The awareness of the effects of metallic mercury vapour on the human immune system has increased only in the last decade. The regulatory guidelines relating to testing for immunotoxicity of metals are not standardized so far. A full understanding of the relevance of the tests to man is still incomplete. Immunotoxicity investigation of metals in rodents, with subsequent extrapolation to man, forms the basis of human risk assessment. Human contact with mercury vapour is mainly in chloralkali plants and in factories producing controlling and measuring devices. When the immune system acts as a target of xenobiotic insults, the result can be a decreased resistance to infection, cancers, or immune disregulation that can induce the development of allergy, or autoimmunity (Fig. 1). This article reviews literature data and our studies concerning the immunotoxicity of metallic mercury vapour. A number of data shows that mercury exerts a suppressing effect but another data suggest stimulating effects on the human immune system. The results of immunological monitoring of individuals exposed to mercury vapour were either positive or negative as well as borderline and uncertain as to the influence of mercury vapour on human immune system. The positive data had no influence on the resistance of workers to infections and neoplasms. Skin and mucosa hypersensitivity to metallic mercury is rare. No positive report that mercury vapour could be carcinogenic in man has appeared up to now.

Province Immunology Laboratory Brzesko Poland