations in riverine populations from areas exposed to mercury in the Brazilian Amazon. Cad. Saúde Pública, 29(11), 2307-2318.

Kütter, V. T., et al. (2015) Mercury bioaccumulation in fishes of a paddy field in Southern of Brazil. Acta Limnol. Bras, 27(2), 191-201.

Lima, E. R. Z, Colon, J. C. & Souza, M. T. (2009). Alterações auditivas em trabalhadores expostos a mercúrio. Rev. CEFAC,11(1), 1516-1846.

Loezer, Y. P., Graciani, F. S. & Ferreira, G. L. B. V. (2016). Aspectos toxicológicos e legislação internacional referente ao uso do mercúrio. Fórum Ambiental da Alta Paulista, 12(4).

Liu, J., Goyer, R. A., & Waalkes, M. P. (2007). Toxic Effects of Metals. In C. D. Klaassen, L. J. Casarett, J. Doull, & C. D. Klaassen (Ed.), Toxicology The Basic Science of Poisons (7a ed.), 931-979.

Oliveira, R. C., Dórea J. G., Bernardi J. V. E., Bastos, W. R., Almeida, R. & Manzatto, A. G.(2010). Fish consumption by traditional subsistence villagers of the Rio Madeira (Amazon): impact on hair mercury. Ann Hum Biol, 37(5), 629-42.

Michigan Department of Community Health. (MDCH) 2009. Technical support document for a methylmercury reference dose as a basis for fish consumption screening values (FCSVs). Lansing: Department H.E.W. Office of Toxic Substance and Disease.

Morales, F. I. & Reyes, G.R. (2003). Mercurio y salud en la odontología. Rev. Saúde Pública,37(2), 263-265.

Ohlander, J., et al. (2016). Mercury and neuromotor function among children in a rural town in Chile. International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, 22(1), 27-35.

Pereira, A. S., et al. (2018). Metodologia da pesquisa científica [e-book] (UAB/NTE/UFSM, Ed.) Recuperado de https://repositorio.ufsm.br/bitstream/handle/1/15824/Lic_Co mputacao_Metodologia-Pesquisa-Cientifica.pdf?sequence=1.

Sheehan, M. C., Burke, T. A., Navas-Acien, A., Breysse, P. N., McGready, J., & Fox, M. A. (2014). Global methylmercury exposure from seafood consumption and risk of development neurotoxicity: a systematic review. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 92, 254-269.

Silbergeld, E. K. et al.(2002). Mercury exposure and malaria prevalence among gold miners in Pará, Brazil. Rev. Soc. Bras. Med. Trop, 35(5):421-429.

Smetana S., Khalef, S., Zaidel, L., Bar-Khayim Y., & Birk Y. (1996). Increased urinary trypsin-inhibitory activity in mercury chloride induced nephrotoxicity in Wistar rats. Ren Fail,18(2), 201-209.

World Health Organization (WHO) 1991. Inorganic mercury.(Envirommental Health criteria 118 Geneva.

Xavier, O. L. P., et al (2013). Contribuição para o estabelecimento de níveis de referência para a concentração de mercúrio no sangue de crianças na cidade do Rio de Janeiro. Cadernos de Saúde Coletiva, 21(2), 182-187.

Zavariz, C., & Glina, D. M. R. (1992). Avaliação clínico-neuro-psicológica de trabalhadores expostos a mercúrio metálico em indústria de lâmpadas elétricas. Rev. Saúde Pública, 26(5), 356-365.

Downloads

Published

28/12/2020

How to Cite

MOREIRA, E. C. de M.; CRUZ NETO, M. S. da .; FECURY, A. A.; DENDASCK, C. V.; DIAS, C. A. G. de M. .; ARAÚJO, M. H. M. de; MORAES, J. S.; SANTOS, D. L. .; SOUZA, K. O. da; SILVA, I. R. da; PIRES, Y. P.; OLIVEIRA, E. de . Direct and indirect impacts on human neurocognition, resulting from methylmercury poisoning and its health problems for public health. Research, Society and Development, [S. l.], v. 9, n. 12, p. e4409128005, 2020. DOI: 10.33448/rsd-v9i12.8005. Disponível em: https://rsdjournal.org/index.php/rsd/article/view/8005. Acesso em: 19 apr. 2024.

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 12

Section

Health Sciences

License

Copyright (c) 2020 Elisângela Claudia de Medeiros Moreira; Manoel Samuel da Cruz Neto; Amanda Alves Fecury; Carla Viana Dendasck; Claudio Alberto Gellis de Mattos Dias; Maria Helena Mendonça de Araújo; Jones Souza Moraes; Deyvison Luz Santos; Keulle Oliveira da Souza; Iracely Rodrigues da Silva; Yomara Pinheiro Pires; Euzébio de Oliveira

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

1) Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

2) Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

3) Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.