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Health effects of ingestion of mercury-polluted urban soil: an animal experiment

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Abstract

Rio Grande, the southernmost Brazilian port and industrial center, is marked by mercury-polluted ground cover. This pollution varies spatially, with levels exceeding 1,000 μg kg−1 in 30% of the urban territory. The risk of Hg impact as a result of deliberate and involuntary geophagy is increased by restrained urban conditions in combination with the large proportion of the population living at low-income levels. Laboratory tests have demonstrated that ingestion of Hg-polluted soil by rats results in significant alterations in animal health such as stagnation in body weight increase, and significant mercury accumulation in the liver and kidney. The consumption of Hg-contaminated urban soil also provoked changes in hematological profiles of experimental animals by increasing the number of platelets. The present study indicates the potential for the local population of Rio Grande living in mercury-polluted districts, specifically young children, to experience health disturbances.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by a grant from the Brazilian National Research Council (CNPq).The manuscript has greatly benefited from reviews by anonymous reviewer.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Pharmacology and Toxicological Assays, Institute of Biology Science, Federal University of Rio Grande, Av. Italia km-08, Campus Carreiros, Rio Grande, RS, CEP 96201-900, Brazil

    Ana Luiza Muccillo–Baisch, Daniela Carrazzoni, Maria Cristina Flores Soares & Gianni Peraza Goulart

  2. Oceanography Institute, Laboratory of Geological Oceanography, Federal University of Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Nicolai Mirlean & Paulo Baisch

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  1. Ana Luiza Muccillo–Baisch
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  5. Gianni Peraza Goulart
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  6. Paulo Baisch
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Correspondence to Nicolai Mirlean.

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Muccillo–Baisch, A.L., Mirlean, N., Carrazzoni, D. et al. Health effects of ingestion of mercury-polluted urban soil: an animal experiment. Environ Geochem Health 34, 43–53 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-011-9389-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-011-9389-z

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