The first thing to do is find the CAS Registry Number, which I did using ChemFinder (http://chemfinder.camsoft.com/):
Reproductive Toxicity Review (from ftp://alternatives.com/library/envchem/mercurytxt.html)New Jersey Hazardous Chemical Factsheet (from ftp://alternatives.com/library/envchemh/chemh309 )
Low Level Mercury Measurement (from Tekran Inc.)
Mercury monitors from DOE
and 'dimethylmercury' nets these:Evolution of Our Understanding of Methylmercury as a Health Threat (Watanabe and Satoh)
Genotoxicity of Mercury Compounds - A Review (Deflora et al.)
Methylmercury is derivatized with tetraethylborate and analyzed by GCMS (WCAS)
Met Ions Biol Syst 1997;34:321-370
Physiology and toxicology of mercury.
Magos L
BIBRA Toxicology International, Carshalton, Surrey, UK.(the journal is Metallic Ions in Biological Systems, which W&L does not have)
Title | Dartmouth Cited. |
Journal Info | Chemical and engineering news. |
AUG 25 1997 v 75 n 34: 9 | |
Summary | OSHA fines college for inadequate personal protection procedures in death of researcher from dimethyl mercury poisoning. |
A search for Wetterhahn in UnCover turns up 25 articles of which Karen Wetterhahn is author or co-author, many of them having to do with chromium, but there's also this one:Title Methyl Transfer to Mercury Thiolates: Effects of Coordination Number and Ligand Dissociation. Author(s) Lippard, Stephen J. Wilker, Jonathan J. Wetterhahn, Karen E. Journal Info Inorganic chemistry. MAY 07 1997 v 36 n 10: 2079As it happens the text of this article is available via ACS through December 1997.Another article:
Title Environmental metal carcinogens: genotoxicity and altered gene expression by direct metal-mediated and indirect oxidative pathways. Author(s) Wetterhahn, K. E. Dudek, E. J. Journal Info New journal of chemistry. FEB 01 1996 v 20 n 2 199 Summary Chromium and nickel can produce genotoxicity and alterations in gene expression through two pathways: Direct metal-mediated interactions that produce metal-DNA binding and metal-nuclear protein complexes; and indirect generation of reactive oxygen species that produce oxidative DNA damage.
A search of AltaVista for "wetterhahn" turned up a variety of documents, among them this summary of some of Karen Wetterhahn's work:TITLE: Induction of Oxidative Stress and Activation of Transcription Factors by Toxic Metals PROJECT INVESTIGATOR:JJ Dr. Karen Wetterhahn DESCRIPTION: The overall objective of this project is to understand the mechanism by which toxic metals effect cellular oxidative stress. Oxidative stress has been implicated in a number of human diseases, including cancer, aging, atherosclerosis, and fibrosis. The ability of the toxic and/or carcinogenic metals-chromium, nickel, cadmium, lead, iron and arsenic- individually and in combinations found at contaminated Superfund sites, to induce oxidative stress will be determined in chick embryo in vivo and cultured endothelial cells. The focus will be on genotoxic and non-genotoxic effects of low levels of chromium and arsenic. The project will examine possible induction of oxidative DNA damage by toxic metals, and the propensity of these metals to cause aberrant gene induction through alteration of cell signaling. The proposed studies should provide evidence of oxidative pathways for toxic metal action on expression of specific genes, and provide insight into the mechanism by which metals cause their toxic effects. This, in turn, could provide fundamental insights into strategies designed to prevent metal induction of oxidative stress and related proliferative diseases such as cancer, atherosclerosis and angiogenesis.(from http://jeeves.niehs.nih.gov/sbrp/newweb/rescateg/exp-ass.htm)
And the text of a tribute from the Congressional Record.
A search of the CAS database (using the CAS Registry number: 593-74-8) via STNEasy produced more than 580 references. Two really apposite ones are:
Blayney, Michael B.; Winn, John S.; Nierenberg, David W. Handling dimethylmercury Chem. Eng. News (1997), 75(19), 7 Toribara, Taft Y.; Clarkson, Thomas W.; Nierenberg, David W. More on working with dimethylmercury Chem. Eng. News (1997), 75(24), 6
When this turned up I realised that I needed to redo the above searches for 'dimethylmercury'? Indeed, these two do show up with that search in the FirstSearch Applied Science and Technology database. It's interesting that neither of the general indexes (Periodical Abstracts Online and Expanded Academic Index) contains Chem. Eng. News. EAI does list a New York Times article:
Source: The New York Times, June 11, 1997 v146 pA20(N) pA23(L) col 4 Title: Rare form of mercury kills Dartmouth chemistry teacher. (Karen E. Wetterhahn of Dartmouth College dies from exposure to dimethylmercury 10 months after conducting laboratory experiment) (National Pages)
A search in PubMed for 'dimethylmercury' turns up 8 hits, including
Mutat Res 1994 Feb;317(1):57-79
Genotoxicity of mercury compounds. A review.
De Flora S, Bennicelli C, Bagnasco M
Institute of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, University of Genoa, Italy.
This article reviews literature data concerning the genotoxicity of 29 mercury-containing agents, including laboratory compounds as well as ingredients of preparations used as fungicides, dyes, disinfectants and drugs. A variety of genetic end-points were investigated in bacteria, yeasts, moulds, plants, insects, cultured cells from fishes, rodents or humans, aquatic organisms, amphibians, mammalia and exposed humans. The overall evaluation is quite complex. Mercury compounds failed to induce point mutations in bacteria but often exerted clastogenic effects in eukaryotes, especially by binding SH groups and acting as spindle inhibitors, thereby causing c-mitosis and consequently aneuploidy and/or polyploidy. Inorganic mercury compounds were also found to induce the generation of reactive oxygen species and glutathione depletion in cultured mammalian cells. Although different mercury compounds tended to produce qualitatively comparable genetic effects, which suggests the involvement of a common toxic entity, methylmercury derivatives and other ionizable organomercury compounds were more active in short-term tests than either non-ionizable mercury compounds (e.g., dimethylmercury) or inorganic mercury salts (e.g., mercuric chloride). The results of cytogenetic monitoring in peripheral blood lymphocytes of individuals exposed to elemental mercury or mercury compounds from accidental, occupational or alimentary sources were either negative or borderline or uncertain as to the actual role played by mercury in some positive findings. Both genotoxic and non-genotoxic mechanisms may contribute to the renal carcinogenicity of mercury, which so far has been convincingly demonstrated only in male rodents treated with methylmercury chloride.
MeSH Terms:
- Animal
- Human
- Mercury Compounds/toxicity*
- Mutagens/toxicity*
Substances:
- Mutagens
- Mercury Compounds