Perspectives of analysis of carcinogenic and mutagenic metals in biological samples.

There is a continuing need to assess the status of exposure to humans of the carcinogenic and/or mutagenic metals in both biological and environmental samples to better ensure that current or past exposures do not entail unacceptable health risks or to detect potentially excessive exposure before the appearance of adverse health effects. In order to more readily evaluate both the extent of exposure and trends of human exposure as well as the bioavailability, bioaccumulation and transport of these elements and their compounds, sensitive analytical procedures are required for their determination of the various oxidative states (as well as their organic derivatives) in complex matrices such as those found in both environmental and biological samples. The major objective of this overview is to highlight the more recent trends and state-of-the-art methodologies for the determination and speciation of arsenic, selenium, cadmium, chromium and nickel in human and animal tissues while concomitantly noting germane aspects of their bioavailability and interactions. Aspects of biological monitoring of the above elements will be stressed due to their potential utility in augmenting diverse epidemiologic and occupational health studies.