DMSA, An Antidote to Heavy Metal Toxicity Since The 1950s

Meso-2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) is a sulfhydryl-containing, water-soluble, non-toxic, orally-administered metal chelator which has been in use as an antidote to heavy metal toxicity since the 1950s when Chinese scientists found that DMSA can effectively treat antimony poisoning due to overdose of tartar emetic. Pronounced protective effect in animal poisoning with arsenic and mercury was first shown by I. Okonishnikova in 1962.DMSA is widely used in chelation therapy which is to administrate chelating agents, such as DMSA, to remove heavy metals from the body.

Some, especially in developed world, may think heavy metals are far from their lives. Unfortunately, heavy metals are present in the air, water, and food supply. In fact, in the US for instance, houses and apartments built before 1970s have a very high chance to use building materials that contain lead. Cases of severe acute lead, mercury, arsenic, and cadmium poisoning are rare; however, when they do occur an effective, non-toxic treatment is essential. In addition, chronic, low-level exposure to lead in the soil and in residues of lead-based paint, to mercury in the atmosphere, in dental amalgams and in seafood, and to cadmium and arsenic in the environment and in cigarette smoke is much more common than acute exposure.

More recent clinical use and research substantiates DMSA’s efficacy and safety, and establishes it as the premier metal chelation compound, based on oral dosing, urinary excretion, and its safety characteristics compared to other chelating substances.

DMSA may be prepared by reacting acetylenedicarboxylic acid with sodium thiosulfate or thioacetic acid followed by hydrolysis. Laybio is a wholesale bulk supplier of DMSA. Please feel free to contact our sales team should you have any question about our premium DMSA products.