title: Neurotoxicity of metals.
abstract: Metals are frequently used in industry and represent a major source of toxin exposure for workers. For this reason governmental agencies regulate the amount of metal exposure permissible for worker safety. While essential metals serve physiologic roles, metals pose significant health risks upon acute and chronic exposure to high levels. The central nervous system is particularly vulnerable to metals. The brain readily accumulates metals, which under physiologic conditions are incorporated into essential metalloproteins required for neuronal health and energy homeostasis. Severe consequences can arise from circumstances of excess essential metals or exposure to toxic nonessential metal. Herein, we discuss sources of occupational metal exposure, metal homeostasis in the human body, susceptibility of the nervous system to metals, detoxification, detection of metals in biologic samples, and chelation therapeutic strategies. The neurologic pathology and physiology following aluminum, arsenic, lead, manganese, mercury, and trimethyltin exposures are highlighted as classic examples of metal-induced neurotoxicity.
authors.affiliation: Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Pediatric Toxicology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA; The Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA. Electronic address: samuel.w.caito@vanderbilt.edu.
authors.forename: Samuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Caito
authors.affiliation: Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Pediatric Toxicology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA; The Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA; Center in Molecular Toxicology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA; Center for Molecular Neuroscience, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aschner
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000075322:Heavy Metal Poisoning; D006801:Humans; D008670:Metals; D020258:Neurotoxicity Syndromes / Q000209:etiology*; D011041:Poisoning / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D008670:Metals
keywords: aluminum; arsenic; chelation therapy; lead; manganese; mercury; metalloproteins; metals; oxidative stress; reactive oxygen species; trimethyltin