UCSD part of team behind possible breakthrough to fight mercury poisoning from seafood

Scripps Oceanography biogeochemist Amina Schartup in the lab Photo by Erik Jepsen UC San Diego New research from UC San Diego s Scripps Oceanography Institute and UCLA points toward a expected breakthrough to offset the effects of toxic forms of mercury in seafood Scientists identified that the engineered microbe Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron a type of good gut bacteria was able to eliminate methylmercury in the digestive tract Results manifested it lowered levels of the toxin in the feces and tissue of mice in just hours Results of the evaluation were distributed Thursday in the journal Cell Host and Microbe If the microbe is developed further to serve as detoxification therapy for people it could reduce risks of neurological impairments among children exposed to high levels of dietary methylmercury in the womb researchers revealed Methylmercury results from a toxic transformation that occurs to mercury in the ocean This form of mercury when absorbed into the tissue increases in its concentration as it travels through the food chain Those who primarily eat food containing high mercury concentrations are at higher threat While soundness representatives have issued advisories especially to pregnant women to avoid chosen seafood the survey s co-senior author Amina Schartup a marine biogeochemist at Scripps Oceanography noted that this isn t an option for the multiple women around the world Often they rely on fish as their sole source of protein Despite global efforts to reduce mercury emissions and its accumulation in fish methylmercury levels in seafood are not expected to decline anytime soon Fish remains a major and culturally pivotal part of the diet for plenty of people around the world and we hope it continues to be Schartup revealed Mercury pollutes the ocean from several sources the largest of which are human engagements like coal burning artisanal gold mining and consumer product waste Schartup stated she spent years working on mercury corruption in the ocean and in seafood before she began to feel frustrated diagnosing problems without offering any solutions That prompted her to apply to the Scialog Microbiome Neurobiology and Condition initiative I was the only oceanographer in the cohort and I received a crash subject in the gut-brain axis she declared Schartup linked with Elaine Hsiao her co-senior author in after she joined a Scialog research undertaking through the Research Corporation for Science Advancement Hsiao associate professor and director of the UCLA Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center joined her in pitching the project They received funding from the RCSA to research the ability of microbiomes to combat mercury toxicity in humans We envision the possibility that people could take a probiotic to offset the menace of consuming too much methylmercury especially when pregnant Hsiao disclosed Though Hsiao and Scharup continue to explore the bacterium and its prospective for humans the project is on unstable terrain Funding is at hazard with proposed budget cuts looming over the National Institutes of Fitness