H. B. Matthews

Diethanolamine absorption, metabolism and disposition in rat and mouse following oral, intravenous and dermal administration

1. The disposition of [14C]diethanolamine (DEA) (1) was determined in rat after oral, i.v. and dermal administration, and in mouse after dermal administration. 2. Oral administration of DEA to rat was by gavage of 7 mg/kg doses once and after daily repeat dosing for up to 8 weeks. Oral doses were well absorbed but excreted very slowly. DEA accumulated to high concentrations in certain tissues, particularly liver and kidney. The steady-state of bioaccumulation was approached only after several weeks of repeat oral dosing, and the half-life of elimination was approximately 1 week. 3. DEA was slowly absorbed through the skin of rat (3-16% in 48 h) after application of 2-28 mg/kg doses. Dermal doses ranging from 8 to 80 mg/kg were more readily absorbed through mouse skin (25-60%) in 48 h of exposure, with the percent of the applied dose absorbed increasing with dose. 4. Single doses (oral or i.v.) of DEA were excreted slowly in urine (c. 22-25% in 48 h) predominantly as the parent compound. There was minimal conversion to CO2 or volatile metabolites in breath. The profile of metabolites appearing in urine changed after several weeks of repeat oral administration, with significant amounts of N-methylDEA and more cationic metabolites appearing along with unchanged DEA.

Comparative metabolism and disposition of ethoxyquin in rat and mouse. II. Metabolism

1. The major pathways of ethoxyquin (EQ) metabolism in both the rat and mouse are O-deethylation and conjugation to endogenous substrates. 2. The two major EQ-derived metabolites excreted in rat urine were in the form of sulphate conjugates, 1,2-dihydro-6-hydroxy-2,2,4-trimethylquinoline sulphate, and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-3,6-dihydroxy-4-methylene-2,2-dimethylquinoline sulphate. The latter apparently arises from an intramolecular rearrangement of the 3,4-epoxide of ethoxyquin. 3. Mouse urine contained one major glucuronide, 1,2-dihydro-6-hydroxy-2,2,4-trimethylquinoline glucuronide as well as one major sulphate conjugate, 1,2-dihydro-6-hydroxy-2,2,4-trimethylquinoline sulphate. 4. EQ-derived radioactivity was excreted in rat bile, mainly as GSH conjugates, with little unchanged EQ present. Two of the biliary metabolites are glutathione conjugates of ethoxyquin 3,4-epoxide; the third appears to be a conjugate of either ethoxyquin 7,8-epoxide or 2,2,4-trimethylquinol-6-one.

Metabolism and disposition of luminol in the rat.

1. The metabolism and disposition of Luminol (LMN, 3-aminophthalhydrazide), a widely used forensic and laboratory reagent that chemiluminesses upon oxidation, was determined as part of its overall toxicological characterization. 2. Radiolabelled LMN was well absorbed, metabolized and excreted following p.o. administration of a range of doses. About 90% of the total dose was recovered within 24 h of administration in urine in the form of two metabolites identified as LMN N8-glucuronide and LMN N8-sulphamic acid. 3-Aminophthalic acid, the oxidative product of LMN in the light-emitting reaction, was apparently not formed in vivo. 3. Metabolism and disposition of an i.v. administered dose was similar to that following gavage. Little or no LMN-derived radioactivity was present in tissue within 12 h post-dosing. Excretion of radioactivity in bile following i.v. injection was minimal (~8% of the total dose in 6 h) and consisted of the same urinary-excreted glucuronide and sulphate conjugates. 4. LMN was not absorbed dermally in rat, potentially a major route of exposure to human. If the fate of LMN is similar between species, this compound should have little potential for either dermal absorption, bioaccumulation in tissues following other routes of exposure or chronic toxicity in humans.

Hair and its Associated Lipids as an Excretory Pathway for Chlorinated Hydrocarbons

1. Chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticides and other halogenated compounds, probably biphenyls, were found to be associated with human hair at concentrations less than 1 p.p.m. 2. In experiments with rats, chlorinated 14C-hydrocarbon insecticides and polychlorinated biphenyls were excreted in hair in all instances, but excretion was less with the more labile compounds. 3. Excretion via hair may be a significant factor in eliminating chlorinated hydrocarbons which resist metabolism.

Disposition of 2,4-dinitroaniline in the male F-344 rat

The disposition and metabolism of 2,4-dinitroaniline was studied in male F-344 rats following oral and i.v. administration. Gastrointestinal absorption was near complete and was not affected by dose (10-90 mumol/kg). Following either oral or i.v. administration, dinitroaniline was rapidly distributed throughout the tissues and showed no marked affinity for any particular tissue. 14C-dinitroaniline was readily cleared by metabolism to at least nine metabolites; radioactivity was excreted primarily in urine (70% dose) and to a lesser extent in faeces (25-30% dose). Clearance of radioactivity from the body was near complete in 3 days. As the whole-body half-life of dinitroaniline derived radioactivity in the rat was less than 3 h and there was no evidence for saturation of any mechanism of absorption, distribution, metabolism or excretion in the dose range studied, 2,4-dinitroaniline appears to have little potential for bioaccumulation in animal tissues. Analysis of urine and bile detected nine metabolites of 2,4-dinitroaniline. The major metabolite was excreted in urine as a sulphate conjugate and in bile as a glucuronide. This metabolite was characterized by combined h.p.l.c./mass spectrometry as 2,4-dinitrophenylhydroxylamine.

Comparative metabolism and disposition of ethoxyquin in rat and mouse. I. Disposition

1. The biological fate of the antioxidant [3-14C]ethoxyquin (EQ) was investigated in the male F344 rat and the B6C3F1 mouse following either p.o. or i.v. administration. 2. The disposition of single doses up to 25 mg/kg was similar in the rat and mouse. About 90% of a total dose was excreted in urine and faeces within 24 h post-dosing. In contrast, no more than 60% of a higher dose of 250 mg/kg was excreted within 24 h following p.o. administration. 3. Metabolism of EQ was rapid in both the rat and mouse following either p.o. or i.v. administration. Little or no parent compound was detected in cumulative 24-h excreta. 5. EQ-derived radioactivity bioaccumulated in some tissues following repeated exposure to rat of either 25 or 250 mg/kg by gavage. However, the fold-increases in concentrations of EQ-derived radioactivity in tissues following repeated administration of the higher dose were generally less than those observed following repeated administration of the lower dose. Repeated high dose administration may overcome delayed gastric emptying (observed following single dose administration of 250 mg/kg) and/or lead to auto-induction of EQ metabolism.

Toxicokinetics of the cholinomimetic compound benzyltrimethylammonium chloride in the male rat and mouse

1. Benzyltrimethylammonium chloride (BTMAC)-derived radioactivity was rapidly eliminated from the F344 rat and the B6C3F1 mouse following p.o. administration of 0.63-63 mg/kg of [ring-U-14C] BTMAC. Greater than 90% of the radioactivity was excreted in urine and faeces within 24-h post-dosing. 2. BTMAC was poorly to moderately absorbed from the GI tract following p.o. administration. The percent of total dose absorbed did not exceed either 40% in the rat or 15% in the mouse. 3. Absorption was linear, but limited, over time following dermal administration of 63 mg/kg to the rat. Less than 10% of the total dose was absorbed from the skin within 24 h of BTMAC application. 4. Metabolism of BTMAC was minimal in both the rat and mouse. Toxicity (excessive cholinergic stimulation and mortality) appears to be attributable to the parent compound. 5. The limited absorption and rapid elimination of BTMAC should result in little or no bioaccumulation in tissues following repeated exposure to low levels of this compound. The results suggest that greater human health risks may be associated with acute high level exposure rather than chronic low level exposure.