Hanko E, Erne K, Wanntorp H, Borg K
Acta Vet Scand. 1970;11(2):268-82. doi: 10.1186/BF03547987.
Chickens were fed alkyl mercury-dressed wheat (mercury content about 8 mg/kg) for 35–44 days and were then immediately sacrificed. No signs of untoward effects were observed. Muscle of the chickens, and a minor proportion of liver, were fed to two groups of two ferrets (Mustela furo L. × M. putorius L.), the mercury content of the diet being 7 and 5 mg/kg, respectively. The ferrets of the first group died after 35 and 36 days and those of the second after 58 days. The experimental ferrets showed a marked weight loss, attributable to muscular atrophy in addition to a reduced food intake. Clinical signs appeared in two to three weeks and were primarily neurological such as ataxia, trembling and paralysis. The signs could be correlated with pronounced degenerative changes of the central and peripheral nervous systems involving mainly the cerebellum and peripheral nerves and, to a lesser extent, the cerebrum and the spinal cord. Hypoplasia of the lymphatic tissue of the spleen and degeneration of the graafian follicles were seen as well. High mercury levels were found in the kidneys, liver and brain and also in skeletal muscle and the gonads of the ferrets (Table 2). Methyl mercury constituted the major part of the tissue mercury in the ferrets (as well as in the chickens). The results provide direct evidence of the transfer and accumulation of alkyl mercury in a toxic form through a food chain. The ecological implications are discussed.
给鸡喂食含烷基汞的小麦（汞含量约为8毫克/千克）35 - 44天，然后立即宰杀。未观察到不良影响的迹象。将鸡的肌肉以及一小部分肝脏喂给两组各两只雪貂（艾鼬×香鼬），两组食物中的汞含量分别为7毫克/千克和5毫克/千克。第一组雪貂在35天和36天后死亡，第二组在58天后死亡。实验雪貂体重明显减轻，这除了食物摄入量减少外，还归因于肌肉萎缩。临床症状在两到三周内出现，主要为神经方面的症状，如共济失调、颤抖和瘫痪。这些症状与中枢和外周神经系统的明显退行性变化相关，主要累及小脑和外周神经，其次是大脑和脊髓。还观察到脾脏淋巴组织发育不全以及卵泡退化。在雪貂的肾脏、肝脏、大脑以及骨骼肌和性腺中发现了高汞含量（表2）。甲基汞是雪貂（以及鸡）组织汞的主要组成部分。这些结果为烷基汞以有毒形式通过食物链转移和积累提供了直接证据。文中讨论了其生态意义。
