Abstract
Exposure to the phenoxy acid herbicides 4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetic acid (MCPA), 2-(4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy)propanoic acid (mecoprop), and 2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)propanoic acid (dichlorprop) was evaluated in workers employed on 17 farms by urinalysis of the parent chemicals and their metabolites. The excretion was compared with the percutaneous absorption determined by epicutaneous sampling and with the inhaled dose analyzed by air samples collected at the breathing zone. The percutaneous route of the absorbed dose accounted for 88% of the excretion of the three chemicals. The biological half-life of MCPA was determined at three dose levels. It proved to be dose-dependent and could be resolved in two phases by mathematical simulation. The initial t1/2 varied between 12–30 hr and the second t1/2 36–39 hr. The peak urinary herbicide concentrations were found in most cases 12 hr after the end of the exposure, and they were associated with increased excretion of sodium and potassium ions. This indicates that the kidney ion transport is the only detectable physiological effect at these low levels of exposure and caused by the fact that the kidneys virtually concentrate the agents for their excretion.
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Manninen, A., Kangas, J., Klen, T. et al. Exposure of finnish farm workers to phenoxy acid herbicides. Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 15, 107–111 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01055255
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01055255