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Cadmium Absorption

  • Reference work entry
Encyclopedia of Metalloproteins

Synonyms

Assimilation of cadmium; Uptake of cadmium

Definition

Cadmium (Cd) is a soft, ductile, silver-white electropositive metal, which is widely distributed in the environment. Environmental contamination by Cd is due to human and natural activities. Food and drinking water are the main routes of exposure to Cd for nonsmoking general population. The absorption of Cd after dietary exposure ranges from 0.5% to 3.0% in majority of animal species, while in man a range of 3.0–8.0% has been reported. The metal accumulates mainly in the liver and kidney where it has multiple cytotoxic and metabolic effects. Cd bioavailability, retention, and consequent toxicity are influenced by several factors such as diet composition, chemical forms of Cd, nutritional status, among others.

Introduction

Contamination of the environment by Cd may occur through anthropogenic and natural sources (WHO 1992). The main routes of Cd exposure from the environment are inhalation and ingestion. Although the...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, Delta State University, PMB 1, Abraka, Delta State, Nigeria

    Dr. Samuel Ogheneovo Asagba

Authors
  1. Dr. Samuel Ogheneovo Asagba
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Correspondence to Samuel Ogheneovo Asagba .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Robert H. Kretsinger

  2. Department of Molecular Medicine, College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA

    Vladimir N. Uversky

  3. Institute for Biological Instrumentation, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow Region, Russia

    Eugene A. Permyakov

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Asagba, S.O. (2013). Cadmium Absorption. In: Kretsinger, R.H., Uversky, V.N., Permyakov, E.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Metalloproteins. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1533-6_24

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