Absorption of methylmercury by the fetal guinea pig during mid to late gestation

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Abstract
Pregnant guinea pigs were injected with ∼ 1 μ/kg of CH3203HgC1 at 22, 40, 47, 59, and 66 days of gestation, and fetal tissues were obtained 24 hours later. Autologous fetal erythrocytes were labeled with 51Cr and used to label the fetal blood pool at each gestational age except 22 days so that tissue‐bound Hg could be calculated. In general, Hg absorbed by the whole fetus increased during gestation, in parallel with increasing tissue mass, while Hg found in whole placentas remained the same. Hg concentrations in the whole fetus and placenta were closely correlated, as were Hg concentrations in brain, liver, and kidney. Liver, kidney, blood, and brain contained the highest Hg concentration early in gestation. While it is difficult to interpret the potential effects of the increased Hg concentrations, particular attention should be paid to the brain, since it is considered a target tissue in MeHg toxicity.