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Chemical Speciation of Selenium and Mercury as Determinant of Their Neurotoxicity

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Neurotoxicity of Metals

Part of the book series: Advances in Neurobiology ((NEUROBIOL,volume 18))

Abstract

The antagonism of mercury toxicity by selenium has been well documented. Mercury is a toxic metal, widespread in the environment. The main target organs (kidneys, lungs, or brain) of mercury vary depending on its chemical forms (inorganic or organic). Selenium is a semimetal essential to mammalian life as part of the amino acid selenocysteine, which is required to the synthesis of the selenoproteins. This chapter has the aim of disclosing the role of selenide or hydrogen selenide (Se−2 or HSe−) as central metabolite of selenium and as an important antidote of the electrophilic mercury forms (particularly, Hg2+ and MeHg). Emphasis will be centered on the neurotoxicity of electrophile forms of mercury and selenium. The controversial participation of electrophile mercury and selenium forms in the development of some neurodegenerative disease will be briefly presented. The potential pharmacological use of organoseleno compounds (Ebselen and diphenyl diselenide) in the treatment of mercury poisoning will be considered. The central role of thiol (−SH) and selenol (−SeH) groups as the generic targets of electrophile mercury forms and the need of new in silico tools to guide the future biological researches will be commented.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas: Bioquímica Toxicológica, Centro de Ciências Naturais e Exatas, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil

    C. S. Oliveira, B. C. Piccoli & J. B. T. Rocha

  2. Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, NY, USA

    M. Aschner

  3. Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de Ciências Naturais e Exatas, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil

    J. B. T. Rocha

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  1. C. S. Oliveira
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  1. Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA

    Michael Aschner

  2. Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA

    Lucio G. Costa

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Oliveira, C.S., Piccoli, B.C., Aschner, M., Rocha, J.B.T. (2017). Chemical Speciation of Selenium and Mercury as Determinant of Their Neurotoxicity. In: Aschner, M., Costa, L. (eds) Neurotoxicity of Metals. Advances in Neurobiology, vol 18. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60189-2_4

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