Mercurial Fish Poison the Body

Mercury seems customised to pollute and poison. It easily spreads in its gaseous state, effortlessly binding to other substances. Its flexibility allows the toxin access to the food chain.

MERCURY GAS RISES INTO THE ATMOSPHERE

1 Coal includes mercury, and when it is burned in power plants or volcanic eruptions, the mercury is converted into gas, which can easily spread in the atmosphere.

MERCURY FALLS ONTO EARTH AS RAIN

2 In the atmosphere, the gas reacts with oxygen, shedding electrons. The gas can now bind to chlorine in the air, etc., mix with water drops, and fall as rain.

SULPHUR AND MERCURY COMBINE IN THE GROUND

3 In the ground, the positively charged mercury might bind to negatively charged sulphur compounds to produce the mercury mineral of cinnabar.

MOBILE PARTICLES CARRIED AWAY

4 Rainwater, ground water, or eroding soil carry tiny cinnabar particles to oxygenpoor places at the bottom of streams, lakes, and oceans.

BACTERIA CONVERT MINERAL INTO TOXIN

5 In the oxygen-poor bottom silt, bacteria digest the cinnabar particles, producing methyl mercury, a hazardous compound of mercury, carbon, and hydrogen.

METHYL MERCURY IS ABSORBED IN FOOD CHAIN

6 Methyl mercury is organic, as it includes carbon and can bind to living organisms. It is absorbed by algae, which are consumed by shrimps, etc.

WE CONSUME TOXIN VIA FISH

7 Shrimps are consumed by small fish, which are consumed by larger fish. The mercury accumulates, ending up on our dinner tables.

MERCURY DESTROYS BRAIN CELLS

8 Methyl mercury is particularly hazardous to brain development in babies and embryos. The growth cone at the exterior of brain cells is made of threads, which consist of the proteins of actin and tubulin. The mercury ions bind to the tubulin, so the proteins cannot link up to maintain the cell thread structure. The growth cone might collapse, which could finally cause brain injury or paralysis.