Editing Polonium (section)

===Overview===
Polonium can be hazardous and has no biological role.<ref name="nbb" /> By mass, polonium-210 is around 250,000 times more toxic than [[hydrogen cyanide]] (the {{LD50}} for <sup>210</sup>Po is less than 1 [[microgram]] for an average adult (see below) compared with about 250 [[milligrams]] for hydrogen cyanide<ref>{{cite web| url = http://physchem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/HY/hydrogen_cyanide.html | archive-url = https://archive.today/20020211054154/http://physchem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/HY/hydrogen_cyanide.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = 2002-02-11 |title =Safety data for hydrogen cyanide|work= Physical & Theoretical Chemistry Lab, Oxford University}}</ref>). The main hazard is its intense radioactivity (as an alpha emitter), which makes it difficult to handle safely. Even in [[microgram]] amounts, handling <sup>210</sup>Po is extremely dangerous, requiring specialized equipment (a negative pressure alpha [[glove box]] equipped with high-performance filters), adequate monitoring, and strict handling procedures to avoid any contamination. Alpha particles emitted by polonium will damage organic tissue easily if polonium is ingested, inhaled, or absorbed, although they do not penetrate the [[epidermis (skin)|epidermis]] and hence are not hazardous as long as the alpha particles remain outside the body and do not come near the eyes, which are living tissue. Wearing chemically resistant and intact gloves is a mandatory precaution to avoid transcutaneous [[diffusion]] of polonium directly through the [[skin]]. Polonium delivered in concentrated [[nitric acid]] can easily diffuse through inadequate gloves (e.g., [[latex gloves]]) or the acid may damage the gloves.<ref>[[#Bagnall|Bagnall]], pp. 202–6</ref>

Polonium does not have toxic chemical properties.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/58088.php|title=Polonium-210: Effects, symptoms, and diagnosis|website=Medical News Today|date=28 July 2017}}</ref>

It has been reported that some [[microbe]]s can [[Methylation|methylate]] polonium by the action of [[methylcobalamin]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Momoshima | first1 =N.|last2= Song | first2 = L. X.|last3= Osaki | first3 =S.|last4=Maeda | first4 =Y.| title = Formation and emission of volatile polonium compound by microbial activity and polonium methylation with methylcobalamin | journal =Environ Sci Technol | date =2001 | volume =35 | issue = 15 | pages = 2956–2960 | doi = 10.1021/es001730| pmid =11478248| bibcode =2001EnST...35.2956M}}</ref><ref>
{{cite journal|last1= Momoshima | first1 =N.|last2= Song | first2 = L. X.|last3= Osaki | first3 =S.|last4=Maeda | first4 =Y.| title = Biologically induced Po emission from fresh water | journal =J Environ Radioact| date = 2002 | volume = 63| issue = 2| pages= 187–197 | doi =10.1016/S0265-931X(02)00028-0| pmid =12363270| bibcode =2002JEnvR..63..187M}}</ref> This is similar to the way in which [[mercury (element)|mercury]], [[selenium]], and [[tellurium]] are methylated in living things to create [[organometallic]] compounds. Studies investigating the metabolism of polonium-210 in rats have shown that only 0.002 to 0.009% of polonium-210 ingested is excreted as volatile polonium-210.<ref>{{cite journal |display-authors=4 |last1=Li |first1=Chunsheng |last2=Sadi |first2=Baki |last3=Wyatt |first3=Heather |last4=Bugden |first4=Michelle |last5=Priest |first5=Nicholas |last6=Wilkinson |first6=Diana |last7=Kramer |first7=Gary H. |date=2010 |title=Metabolism of <sup>210</sup>Po in rats: volatile <sup>210</sup>Po in excreta |journal=Radiation Protection Dosimetry |volume=140 |issue=2 |pages=158–162 |doi=10.1093/rpd/ncq047 |pmid=20159915}}</ref>