title: Mercury and selenium interactions in human blood in the Wanshan mercury mining area, China.
abstract: Human blood mercury (Hg), selenium (Se) and other trace element levels were investigated in the Wanshan mercury mining area. Residents living near the mine waste heaps had significantly elevated blood Hg, Se and arsenic (As) levels, which indicates the impact from Hg mining and smelting activities. Rice samples showed high Se levels, as 72.6% of total Se intake comes from rice consumption. The means of the Se:total Hg (THg) and Se:methyl Hg (MeHg) molar ratios were 60.7±27.1 and 110±53.6 respectively. Blood Se:Hg molar ratios were negatively correlated with blood Hg levels. 80.2% of the study population had blood THg levels that exceeded the 5.8μg/L regulation level set by the USEPA, which indicated the risk of Hg exposure. On the other hand, the blood Se levels were within a safe-level range, and dietary Se intake protected local residents who suffered from Hg exposure.
authors: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China.
authors: Ping
authors: P
authors: Li
authors: Multidiscipline Initiative Center and CAS Key Laboratory of Nuclear Analytical Techniques, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors: Yufeng
authors: Y
authors: Li
authors: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China. Electronic address: fengxinbin@vip.skleg.cn.
authors: Xinbin
authors: X
authors: Feng
mesh_terms: D002681:China; D004347:Drug Interactions; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000097:blood*; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008628:Mercury / Q000097:blood*; D008906:Mining; D012275:Oryza / Q000737:chemistry; D012643:Selenium / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D008628:Mercury; D012643:Selenium
keywords: Blood; Exposure route; Interaction; Mercury; Risk assessment; Selenium