Nickel essentiality, toxicity, and carcinogenicity

The increasing utilization of heavy metals in modern industries leads to an increase in the environmental burden. Nickel represents a good example of a metal whose use is widening in modern technologies. As the result of accelerated consumption of nickel-containing products nickel compounds are released to the environment at all stages of production and utilization. Their accumulation in the environment may represent a serious hazard to human health. Among the known health related effects of nickel are skin allergies, lung fibrosis, variable degrees of kidney and cardiovascular system poisoning and stimulation of neoplastic transformation. The mechanism of the latter effect is not known and is the subject of detailed investigation. This review provides an analysis of the current state in the field. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.