Cutaneous uptake of C-14-HD vapor by the hairless guinea pig

The hairless guinea pig (HGP) is used by our laboratory to model the human cutaneous response to sulfur mustard (HD), bis(2-chloroethylsulfide), expos ure. We determined the HD content in the skin of HGP after a 7-min exposure to vapors saturated with a mixture of HD and C-14-HD. Concentration/time ( C-T) values in the range of 2 mu g/cm(2)/min were determined by counting sk in C-14 disintegrations per min (dpm) in animals euthanized immediately aft er exposure. These values are similar to human penetration rates obtained b y other investigators. A rate curve monitoring the reduction in skirt C-14 dpm was developed for animals euthanized between 0 and 24 hp post-exposure. This curve showed the greatest change after I hr. The epidermal (62%) to d ermal (38%) ratio of C-14 at 24 hr was measured for two animals. We saw no site preference for HD penetration among the 8 sites used. The C-14 content of template adhesive tape was determined to follow HD distribution. These results contribute to a better understanding of the cutaneous response to H D in the HGP model.