Mercury in human hair and blood samples from people living in Wanshan mercury mine area, Guizhou, China: An XAS study

Yu Feng Li, Chunying Chen, Bai Li, Wei Li, Liya Qu, Zeqin Dong, Masaharu Nomura, Yuxi Gao, Jinxuan Zhao, Wei Hu, Yuliang Zhao, Zhifang Chai

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Scopus citations

Abstract

Human hair and blood samples from persons living in the town of Wanshan, a mercury mine area in Guizhou Province of China, were collected and the quantitative speciation and structural information of Hg and S in hair samples and of Hg in erythrocyte and serum samples were studied using X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Least-squares fitting of the X-ray absorption near-edge spectra found that inorganic mercury is the major mercury species in hair samples (91.74%), while inorganic and methyl mercury are both about 50% of total mercury in RBC and serum samples, which is in agreement with the data obtained by acidic extraction, fractionation of Hg2+ and CH3Hg+ and quantification by ICP-MS. Curve-fitting analysis revealed that the Hg-S bond length and coordination number in hair were 0.248 ± 0.002 nm and 3.10, respectively, while the S-Hg bond length and coordination number in hair were 0.236 ± 0.002 nm and 4.05. The Hg-S bond length and coordination number in RBC were 0.251 ± 0.003 nm and 4.09, respectively, while they were 0.228 ± 0.002 nm and 4.08 in serum, respectively. The techniques for speciation, structural and binding information described in this study will find the potential application in similar studies of other elements.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)500-506
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Inorganic Biochemistry
Volume102
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2008

Keywords

  • Blood
  • Human hair
  • Mercury exposure
  • Speciation
  • XAS

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry
  • Inorganic Chemistry

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