Genomic Analysis of the Rat Lung following Elemental Mercury Vapor Exposure

0) is a highly toxic chemical with increasing public health concern. Although the lung receives the highest exposure to Hg 0 vapor, it is resistant to Hg 0 toxicity relative to the kidney and brain. In an earlier study, exposure of rats to 4 mg Hg 0 vapor/m 3 , 2 h per day for 10 days, did not produce pathological alterations in the lung but increased metallothionein and glutathione S-transferase in the kidney. This study was undertaken to examine pulmonary gene expression associated with Hg 0 vapor inhalation. Total RNA was extracted from lung 0