New study shows n-acetylcysteine acts as an antidote to methylmercury in the body, aids measurement of total methylmercury body load

[Guest guest]

I just saw this and thought I should post a link to it here for those

with high mercury levels.

Actually, everyone who lives in the northern hemisphere has reason to

be concerned about mercury exposure because of the recently increased

use of high-mercury coal.

Especially if you live in Canada or the Northeast US, or if you live

near farms that till soil (which puts a lot of mercury vapor in the

air)

n-acetylcysteine (NAC in vitamin stores) also helps remove other kinds

of mercury, I'm pretty sure elemental mercury too (from 'silver'

fillings)

It helps with many different kinds of toxic exposures.

EHP (Environmental Health Perspectives) is one of the leading

environmental health journals in the US

http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2007/10383/abstract.html

Environmental Health Perspectives

Volume 116, Number 1, January 2008

Research

- Full (HTML) http://www.ehponline.org/members/2007/10383/10383.html

- Full (PDF) http://www.ehponline.org/members/2007/10383/10383.pdf

N-Acetylcysteine as a Potential Antidote and Biomonitoring Agent of

Methylmercury Exposure

A. Aremu, S. Madejczyk, and Nazzareno Ballatori

Department of Environmental Medicine, University of Rochester School

of Medicine, Rochester, New York, USA

Abstract

Background: Many people, by means of consumption of seafood or other

anthropogenic sources, are exposed to levels of methylmercury (MeHg)

that are generally considered to be quite low, but that may

nevertheless produce irreversible brain damage, particularly in unborn

babies. The only way to prevent or ameliorate MeHg toxicity is to

enhance its elimination from the body.

Objectives: Using N-acetylcysteine (NAC) , we aimed to devise a

monitoring protocol for early detection of acute exposure or

relatively low MeHg levels in a rodent model, and to test whether NAC

reduces MeHg levels in the developing embryo.

Results: NAC produced a transient, dose-dependent acceleration of

urinary MeHg excretion in rats of both sexes. Approximately 5% of

various MeHg doses was excreted in urine 2 hr after injection of 1

mmol/kg NAC. In pregnant rats, NAC markedly reduced the body burden of

MeHg, particularly in target tissues such as brain, placenta, and

fetus. In contrast, NAC had no significant effect on urinary MeHg

excretion in preweanling rats.

Conclusions: Because NAC causes a transient increase in urinary

excretion of MeHg that is proportional to the body burden, it is

promising as a biomonitoring agent for MeHg in adult animals. In view

of this and because NAC is effective at enhancing MeHg excretion when

given either orally or intravenously, can decrease brain and fetal

levels of MeHg, has minimal side effects, and is widely available in

clinical settings, NAC should be evaluated as a potential antidote and

biomonitoring agent in humans.

Keywords: N-acetylcysteine, antidote, biomarker, biomonitoring,

embryotoxicity, methylmercury, toxicity. Environ Health Perspect

116:26–31 (2008) . doi:10.1289/ehp.10383 available via

http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 17 October 2007]