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Cited by 1,005Trace Elements in HealthHeavy Metal Exposure and ToxicityPlant Micronutrient Interactions and Effects

The Biological Chemistry of the Elements: The Inorganic Chemistry of Life

Fraústo da Silva, J J R, Williams, R J P·2001
DOI 10.1093/oso/9780198508472.001.0001
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Abstract

Twenty inorganic elements, mostly metal ions, are consistently found in living systems and are essential for living systems to function correctly. The aim of this text is to discuss, describe, and explain the functional relevance of those elements: the reasons for their selection; the processes of their uptake, transport and final localization in cells; the regulation of these processes; and the interactive network of their reactions that connects the in vivo inorganic elements to the environment and to the genome. The first seven chapters describe the physical, chemical, and biological principles of the involvement of the elements in cellular activity, stressing how inorganic and organic chemicals react differently together in different compartments. The next twelve chapters describe the uses of the individual essential inoranic elements and a section on the genetic control of each element is included. The final chapter discusses how the interaction of genes, proteins, small molecules, and inorganic elements plays an important role in evolution and the speciation of organisms. The second edition of 'The Biological Chemistry of The Elements' has been thoroughly revised in content and style. The main additions to the first edition concern the discussion of the links to the genome of the uptake and transfer of inorganic elements and the regulation of homeostasis, the functional co-operative activities of the elements, the interaction with the environment, and the evolution of usage. Recent structural and mechanistic knowledge of many biomolecules and organelles are also included. Like the higly praised first edition, this text will be the bible of bioinorganic chemistry.

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Crossref · 10.1093/oso/9780198508472.001.0001

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This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

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  • Biologically important transition metals can all form metal-aquo coordination complexes, often with six octahedrally arranged water molecules that exchange with bulk solvent on a microsecond time scale.

    “The biologically important transition metals can all form metal-aquo coordination complexes, often with six, octahedrally arranged water molecules that exchange with bulk solvent on a microsecond time scale.2”

    From Metals in Motion: Understanding Labile Metal Pools in Bacteria (2025) · cites this paper as [2]

  • The chemistry of the biologically relevant transition metal ions is dominated by their coordination in molecular complexes, which can be relatively inert (sequestered) or labile.

    “The chemistry of the biologically relevant transition metal ions is dominated by their coordination in molecular complexes, which can be relatively inert (sequestered) or labile.2”

    From Metals in Motion: Understanding Labile Metal Pools in Bacteria (2025) · cites this paper as [2]

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Fraústo da Silva, J. J. R., & Williams, R. J. P.
ORCID
Williams, R J P
Publisher
Oxford University PressOxford
Published
2001-08-16
DOI
10.1093/oso/9780198508472.001.0001
OpenAlex
W4388245583
Cited by
1,005
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 18 · 2025: 46 · 2024: 40 · 2023: 32 · 2022: 43 · 2021: 47 · 2020: 44 · 2019: 47 · 2018: 50 · 2017: 58 · 2016: 45 · 2015: 53 · 2014: 59 · 2013: 38 · 2012: 54
FWCI
10.96
Type
book
Language
en
Open access
closed
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Trace Elements in Health
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Heavy Metal Exposure and Toxicity
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Plant Micronutrient Interactions and Effects
Keywords
metal ions, bioinorganic chemistry, homeostatic regulation, speciation, metalloproteins, organelles

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Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

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