title: S-mercuration of cellular proteins by methylmercury and its toxicological implications.
abstract: The accumulation of methylmercury (MeHg) through the daily consumption of large predatory fish poses potential health risks. MeHg has been found to cause Minamata disease, but the full nature of MeHg toxicity remains unclear. Because of its chemical properties, MeHg covalently binds to cellular proteins through their reactive thiols, referred to as S-mercuration, resulting in the formation of protein adducts. In this review, we summarize how the S-mercuration of cellular proteins could be involved in the major mechanisms that have been suggested to underlie MeHg toxicity. Additionally, we introduce our attempts to identify cases of S-mercuration for the research to reveal the true nature of MeHg toxicity.
authors.affiliation: Doctoral Program in Biomedical Sciences, Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba.
authors.forename: Hironori
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kanda
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shinkai
authors.forename: Yoshito
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kumagai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001119:Arginase; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D003545:Cysteine / Q000378:metabolism; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D005982:Glutathione Transferase; D006801:Humans; D007064:L-Iditol 2-Dehydrogenase; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000633:toxicity*; D008870:Microtubules; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D011485:Protein Binding; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds / Q000378:metabolism; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase; D014404:Tubulin
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds; D014404:Tubulin; D018698:Glutamic Acid; D007064:L-Iditol 2-Dehydrogenase; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase; D005982:Glutathione Transferase; C574619:ARG1 protein, human; D001119:Arginase; D003545:Cysteine; D002118:Calcium