ABSTRACT
Lead is a ubiquitous toxic metal found in virtually all living organisms including man. The toxic properties of this element from elevated exposures have been known for several thousand years. In recent decades, the ability of lead to produce toxic effects in a number of target organ systems, and essential cellular and molecular pathways at low dose levels has been increasingly appreciated as a result of the advent of modern and more sensitive and speci c toxicological tools derived from basic cell and molecular biology. Molecular (omic) biomarkers are excellent examples of these modern tools, which provide insights into the impact of low-dose lead exposures on basic biological processes and also the in uence of factors such as mixture exposures and genetic inheritance on health outcomes and delineation of populations at special risk. The ability to detect and interpret low-dose lead effects is of increasing importance since lead is now being incorporated into nanomaterials [1-3] that can be expected to increase biological exposures in new ways. These new uses of lead means that there will be an increasing need for evaluation of how and why this metal may exert effects on target cell populations in essential organ systems and delineation of key-sensitive molecular pathways.
