Groups of 20 male and 20 female Crl:CD(SD)BR rats were exposed to Diba
sic Esters (DBE) at concentrations of 0 (control), 0.16, 0.40 (maximum
attainable vapor), or 1.0 mg/L (aerosol). Exposures were conducted fo
r 6 hours/day, 5 days/week for 14 weeks (pre-breeding) then 7 days/wee
k for 8 weeks (through breeding, gestation, and lactation). The exposu
res were interrupted for female rats between gestation day 19 and post
partum day 3. Gestation day I was defined as the day a copulatory plug
was found, postpartum day I was defined as the day of birth. No signi
ficant differences were observed between control and test rats with re
spect to mating performance, fertility, length of gestation, or progen
y numbers, structure, and viability. Body weights of parental rats and
of their offspring were reduced at 1.0 mg/L. The only histopathologic
changes detected were in the nasal tissues of the parental rats, wher
e an exposure-related increase in squamous metaplasia in the olfactory
epithelium was observed. There was an increase in liver-to-body weigh
t ratios in the two higher parental exposure groups and an increase in
the lung-to-body weight ratio also seen at 1.0 mg/L. It is concluded
that reproduction in rats was not altered by repeated inhalation expos
ure to up to 1.0 mg/L DBE, a concentration that produced both body wei
ght and histologic effects in parental rats.