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Abstract

l-Octanol/water partition coefficients, mercury concentration in octanol divided by mercury concentration in water, provide a simple but limited model system for aspects of the biological behavior of methylmercury and commonly used organomercury medicinal compounds. In an octanol/water system some widely studied antidotes for mercury poisoning at least partly displace the biological thiols L-cysteine and glutathione from binding to methylmercury at pH 6.9. Addition of the antidote meso-dimercaptosuccinic acid to methylmercury in the presence of glutathione results in formation of metallic mercury. For organomercury (RHg) derivatives of L-cysteine and glutathione, octanol/water partition coefficients fol1ow the order R = Ph > Et > Me. An exceptional1y high value for
diphenylmercury, compared with PhHg derivatives of L-cysteine and glutathione, is consistent with reported results of the distribution of mercury compounds in rats.
Ethylmercury(II) is partly displaced from thimerosal by L-cysteine and glutathione in the octanol/water system, indicating that the active form of thimerosal in vivo may involve binding of ethylmercury to biological ligands.

Item Type:	Article
Authors/Creators:	Canty, AJ and Moors, PW and Deacon, GB
Journal or Publication Title:	Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry
ISSN:	Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry
DOI / ID Number:	10.1016/0162-0134(84)85064-3
Additional Information:	The definitive version is available at http://www.sciencedirect.com
Item Statistics:	View statistics for this item

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