Distribution of dietary mercury in a dog. Quantitation and localization of total mercury in organs and central nervous system

An Alsatian dog which had been fed fish contaminated with methyl mercury for 7 years was examined after its death at the age of 12, 4 years after the exposure to methyl mercury had ceased. Two dogs of the same age and breed served as controls. In the exposed dog, mercury was found in all of the organs examined; the highest concentrations were found in the kidneys, and the lowest in the gastrointestinal tract and skeletal muscles. In the central nervous system (CNS) the mercury was fairly uniformly distributed, with 93% in the inorganic state, whereas the skeletal muscles contained approximately 30% inorganic mercury. This demonstrates time-dependent demethylation and suggests a variation in the rate from one type of tissue to another. At the time of death, the mercury level in the dog was still falling. In the control dogs, detectable amounts (0.01 mg kg-1) of mercury were only found in the kidney and liver. The distribution of mercury was determined by a histochemical method (autometallography) for locating mercury in tissue sections. Sections from autometallography of the central nervous system showed large deposits of mercury in all areas of the cerebral hemispheres, the brainstem and the spinal cord, including nerve cells, astrocytes, microglial cells and vessel walls. The granular layer of the cerebellar hemispheres was especially loaded, while only a few granules were present in the Purkinje cells. In the leptomeninges the vessels and the macrophages were heavily encrusted. High amounts of histochemically demonstrable mercury were observed in the liver, thyroid gland and kidney. In the control dogs, all the organs examined were practically devoid of deposits.