Why would a creature be immune to heavy metals?











up vote
6
down vote

favorite












I need a creature that can survive in environments with elements like lead and mercury in many nutrition sources, and in some places making up part of the atmosphere.



I was thinking maybe it could have an organ with other elements that readily bind with the heavy metals, making them not toxic or detrimental. However, I'm not well versed enough in chemistry or biology to know if that makes sense.










share|improve this question




























    up vote
    6
    down vote

    favorite












    I need a creature that can survive in environments with elements like lead and mercury in many nutrition sources, and in some places making up part of the atmosphere.



    I was thinking maybe it could have an organ with other elements that readily bind with the heavy metals, making them not toxic or detrimental. However, I'm not well versed enough in chemistry or biology to know if that makes sense.










    share|improve this question


























      up vote
      6
      down vote

      favorite









      up vote
      6
      down vote

      favorite











      I need a creature that can survive in environments with elements like lead and mercury in many nutrition sources, and in some places making up part of the atmosphere.



      I was thinking maybe it could have an organ with other elements that readily bind with the heavy metals, making them not toxic or detrimental. However, I'm not well versed enough in chemistry or biology to know if that makes sense.










      share|improve this question















      I need a creature that can survive in environments with elements like lead and mercury in many nutrition sources, and in some places making up part of the atmosphere.



      I was thinking maybe it could have an organ with other elements that readily bind with the heavy metals, making them not toxic or detrimental. However, I'm not well versed enough in chemistry or biology to know if that makes sense.







      reality-check creature-design






      share|improve this question















      share|improve this question













      share|improve this question




      share|improve this question








      edited Nov 21 at 18:52









      kingledion

      72.5k26244428




      72.5k26244428










      asked Nov 21 at 18:29









      Aethenosity

      15311




      15311






















          3 Answers
          3






          active

          oldest

          votes

















          up vote
          11
          down vote



          accepted










          Creatures that evolved in metal-rich environments would be immune



          Evolution could take care of the toxicity problems. Metal toxicity is a characteristic of many different metals, and the root cause for why a metal is poisonous varies widely between metals. For example with arsenic:




          Arsenic interferes with cellular longevity by allosteric inhibition of
          an essential metabolic enzyme pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex,
          which catalyzes the oxidation of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA by NAD+. With
          the enzyme inhibited, the energy system of the cell is disrupted
          resulting in cellular apoptosis. Biochemically, arsenic prevents use
          of thiamine resulting in a clinical picture resembling thiamine
          deficiency.




          Arsenic interacts with specific enzymes in a specific way to disrupt them from doing their biological job. The solution is for organisms to evolve specific methods for resolving whatever biochemical problem the metal causes. For arsenic, an animal which evolved so that that allosteric sites on the PDH complex enzyme are not receptive to arsenic. The biochemical reaction chain is broken, and now arsenic is not any more problematic to us than eating iron (well...there may be other problems arsenic causes, this is just the one that kills you fastest).



          Humans are immune to the metals common in the environment



          In the Earth's biosystems, certain metals are present in certain quantities. These metals are needed for nutrition, iron, magnesium, potassium, etc. The amount of iron or aluminum, two common metals, found in organic matter will not poison an organism on Earth, since all organisms on Earth have had to deal with these common metals for billions of years.



          If you planet has a different geo-chemistry, or different elemental abundances in the crust, the creatures of your planet, since the inception of life, will evolve a resistance to the metals commonly encountered. Therefore, you can assume that any creature on a heavy-metal-heavy planet would be immune to the commonly encountered heavy metals.






          share|improve this answer

















          • 2




            I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
            – StephenG
            Nov 21 at 19:09






          • 2




            Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
            – John
            Nov 21 at 19:15






          • 2




            For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
            – jamesqf
            Nov 21 at 19:43






          • 2




            @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
            – theRiley
            Nov 21 at 19:46






          • 1




            @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
            – kingledion
            Nov 22 at 2:44


















          up vote
          1
          down vote













          The creature’s small intestine has a magnetic lining that attracts heavy metals. It removes metals when the food is liquefied, for easy separation. The magnetic field can be created by magnetizing small chunks of iron using electric currents in nerve fibers.






          share|improve this answer




























            up vote
            -1
            down vote













            I would start with the igaunas of Galapagos as a reasonable visual of what some creature plaqued by pesky heavy metals could look like. Constantly excreting the poison through the nose and skin.



            Of course some metals in microscopic doses are necessary and tolerable. So yes the organ might work which picks up and filters the blood. But really the metal would mostly enter through skin and lungs. So those organs must feature some coating or ingenious enzyme that eats the metal, sends it to another special organ which turns it into energy or poison the animal could use as a defense. Also you could use a magnetic aura against the non-ferrous metal or an acid which dissolves it. And maybe that special organ could have a separate chamber which pools the ferrous metals and excretes them to be harvested by humans or other symbiotic creatures.



            This feature of metal eating creatures might give them some supernatural abilities. Might even allow them to talk to each other telekinetically, or Have metal skin, poisonous concentrations of saliva, or a lot of other scientific uses.






            share|improve this answer

















            • 1




              note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 20:43






            • 1




              just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 20:51








            • 1




              you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 21:32








            • 1




              all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 21:53






            • 1




              we're done, i think. thanks.
              – theRiley
              Nov 22 at 1:59











            Your Answer





            StackExchange.ifUsing("editor", function () {
            return StackExchange.using("mathjaxEditing", function () {
            StackExchange.MarkdownEditor.creationCallbacks.add(function (editor, postfix) {
            StackExchange.mathjaxEditing.prepareWmdForMathJax(editor, postfix, [["$", "$"], ["\\(","\\)"]]);
            });
            });
            }, "mathjax-editing");

            StackExchange.ready(function() {
            var channelOptions = {
            tags: "".split(" "),
            id: "579"
            };
            initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

            StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
            // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
            if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
            StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
            createEditor();
            });
            }
            else {
            createEditor();
            }
            });

            function createEditor() {
            StackExchange.prepareEditor({
            heartbeatType: 'answer',
            convertImagesToLinks: false,
            noModals: true,
            showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
            reputationToPostImages: null,
            bindNavPrevention: true,
            postfix: "",
            imageUploader: {
            brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
            contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
            allowUrls: true
            },
            noCode: true, onDemand: true,
            discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
            ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
            });


            }
            });














            draft saved

            draft discarded


















            StackExchange.ready(
            function () {
            StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fworldbuilding.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f130932%2fwhy-would-a-creature-be-immune-to-heavy-metals%23new-answer', 'question_page');
            }
            );

            Post as a guest















            Required, but never shown

























            3 Answers
            3






            active

            oldest

            votes








            3 Answers
            3






            active

            oldest

            votes









            active

            oldest

            votes






            active

            oldest

            votes








            up vote
            11
            down vote



            accepted










            Creatures that evolved in metal-rich environments would be immune



            Evolution could take care of the toxicity problems. Metal toxicity is a characteristic of many different metals, and the root cause for why a metal is poisonous varies widely between metals. For example with arsenic:




            Arsenic interferes with cellular longevity by allosteric inhibition of
            an essential metabolic enzyme pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex,
            which catalyzes the oxidation of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA by NAD+. With
            the enzyme inhibited, the energy system of the cell is disrupted
            resulting in cellular apoptosis. Biochemically, arsenic prevents use
            of thiamine resulting in a clinical picture resembling thiamine
            deficiency.




            Arsenic interacts with specific enzymes in a specific way to disrupt them from doing their biological job. The solution is for organisms to evolve specific methods for resolving whatever biochemical problem the metal causes. For arsenic, an animal which evolved so that that allosteric sites on the PDH complex enzyme are not receptive to arsenic. The biochemical reaction chain is broken, and now arsenic is not any more problematic to us than eating iron (well...there may be other problems arsenic causes, this is just the one that kills you fastest).



            Humans are immune to the metals common in the environment



            In the Earth's biosystems, certain metals are present in certain quantities. These metals are needed for nutrition, iron, magnesium, potassium, etc. The amount of iron or aluminum, two common metals, found in organic matter will not poison an organism on Earth, since all organisms on Earth have had to deal with these common metals for billions of years.



            If you planet has a different geo-chemistry, or different elemental abundances in the crust, the creatures of your planet, since the inception of life, will evolve a resistance to the metals commonly encountered. Therefore, you can assume that any creature on a heavy-metal-heavy planet would be immune to the commonly encountered heavy metals.






            share|improve this answer

















            • 2




              I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
              – StephenG
              Nov 21 at 19:09






            • 2




              Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
              – John
              Nov 21 at 19:15






            • 2




              For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
              – jamesqf
              Nov 21 at 19:43






            • 2




              @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 19:46






            • 1




              @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
              – kingledion
              Nov 22 at 2:44















            up vote
            11
            down vote



            accepted










            Creatures that evolved in metal-rich environments would be immune



            Evolution could take care of the toxicity problems. Metal toxicity is a characteristic of many different metals, and the root cause for why a metal is poisonous varies widely between metals. For example with arsenic:




            Arsenic interferes with cellular longevity by allosteric inhibition of
            an essential metabolic enzyme pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex,
            which catalyzes the oxidation of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA by NAD+. With
            the enzyme inhibited, the energy system of the cell is disrupted
            resulting in cellular apoptosis. Biochemically, arsenic prevents use
            of thiamine resulting in a clinical picture resembling thiamine
            deficiency.




            Arsenic interacts with specific enzymes in a specific way to disrupt them from doing their biological job. The solution is for organisms to evolve specific methods for resolving whatever biochemical problem the metal causes. For arsenic, an animal which evolved so that that allosteric sites on the PDH complex enzyme are not receptive to arsenic. The biochemical reaction chain is broken, and now arsenic is not any more problematic to us than eating iron (well...there may be other problems arsenic causes, this is just the one that kills you fastest).



            Humans are immune to the metals common in the environment



            In the Earth's biosystems, certain metals are present in certain quantities. These metals are needed for nutrition, iron, magnesium, potassium, etc. The amount of iron or aluminum, two common metals, found in organic matter will not poison an organism on Earth, since all organisms on Earth have had to deal with these common metals for billions of years.



            If you planet has a different geo-chemistry, or different elemental abundances in the crust, the creatures of your planet, since the inception of life, will evolve a resistance to the metals commonly encountered. Therefore, you can assume that any creature on a heavy-metal-heavy planet would be immune to the commonly encountered heavy metals.






            share|improve this answer

















            • 2




              I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
              – StephenG
              Nov 21 at 19:09






            • 2




              Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
              – John
              Nov 21 at 19:15






            • 2




              For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
              – jamesqf
              Nov 21 at 19:43






            • 2




              @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 19:46






            • 1




              @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
              – kingledion
              Nov 22 at 2:44













            up vote
            11
            down vote



            accepted







            up vote
            11
            down vote



            accepted






            Creatures that evolved in metal-rich environments would be immune



            Evolution could take care of the toxicity problems. Metal toxicity is a characteristic of many different metals, and the root cause for why a metal is poisonous varies widely between metals. For example with arsenic:




            Arsenic interferes with cellular longevity by allosteric inhibition of
            an essential metabolic enzyme pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex,
            which catalyzes the oxidation of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA by NAD+. With
            the enzyme inhibited, the energy system of the cell is disrupted
            resulting in cellular apoptosis. Biochemically, arsenic prevents use
            of thiamine resulting in a clinical picture resembling thiamine
            deficiency.




            Arsenic interacts with specific enzymes in a specific way to disrupt them from doing their biological job. The solution is for organisms to evolve specific methods for resolving whatever biochemical problem the metal causes. For arsenic, an animal which evolved so that that allosteric sites on the PDH complex enzyme are not receptive to arsenic. The biochemical reaction chain is broken, and now arsenic is not any more problematic to us than eating iron (well...there may be other problems arsenic causes, this is just the one that kills you fastest).



            Humans are immune to the metals common in the environment



            In the Earth's biosystems, certain metals are present in certain quantities. These metals are needed for nutrition, iron, magnesium, potassium, etc. The amount of iron or aluminum, two common metals, found in organic matter will not poison an organism on Earth, since all organisms on Earth have had to deal with these common metals for billions of years.



            If you planet has a different geo-chemistry, or different elemental abundances in the crust, the creatures of your planet, since the inception of life, will evolve a resistance to the metals commonly encountered. Therefore, you can assume that any creature on a heavy-metal-heavy planet would be immune to the commonly encountered heavy metals.






            share|improve this answer












            Creatures that evolved in metal-rich environments would be immune



            Evolution could take care of the toxicity problems. Metal toxicity is a characteristic of many different metals, and the root cause for why a metal is poisonous varies widely between metals. For example with arsenic:




            Arsenic interferes with cellular longevity by allosteric inhibition of
            an essential metabolic enzyme pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex,
            which catalyzes the oxidation of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA by NAD+. With
            the enzyme inhibited, the energy system of the cell is disrupted
            resulting in cellular apoptosis. Biochemically, arsenic prevents use
            of thiamine resulting in a clinical picture resembling thiamine
            deficiency.




            Arsenic interacts with specific enzymes in a specific way to disrupt them from doing their biological job. The solution is for organisms to evolve specific methods for resolving whatever biochemical problem the metal causes. For arsenic, an animal which evolved so that that allosteric sites on the PDH complex enzyme are not receptive to arsenic. The biochemical reaction chain is broken, and now arsenic is not any more problematic to us than eating iron (well...there may be other problems arsenic causes, this is just the one that kills you fastest).



            Humans are immune to the metals common in the environment



            In the Earth's biosystems, certain metals are present in certain quantities. These metals are needed for nutrition, iron, magnesium, potassium, etc. The amount of iron or aluminum, two common metals, found in organic matter will not poison an organism on Earth, since all organisms on Earth have had to deal with these common metals for billions of years.



            If you planet has a different geo-chemistry, or different elemental abundances in the crust, the creatures of your planet, since the inception of life, will evolve a resistance to the metals commonly encountered. Therefore, you can assume that any creature on a heavy-metal-heavy planet would be immune to the commonly encountered heavy metals.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered Nov 21 at 18:52









            kingledion

            72.5k26244428




            72.5k26244428








            • 2




              I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
              – StephenG
              Nov 21 at 19:09






            • 2




              Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
              – John
              Nov 21 at 19:15






            • 2




              For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
              – jamesqf
              Nov 21 at 19:43






            • 2




              @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 19:46






            • 1




              @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
              – kingledion
              Nov 22 at 2:44














            • 2




              I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
              – StephenG
              Nov 21 at 19:09






            • 2




              Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
              – John
              Nov 21 at 19:15






            • 2




              For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
              – jamesqf
              Nov 21 at 19:43






            • 2




              @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
              – theRiley
              Nov 21 at 19:46






            • 1




              @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
              – kingledion
              Nov 22 at 2:44








            2




            2




            I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
            – StephenG
            Nov 21 at 19:09




            I broadly like this answer, although I'd suggest that immunity is not required. Life tends to work fine as long as it has enough time to reproduce (and in more complex lifeforms to raise the "kiddies" :-) ). That doesn't require immunity just reasonable tolerance for some period of time.
            – StephenG
            Nov 21 at 19:09




            2




            2




            Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
            – John
            Nov 21 at 19:15




            Some metal may actually get incorporated, there are bacteria that evolved in arsenic rich areas that actually use it in enzymes.
            – John
            Nov 21 at 19:15




            2




            2




            For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
            – jamesqf
            Nov 21 at 19:43




            For an example, here's a microorganism that's adapted to high concentrations of arsenic: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFAJ-1 More generally, if you search for "bioremediation heavy metal" you'll find lots of links to microorganisms that tolerate various metals.
            – jamesqf
            Nov 21 at 19:43




            2




            2




            @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
            – theRiley
            Nov 21 at 19:46




            @StephanG - not really. life tends to work fine as long as it isn't poisoned. poisoning usually takes place precisely along these lines - knocking out enzymes, or attacking structure. the only thing reproduction provides is trials for a suitable mutation to do precisely that - alter the enzyme, protect the structure.
            – theRiley
            Nov 21 at 19:46




            1




            1




            @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
            – kingledion
            Nov 22 at 2:44




            @Aethenosity I don't know if it is reasonable to have all heavy metals abundant on a planets surface. There are a lot of heavy metals, and some are much more common than others. My first instinct would be to say that any process that makes iridium or rhodium a common metal would also mean the planet would be made almost entirely of tungsten, barium, and lead. Perhaps that is the basis for another question?
            – kingledion
            Nov 22 at 2:44










            up vote
            1
            down vote













            The creature’s small intestine has a magnetic lining that attracts heavy metals. It removes metals when the food is liquefied, for easy separation. The magnetic field can be created by magnetizing small chunks of iron using electric currents in nerve fibers.






            share|improve this answer

























              up vote
              1
              down vote













              The creature’s small intestine has a magnetic lining that attracts heavy metals. It removes metals when the food is liquefied, for easy separation. The magnetic field can be created by magnetizing small chunks of iron using electric currents in nerve fibers.






              share|improve this answer























                up vote
                1
                down vote










                up vote
                1
                down vote









                The creature’s small intestine has a magnetic lining that attracts heavy metals. It removes metals when the food is liquefied, for easy separation. The magnetic field can be created by magnetizing small chunks of iron using electric currents in nerve fibers.






                share|improve this answer












                The creature’s small intestine has a magnetic lining that attracts heavy metals. It removes metals when the food is liquefied, for easy separation. The magnetic field can be created by magnetizing small chunks of iron using electric currents in nerve fibers.







                share|improve this answer












                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer










                answered Nov 23 at 2:58









                Joseph

                111




                111






















                    up vote
                    -1
                    down vote













                    I would start with the igaunas of Galapagos as a reasonable visual of what some creature plaqued by pesky heavy metals could look like. Constantly excreting the poison through the nose and skin.



                    Of course some metals in microscopic doses are necessary and tolerable. So yes the organ might work which picks up and filters the blood. But really the metal would mostly enter through skin and lungs. So those organs must feature some coating or ingenious enzyme that eats the metal, sends it to another special organ which turns it into energy or poison the animal could use as a defense. Also you could use a magnetic aura against the non-ferrous metal or an acid which dissolves it. And maybe that special organ could have a separate chamber which pools the ferrous metals and excretes them to be harvested by humans or other symbiotic creatures.



                    This feature of metal eating creatures might give them some supernatural abilities. Might even allow them to talk to each other telekinetically, or Have metal skin, poisonous concentrations of saliva, or a lot of other scientific uses.






                    share|improve this answer

















                    • 1




                      note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:43






                    • 1




                      just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:51








                    • 1




                      you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:32








                    • 1




                      all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:53






                    • 1




                      we're done, i think. thanks.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 22 at 1:59















                    up vote
                    -1
                    down vote













                    I would start with the igaunas of Galapagos as a reasonable visual of what some creature plaqued by pesky heavy metals could look like. Constantly excreting the poison through the nose and skin.



                    Of course some metals in microscopic doses are necessary and tolerable. So yes the organ might work which picks up and filters the blood. But really the metal would mostly enter through skin and lungs. So those organs must feature some coating or ingenious enzyme that eats the metal, sends it to another special organ which turns it into energy or poison the animal could use as a defense. Also you could use a magnetic aura against the non-ferrous metal or an acid which dissolves it. And maybe that special organ could have a separate chamber which pools the ferrous metals and excretes them to be harvested by humans or other symbiotic creatures.



                    This feature of metal eating creatures might give them some supernatural abilities. Might even allow them to talk to each other telekinetically, or Have metal skin, poisonous concentrations of saliva, or a lot of other scientific uses.






                    share|improve this answer

















                    • 1




                      note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:43






                    • 1




                      just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:51








                    • 1




                      you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:32








                    • 1




                      all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:53






                    • 1




                      we're done, i think. thanks.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 22 at 1:59













                    up vote
                    -1
                    down vote










                    up vote
                    -1
                    down vote









                    I would start with the igaunas of Galapagos as a reasonable visual of what some creature plaqued by pesky heavy metals could look like. Constantly excreting the poison through the nose and skin.



                    Of course some metals in microscopic doses are necessary and tolerable. So yes the organ might work which picks up and filters the blood. But really the metal would mostly enter through skin and lungs. So those organs must feature some coating or ingenious enzyme that eats the metal, sends it to another special organ which turns it into energy or poison the animal could use as a defense. Also you could use a magnetic aura against the non-ferrous metal or an acid which dissolves it. And maybe that special organ could have a separate chamber which pools the ferrous metals and excretes them to be harvested by humans or other symbiotic creatures.



                    This feature of metal eating creatures might give them some supernatural abilities. Might even allow them to talk to each other telekinetically, or Have metal skin, poisonous concentrations of saliva, or a lot of other scientific uses.






                    share|improve this answer












                    I would start with the igaunas of Galapagos as a reasonable visual of what some creature plaqued by pesky heavy metals could look like. Constantly excreting the poison through the nose and skin.



                    Of course some metals in microscopic doses are necessary and tolerable. So yes the organ might work which picks up and filters the blood. But really the metal would mostly enter through skin and lungs. So those organs must feature some coating or ingenious enzyme that eats the metal, sends it to another special organ which turns it into energy or poison the animal could use as a defense. Also you could use a magnetic aura against the non-ferrous metal or an acid which dissolves it. And maybe that special organ could have a separate chamber which pools the ferrous metals and excretes them to be harvested by humans or other symbiotic creatures.



                    This feature of metal eating creatures might give them some supernatural abilities. Might even allow them to talk to each other telekinetically, or Have metal skin, poisonous concentrations of saliva, or a lot of other scientific uses.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered Nov 21 at 20:15









                    Robus

                    1446




                    1446








                    • 1




                      note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:43






                    • 1




                      just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:51








                    • 1




                      you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:32








                    • 1




                      all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:53






                    • 1




                      we're done, i think. thanks.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 22 at 1:59














                    • 1




                      note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:43






                    • 1




                      just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 20:51








                    • 1




                      you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:32








                    • 1




                      all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 21 at 21:53






                    • 1




                      we're done, i think. thanks.
                      – theRiley
                      Nov 22 at 1:59








                    1




                    1




                    note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 20:43




                    note: metals can't be eaten/digested. they are elements. they can be 'handled' by chelation & excretion, though, as you allude to.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelation
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 20:43




                    1




                    1




                    just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 20:51






                    just be be clear, metals are used as cofactors in enzymes, the alkali metal ions have a variety of uses, but no metal is consumed or digested. the cofactors' capacity for orbital geometry changes associated w/ oxidation state changes are used to modulate protein activity. but the metals are not, in any way, deconstructed. that's all i'm trying to get across.
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 20:51






                    1




                    1




                    you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 21:32






                    you can't digest an element. i'm sorry. digestion implies decomposition.digest 1. break down (food) in the alimentary canal into substances that can be absorbed and used by the body. its the breaking down part that doesn't apply, not the absorb & use part. carry on!
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 21:32






                    1




                    1




                    all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 21:53




                    all metals are elements. i'm not trying to be difficult. this is a fact-based place, and all i'm trying to get across is that metals aren't digested. if this point is coming across that way, I apologize.
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 21 at 21:53




                    1




                    1




                    we're done, i think. thanks.
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 22 at 1:59




                    we're done, i think. thanks.
                    – theRiley
                    Nov 22 at 1:59


















                    draft saved

                    draft discarded




















































                    Thanks for contributing an answer to Worldbuilding Stack Exchange!


                    • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

                    But avoid



                    • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

                    • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.


                    Use MathJax to format equations. MathJax reference.


                    To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.





                    Some of your past answers have not been well-received, and you're in danger of being blocked from answering.


                    Please pay close attention to the following guidance:


                    • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

                    But avoid



                    • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

                    • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.


                    To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.




                    draft saved


                    draft discarded














                    StackExchange.ready(
                    function () {
                    StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fworldbuilding.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f130932%2fwhy-would-a-creature-be-immune-to-heavy-metals%23new-answer', 'question_page');
                    }
                    );

                    Post as a guest















                    Required, but never shown





















































                    Required, but never shown














                    Required, but never shown












                    Required, but never shown







                    Required, but never shown

































                    Required, but never shown














                    Required, but never shown












                    Required, but never shown







                    Required, but never shown







                    Popular posts from this blog

                    Plaza Victoria

                    Puebla de Zaragoza

                    Musa