Experimental study of proteinuria caused by chronic exposure to mercury

Proteinuria induced by chronic exposure to mercury and the relationship between urinary mercury and kidney damage were explored in rats using ultrafiltration concentration, gel chromatography, and transmission electron microscopy. The results showed that the primary site of damage was the proximal renal tubule and that the glomerulus was eventually involved. Of the tubular cell ultrastructures, the lysosome was the most sensitive to mercury, and there was a close relation between the excretion of urinary mercury and the mercury detoxication mechanism of the kidney. Many deposits were found in the endothelia and mesangia of the glomeruli. The results of the study showed that urinary mercury consisted of three components, that filtration through the glomeruli was an important source of urinary mercury, and that the mercury excreted from the renal tubules reflected the mercury-loading status of the kidney.