This presentation gives the description that which heavy metals are toxic for human health and how they interact with the metabolic processes and cause different diseases in human beings. There are also the threshold values given to help prevent the toxicity....

1. Group
Members!
Nightingale

2. Analytical Presentation;
Interaction Of Heavy Metals With
The Metabolism Of Organisms

3. Contents:
Heavy Metals…
Pros & Cons…
How heavy metals are toxic…
Amount of toxicity…
Site of effect…
Metabolism…
Diseases…
Overview of different metals on different
organs of human body…

4. Periodic Table

5. Classification Of Metals On Characteristics Of Health Effects:

6. Threshold Values Of Different Metals

7. Lead:
Occurrence:
Normally not present.
Threshold Limit:
0.12g
Metabolism:
Binding to sulfhydryl group of enzymes…
Mimics metals; cofactors…
Ca , Fe, Zn
Erythropoiesis…
Effect on bones & teeth…
Heme Synthesis…
delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALAD)
porphobilinogen synthase & ferrochelatase
Interferes ion channels in nerve
conduction…
Ca-analogue

8. Site Of Effect
Immune System:
Central Nervous System:
Irreversible brain damage ; Encephalopathy. Impaired lymphocyte function
Reduction in nerve conduction velocities.
Impaired antibody formation
Neuropsychological impairments.
Blood:
Anemia
Cardiovascular System:
Myocardial infraction & strokes.
Gastrointestinal:
Severe cramping & nausea
Reproductive:
Decreased growth rate.
Kidneys:
Nephropathy
Other Effects:
Rise in Blood Pressure.
Diminished learning abilities.
Behavioural disruptions like aggression,
impulsive behaviour, hyperactivity.
WHO Limit:
3.5 µg / kg

9. Effects of Lead on Human
body affecting different
organs and metabolism
consequently:
Encephalopathy
Sensory Deficits
IQ/ learning disruption
Heart disease
Intestinal Nephritis
Decreased reabsorption
Anemia
Testicular Atrophy
Threshold Limit:
0.12g
Hypertension
Peripheral Neuropathy
Decreased nerve conduction velocity
Abnormalities
in offspring

10. Arsenic
• OCCURANCE:
 Skin, hair, nail and internal organs(liver, kidney, lungs,
spleen)
 The total content of Arsenic in human is b/w 2-3mg
• RECOMMANDED DOSE:
 1mg/day average intake
 WHO recommended 10µg/L in drinking water.
 EPA ( 0.01ppm ) or ( 10 ppb)

11. Arsenic

12. TOXICOLOGY OF ARSENIC
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Three routes for absorption :
Blood and bone marrow,
Liver,
Circulatory system,
IARC recognized arsenic as GROUP
1 Carcinogenic.
• Disrupt ATP production
• The trivalent form of arsenic ,
principal toxic form react with
enzyme and transcription factor.

13. DISEASES CAUSED BY ARSENIC TOXICITY
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Lung cancer
Bladder cancer
Kidney cancer
Liver cancer
Nasal cancer
Still birth
Diabetes mellitus
Nephritis
Black foot disease

14. Iron:
5-10 mg in body
23.23%
10% in myoglobin
and enzymes
66.67%
Bound to iron
storage
proteins
hemoglobin

15. Doses of iron:
Daily Recommended Dosage of Iron:
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


Infants
Children
Males
Females
0.27 mg/day
7-10 mg/day
8-11 mg/day
8-18 mg/day
Toxic level:
 Dose of 10-20 mg/kg of body weight.
 350-500 µg/dL in blood.
 levels over 1000 µg/dL indicate severe iron poisoning.

16. How iron get enters in metabolic
pathway:
Idiopathic
Hemochromatosis,
Access Dietery iron
Transfusional Siderosis

17. Toxicokinetics of iron in metabolism:
Complex mechanism to maintain homeostasis.
 as 2–15% Fe is absorbed from the GI tract.
 0.01% eliminated per day.
 Hepcidin hormone for iron rgulation
Absorption occurs in two steps.
 Into the intestinal mucosa
 Then into the blood.

18.  Hemochromatosis:
•
Hemochromatosis is too much iron in the body(iron
overload)
– Ferritin level.
– Iron level.
– Percentage of transferrin saturation (high)
– Blood sugar (glucose) level
– Echocardiogram to examine the heart's function
– Liver function tests
Treatment:
– Deferoxamine drug.

19. Iron and atherosclerosis:
• iron-mediated oxidation is involved in this process of
oxidation of low density lipoproteins(LDL).
• Plaque formation.
• Vascular damage.
Brain damage:
• In People suffering from neurodegenerative diseases.
• excess accumulation of iron in the brain leads to the loss of
homeostatic mechanisms

20. Cell and DNA Damages:
• iron-induced active oxygen species (AOS).
• Free radical production.
• Cell destruction.

21. EFFECT OF ZINC METAL ON HUMAN METABOLISM

o
OCCURANCE:90% in muscle and bone, prostate ,liver ,
gastrointestinal tract, kidney, skin ,lungs, brain ,heart and pancrease.
 RECOMMENDED DOSE:-
o
( 8 --- 11) mg
 LETHAL DOSE:-
( excess of 300 mg per day)
 EFFECT ON METABOLISM
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
:
necessary for the functioning of more than 300 enzymes
act as a cofactor for antioxident enzymes
slowed growth
low insulin level
nausea
vomiting
loss of apetite
slow wound healing

22. ZINC TOXICITY

23. Effect of Cd on Human metabolism
 Occurrence:
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No beneficial role in humans body.
Enters in body by ,
Cigarette smoke(active and passive inhalation)
found in air we breathe as an industrial contaminant.
processed foods.
 Recommended dose:
 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – concentration in
• bottled drinking water should not exceed 0.005ppm (5 ppb).
•
•

24. Effect on Human metabolism
•Inhibit Zn containing enzyme.
•Disturb Zn metabolism
Zn
•Osteoporosis
•Cd deposition in
bones
•osteomalcia
Ca
Cd
Cu
decrease liver
Cu
Fe
Decrease hemoglobin result Anemia.

25. Cd toxicity
Liver
Lungs
symptoms and diseases caused by Cd toxicity:
•Decrease in appetite,
•Mouth lesion,
•Hyper tension,
•Pain in sternum and legs,
•Decrease production of vitamin D,
symptoms and diseases
•Lungs infection and cancer,
•Hepatic necrosis ,
•Nasopharyngeal irritation,
•Abdominal pain, chest pain.
caused by Cd toxicity:
•TRETMENT : taking supplemental doses of
Zn ,Cu and Fe lessons its effect
• Vitamin C is natural chelator for Cd and high protein diet is also effective.

26. COPPER
• OCCURANCE OF Cu IN OUR BODY
 Vital component of many enzymes
 Essential for melanin & hemoglobin synthesis
 Part of cytochrome
 Normal copper homeostasis is essential for
human growth & development

27. THRESHOLD VALUE
• 1.3 g/day
Concentration in soil
2-100µg/g
Average conc.
20µg/g

28. DISEASES
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Anemia
Liver dysfunction
Kidney failure
Arthritis
Stomach & intestinal irritation
Atherosclerosis
Mental disturbance
Schizophrenia
Wilkinson’s disease
Tuberculosis
Impaired immune system
Blood vessel abnormalities

29. SOURCES OF COPPER
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Mineral supplements
Hard water swimming pools
Chemicals
Cookware
Birth control pills & estrogen medication
Engin parts
Pesticides
Metallargic industry

30. THRESHOLD VALUE
• 1.3 g/day
Concentration in soil
2-100µg/g
Average conc.
20µg/g

31. DISEASES
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Anemia
Liver dysfunction
Kidney failure
Arthritis
Stomach & intestinal irritation
Atherosclerosis
Mental disturbance
Schizophrenia
Wilkinson’s disease
Tuberculosis
Impaired immune system
Blood vessel abnormalities

32. OVER DOSE
• Gastrointestinal disease
• Renal (elevated urea creatinine)
• Hemolytic anemiea

33. Role of selenium in human metabolic process:
• Occurrence:
Industries
soil , rocks and water.
Role in human metabolism:
• Selenoenzymes,selenoprotiens ,
thyroid hormones

34. Recommended dose:
• 400 mcg /day
• 800mcg/day potentially cause toxicity
• 5mg /day considered as lethal dose
Toxicity:
• Toxic concentration in serum
• 400-30,000 µg/L (acute toxicity)
• 500-1400 µg/L (chronic toxicity)

35. Toxic effects:
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Respiratory symptoms:
Gastrointestinal symptoms:
Neurological sign:
Hair fall and skin diseases:

36. Aluminum:
• Most common metal on earth crust
comprising 8.4 to 14% of soil samples
• These are highly toxic
• Our body does not require much more
aluminum
• Source ; Auto body corrosion

37. Occurrence
IN HUMAN BODY
• It is abundantly found in brain of
Alzheimer’s patient and deposits in our bones
and lungs and cause diseases
• It is also present in drugs like ant diarrheal
drugs ,aspirin , HPV anti viral vaccine
• Al enters into body through food ,air and
water

38. REGULATORY LIMITS OF Al
• In Human body
Adults 8mg/day
Infants less than 1mg/day
• In drinking water
EPA recommends Al level in water is 0.05ppm
FDA recommends Al level in water is between
0.05 to 0.2 mg/L

39. Effects on Human body
• Alzheimer’s disease
 In lethal dose Al is known to impair memory,
cause jerking movements and to impair
coordination
 It destroy neurons in hippocampus which is
responsible for long term memory
 It inhibits choline and dopamine chemicals
that transmit nerve impulse across synapses

40. Osteoporosis
• Bone is major storage site of Al and cause
osteoporoses and also cross links with
collagen , making it is prominent cause of
aging and free radical damage
Al also present in powdered form like in table
salt, smoke, ashes etc moves into our blood
and through other body fluids and then enter
into cell wall and implant nucleus and thus
effect DNA

41. • Other diseases
Parkinson’s disease and Lou
Gehrig’s disease
Anemia ,Glucose intolerance
and cardiac arrest in humans

42. THANKS!