Lead-interacting proteins and their implication in lead poisoning

Abstract

Lead is an important heavy metal used worldwide in several applications, especially in industry. People exposed to lead can develop a wide range of symptoms associated with lead poisoning. Many effects of lead poisoning are reported in the literature, showing a compromising of whole body health, with symptoms related to cardiovascular, immune, bone, reproductive, hematological, renal, gastrointestinal, and nervous system. However, the molecular lead targets as well as the pathways affected by lead poisoning are not completely described. The aim of this study was to construct a map of metabolic pathways impaired in lead poisoning by evaluating which biomolecules are directly affected by lead. Through manual literature curation, we identified proteins which physically interact with lead and subsequently determined the metabolic pathways those proteins are involved with. At total, we identified 23 proteins involved with heme synthesis, calcium metabolism, neurotransmission, among other biological systems, which helps to understand the wide range of lead-poisoning symptoms.

Keywords:

• heavy metals
• lead intoxication
• environmental toxicity
• systems toxicology
• environmental health
• systemic effect of lead poisoning

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge KEGG and PUBMED databases for providing public access to their data. The authors also gratefully acknowledge the comments of the anonymous reviewers who were selected by the Editor. These comments were very helpful in revising the manuscript.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The author’s affiliation is as shown on the cover page. The paper was conceptualized and the work conducted as part of the normal employment activities of the authors without any special compensation. The opinions expressed in the paper are exclusively the professional views of the authors. The authors have sole responsibility for the writing and content of the paper. This work have been financed by the governmental Brazilian agency National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, Portuguese: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico – website: cnpq.br), grant 444856/2014–5. The scholarships were financed by governmental Brazilian agency Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES – Portuguese: Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior – website: www.capes.gov.br). None of the financial sponsors reviewed the paper prior to submission. None of the authors in the past five years have appeared in any legal or regulatory proceedings that have used information reviewed in this paper.

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