Dieldrin accumulation and excretion by rats fed phenobarbital and carbon

Summary

Activated charcoal and phenobarbital have both been proposed as agents for reducing accumulations of dieldrin in the body. Rats maintained on diets containing 2 ppm dieldrin spiked with dieldrin-¹⁴c were fed 0 and 1 g charcoal and 0, 40, and 80 mg phenobarbital per kg body weight in 2×3 factorial experiments. Measurements were made of the carbon-14 accumulated in the carcasses and excreted in the feces and urine. In one experiment, charcoal effectively reduced dieldrin storage in tissues when fed simultaneously with the pesticide; but, in another experiment, it was ineffective in reducing dieldrin residues when fed after storage of the pesticide had occurred and dieldrin feeding was stopped. Phenobarbital, a potent inducer of drugmetabolizing enzymes in the liver, dramatically reduced dieldrin storage whether fed simultaneously with dieldrin or following dieldrin accumulation.