Copper for treatment of Wilson's disease have been investigated for use in cancer therapy. Copper is an essential trace element in plants and animals, but not all microorganisms. The human body contains copper at a level of about 1.4 to 2.1 mg per kg of body mass. Copper is absorbed in the gut, then transported to the liver bound to albumin. After processing in the liver, copper is distributed to other tissues in a second phase, which involves the protein ceruloplasmin, carrying the majority of copper in blood. Ceruloplasmin also carries the copper that is excreted in milk, and is particularly
Lead and Copper Rule necessarily representative of the lead corrosion potential in a particular water/pipe system, nor did they measure the amount of lead to which customers were exposed. In the second half of the twentieth century, concern was growing about what constituted a safe level of lead. The 1986 Safe Drinking Water Act amendments defined "lead-free" plumbing and prohibited the use of plumbing for public water supply that did not meet the new definition. The amendments also required EPA to set standards limiting the concentration of lead in public water systems. EPA first issued the Lead and Copper Rule on June 7, 1991.