What are the dangers of heavy metal pollution to biological poisons?

Answer 1

The harmful effects of heavy metal pollution on living creatures were as follows:

** 1. Harm to the human body **
1. ** Destroy the activity of biological molecules **
- Heavy metals in the human body can have a strong interaction with protein and a variety of membranes, causing them to lose their activity. For example, when heavy metal ions combine with active groups such as the thiols (-SH) in the protein, it will change the spatial structure of the protein, causing the protein to lose its catalyze function.
- The human body's metabolism process required the participation of a variety of membranes. If the activity of the membranes was destroyed, it would interfere with the normal metabolism pathway, leading to physiological disorder.
2. ** Enrichment of organs and poisoning **
- Heavy metals may be concentrated in certain organs of the human body. Once it exceeds the limits that the human body can tolerate, it will cause acute poisoning, subacute poisoning, chronic poisoning, and so on. For example, mercury could be concentrated in the kidneys and brain, and mercury poisoning could cause nervous system damage, kidney malfunction, etc. Cadmum was mainly concentrated in the kidneys and bones, which could cause bone pain, bone thinning, and other symptoms.
- Metal-organic compounds (such as organic mercury, organic lead, organic arsenium, organic tin, etc.) were much more toxic than the corresponding metal-organic compounds; the toxicity of the dissolved metal was greater than that of the particle metal; the toxicity of the hexa-valent metal was greater than that of the tri-valent metal. The toxicity of these heavy metals in different forms and valences in the body was different, further increasing the complexity of the toxicity of heavy metals to the human body.
3. ** Affects cardiovascular health **
- Long-term exposure to heavy metals in the air, drinking water, and food, especially lead, mercury, and mercury, accumulate in the human body and may cause harm to the heart. The harm is equivalent to smoking. There was a close relationship between these metals and stiffening of the arteries, which was a key pathological process leading to cardiovascular disease. It thickened and hardened the blood vessel wall, hindering blood flow, and could eventually lead to a heart attack or stroke.
- Metal in the human body will produce free radical, destroy the structure of cell membrane and blood vessel wall, trigger chronic inflammation, lead to damage to the inner wall of arteries and harden the blood vessels; It will restrain the key biochemical system in the body, interfere with the metabolism of gallbladder, promote the deposit of low-density Lipoprotein (LDL) in the blood vessel wall, and accelerate the formation of plaque in arteries; It may also interfere with the normal function of the umbilical cells and weaken the ability of blood vessels to regulate blood pressure changes, resulting in high blood pressure and hardening of the arteries.

4. ** Irreversibility that harms health **
- Heavy metals could not be biodegraded and could directly threaten higher organisms, including humans. Once it caused damage to the human body, such as damage to organs and systems such as the nervous system, kidneys, and cardiovascular system, it was often irreversible. Even if treatment was taken, it was difficult to fully recover.

** 2. Harm to crops and other plants **
1. ** Growth and Development Stunted **
- Heavy metals could affect the physiological processes of plants, such as suppressing the growth and development of plant roots. The root system was an important organ for plants to absorb water and nutrients. Maldevelopment of the root system would cause the overall growth of the plant to slow down, the plant to be short, and the leaves to turn yellow.
- Heavy metals could also interfere with the photosynthesis and breathing of plants. Photosynthesis was the key process for plants to synthesize organic substances, while exhalation provided energy for plant life activities. If these two processes were disturbed, the growth and development of plants would be seriously affected.
2. ** The quality of agricultural products has declined **
- After the crops were contaminated by heavy metals, the heavy metal content in the agricultural products would exceed the standard. If these excessive agricultural products were eaten, they would pass heavy metals through the food chain, posing a threat to human health. For example, when the soil contained too much mercury, the rice planted might absorb mercury. Eating this cadmium-contaminated rice would increase the risk of mercury poisoning.
3. ** Changing the soil ecology **
- The pollution of the soil was irreversible, and the contaminated soil had no value to be treated. The only way to avoid it was to adjust the planting varieties. The accumulation of heavy metals in the soil would change the structure of soil microorganisms, affect the activity of beneficial microorganisms in the soil, and then destroy the ecological balance of the soil. Soil microorganisms played an important role in the formation of soil fertility and the decomposition of organic matter. When they were affected, the fertility and structure of the soil would also change, which was not conducive to the growth of plants.

** 3. Harm to aquatic organisms **
1. ** Food Chain Condensation **
- In the water environment, even if the concentration of heavy metals discharged from the waste water was small, they could accumulate in algae and mud and be absorbed by the surface of fish and shells. As the food chain passed, the concentration of heavy metals would gradually increase, resulting in food chain condensation, thus causing public nuisance. For example, large carnivorous fish at a higher position in the food chain may be rich in heavy metals such as mercury, which is harmful to their own survival and reproduction. At the same time, it also threatens other creatures that feed on them.
2. ** Affects the physiological functions of aquatic organisms **
- Heavy metals could affect the normal physiological functions of aquatic organisms, such as interfering with the reproductive system of fish, resulting in a decline in the reproductive ability of fish, a decrease in the hatching rate of fish eggs, and a decrease in the survival rate of young fish. They could also damage the nervous system of aquatic organisms, affecting their behavior and adaptability to the external environment, making aquatic organisms more vulnerable to predators or difficult to find food.
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