CONTACT ALLERGENS FROM SURFACTANTS - ATMOSPHERIC OXIDATION OF POLYOXYETHYLENE ALCOHOLS, FORMATION OF ETHOXYLATED ALDEHYDES, AND THEIR ALLERGENIC ACTIVITY

Ethoxylated surfactants are susceptible to oxidation upon air exposure . We have previously studied the rate of peroxidation and formaldehyde formation in the chemically well-defined ethoxylated alcohol C12H25(O CH2CH2)(5)OH. Formaldehyde is a common cause of contact allergy. The a im of the present study was to identify other oxidation products that could be formed upon air exposure of the ethoxylated alcohol and to de termine their allergenic activity. It was shown that air oxidation of C12H25(OCH2CH2)(5)OH gave all the theoretically possible aldehydes of the general formula C12H25(OCH2 CH2)(n)OCH2CHO (n = 0-4) and that the major oxidation product was C12H25(OCH2CH2)(4)OCH2CHO, dodecyltetraoxy ethyleneoxyacetaldehyde. The structure elucidation and synthesis of th ese aldehydes are here presented for the first time. The major aldehyd e was shown to be a contact allergen with the same sensitizing capacit y as that of formaldehyde. A dose-response relationship was observed i n the sensitization studies. The allergens were formed from the surfac tant itself and the skin reactions cannot be explained due to any impu rities that may be present in a technical quality of the surfactant. C ases of allergic contact dermatits to ethoxylated surfactants have bee n reported. To avoid the formation of allergenic oxidation products it is important to control the conditions for storage, handling, and tra nsportation of ethoxylated surfactants.