SUBCHRONIC INHALATION TOXICITY STUDY OF 2-ETHYLHEXANOL VAPOR IN RATS

A 90-day subchronic inhalation toxicity study was performed on Wister rats in accordance to OECD testing guidelines to evaluate the toxicolo gical profile of 12-ethylhexanol, potential target organs, and a no-ob servable-adverse-effect-level (NOAEL). 10 males and 10 females per gro up were exposed to 2-ethylhexanol vapours at concentrations of 15, 40 and 120 ppm (the latter corresponding to the vapour saturation at 20 d egrees C) 6 hours/day for 90 days. The respective controls inhaled cle an air under the same conditions. No substance-related adverse effedts were observed for body weight, body weight gain, mortality, organ wei ghts, clinical biochemistry and haematological parameters including cl otting time. Cyanide-insensitive palmitoyl-CoA oxidation, a marker for peroxisome proliferation, was found elevated in a subchronic study in Fischer 344 rats after gavage application of 500 mg/kg but not under the conditions of this 90-day subchronic inhalation study. There were no findings related to the treatment with 2-ethylhexanol either at nec ropsy or at histological examination. The highest concentration tested under these conditions (120 ppm) was found to be the NOAEL for male a nd female rats. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.