Biological methylation of less-studied elements

Abstract

Biological methylation is an enzymatic process in which a methyl group is transferred from one atom to another. For elements having atomic number greater than 11, biological methylation has been most extensively studied for three elements: arsenic, mercury and sulfur. However, many other elements also undergo biological methylation but have received less attention. Recent work on these less-studied elements and new applications of biological methylation to environmental remediation, along with a description of these reactions in terms of bonding models, is the focus of this review. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.