Disposition and Metabolism of 14C-Solvent Yellow and Solvent Green Aerosols after Inhalation

Solvent yellow (2-(2′-quinolinyl)-1,3-indandione) and solvent green (1,4-di-p-toluidinoanthraquinone) are components of colored smoke munitions and may become airborne and be inhaled by workers during the manufacture of the munitions. Little is known about the disposition of either dye after inhalation. To obtain this information, we exposed male F344N rats to 14C-solvent yellow aerosols (160 nmol solvent yellow/liter air) or a mixture of 14C-solvent yellow and unlabeled solvent green (340 nmol solvent yellow and 370 nmol solvent green/liter air) for 60 min. After either exposure, solvent yellow was rapidly cleared from the respiratory tract, with a t12 of 2–3 hr. Solvent green was retained in the lungs with a minimum estimated t12 for clearance of 22 days. Solvent green was not detected in other tissues during the 70-hr postexposure period. After either exposure, high-pressure liquid chromatography analysis of tissues extracts indicated that 40 to 75% of the 14C in liver and kidney consisted of solvent yellow metabolites. Greater than 90% of the 14C in the lungs was unmetabolized solvent yellow. The major pathway for excretion of solvent yellow and solvent yellow metabolites was the feces (74% of the initial body burden); the t12 for excretion was 14 hr. Urinary 14C accounted for 14% of the initial body burden and the t12 for excretion was 10 hr. Over 90% of the 14C excreted in the urine was solvent yellow metabolites. Very little solvent yellow (2%) was metabolized to 14CO2. By 72 hr after exposure, only 10% of the initial 14C deposited remained in the body.