Lower fiducial limit of urinary metabolite level as an index of excessive exposure to industrial chemicals

Imamura, T., and Ikeda, M. (1973).British Journal of Industrial Medicine,30, 289-292. Lower fiducial limit of urinary metabolite level as an index of excessive exposure to industrial chemicals. Utilization of the lower fiducial limit (P = 0·10), rather than the mean, as an index of excessive exposure to industrial chemicals is discussed. Cases of exposure to trichloroethylene, phenol, and toluene are used to illustrate this approach.

Urinary excretion of total trichloro-compounds, trichloroethanol, and trichloroacetic acid as a measure of exposure to trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene

Ikeda, M., Ohtsuji, H., Imamura, T., and Komoike, Y. (1972).Brit. J. industr. Med.,29, 328-333. Urinary excretion of total trichloro-compounds, trichloroethanol, and trichloroacetic acid as a measure of exposure to trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene. To investigate the relation between trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene concentrations in working environments and metabolite concentrations in urine, a series of surveys was conducted at 17 workshops where the vapour concentration in the air of each workshop was relatively constant. Urine samples collected from 85 male workers were analysed for total trichloro-compounds (TTC), and trichloroacetic acid (TCA). Trichloroethanol (TCE) was estimated by difference. Statistical analyses of the data revealed that the urinary concentrations of both TTC and TCE were proportional to the atmospheric concentration of trichloroethylene. The concentration of TCA was also related to the vapour concentration up to 50 p.p.m. but not at higher concentrations. Further calculations suggested that only one-third of the trichloroethylene absorbed through the lungs was excreted in the urine during working time. In tetrachloroethylene exposure, urinary metabolite levels increased until the atmospheric concentration of the solvent reached 50 to 100 p.p.m., but little increase occurred at higher concentration. This observation was further confirmed by experimental exposure of rats. The toxicological significance of changes in the metabolism of the two solvents is discussed in relation to the possible necessity of reducing the threshold limit value from the current value of 100 p.p.m.

Hemoglobin Yoshizuka (G10(108)beta asparagine--aspartic acid): a new variant with a reduced oxygen affinity from a Japanese family

During the course of a survey, a new hemoglobin, designated hemoglobin Yoshizuka, has been encountered in a Japanese family. Clinically, mild anemia was noted in five of six heterozygous individuals but no other significant abnormalities were found. Hemoglobin Yoshizuka is characterized by the substitution of aspartic acid for asparagine at the tenth residue of the G helix in the beta-chain. Reduced oxygen affinity with almost normal heme-heme interaction was found to be a property of this abnormal hemoglobin. The asparagine residue G10(108)beta lies in the internal cavity of the tetrameric molecule and its main chain carbonyl is thought to be hydrogen bonded to histidine G10(103)alpha at the region of contact between alpha- and beta-chains. It would appear likely that the introduction of a carboxyl group into the central cavity might result in interactions between the polar groups and the substituted side chain, disrupting the system of hydrogen bonds which contribute to the stability of the contacts between unlike subunits.

Hemoglobin Kagoshima: an example of hemoglobin Norfolk in a Japanese family

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