J. W. Daniel
Aug 1, 1963
Citations
0
Influential Citations
131
Citations
Quality indicators
Journal
Biochemical pharmacology
Abstract
Abstract 38 Cl-labelled tri- and tetrachloroethylene were synthesized and fed to rats. The partition of radioactivity in urine, faeces and expired air was subsequently measured and the nature and amount of individual metabolites determined. The specific activities of metabolic trichloroacetic acid and trichloroethanol were shown to be the same as that of the administered trichloroethylene thus demonstrating an intramolecular rearrangement of chloride. About 15 per cent of the dose of trichloroethylene was excreted in the urine. Tetrachloroethylene underwent little metabolism and only 2 per cent of the radioactivity was excreted in the urine. Both trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene are largely excreted through the lungs although there is an appreciable difference between the rates of excretion of the two compounds. Tetrachloroethylene has no effect on the liver-lipid content of rats exposed to high concentrations (1000 p.p.m.) of the vapour. A scheme is presented which would account for the formation of the known metabolites of both tri- and tetrachloroethylene.