![]() ![]() ![]() Food contamination with heavy metals is another concern for human and animal health. Contamination of water and air by toxic metals is an environmental concern and hundreds of millions of people are being affected around the world. Heavy metals have harmful effects on human health, and exposure to these metals has been increased by industrial and anthropogenic activities and modern industrialization. The application of chelation therapy for the management of metal poisoning could be another aspect of heavy metals to be reviewed in the future. Even with the current knowledge of hazards of heavy metals, the incidence of poisoning remains considerable and requires preventive and effective treatment. Defects in DNA repair following the induction of oxidative stress and DNA damage by the three metals have been considered as the cause of their carcinogenicity. Some toxic metals including chromium, cadmium, and arsenic cause genomic instability. Reactions of other heavy metals with certain proteins were discussed as well. The interaction of lead with aminolevulinic acid dehydratase and ferrochelatase is within this context. On the other hand, some of them have selective binding to specific macromolecules. Comparison of the mechanisms of action reveals similar pathways for these metals to induce toxicity including ROS generation, weakening of the antioxidant defense, enzyme inactivation, and oxidative stress. Heavy metals disrupt cellular events including growth, proliferation, differentiation, damage-repairing processes, and apoptosis. Bioaccumulation of these heavy metals leads to a diversity of toxic effects on a variety of body tissues and organs. Acute or chronic poisonings may occur following exposure through water, air, and food. Here, we reviewed the mechanistic action of these heavy metals according to the available animal and human studies. Mercury, lead, chromium, cadmium, and arsenic have been the most common heavy metals that induced human poisonings. The industrial activities of the last century have caused massive increases in human exposure to heavy metals. 2Cardiovascular Disease Research Center, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran.1Medical Toxicology and Drug Abuse Research Center, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran.Mahdi Balali-Mood 1 Kobra Naseri 1 Zoya Tahergorabi 1 Mohammad Reza Khazdair 2 Mahmood Sadeghi 1* ![]()
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