Toxaphene acute toxicity

Table 27.2 Acute Toxicity of Toxaphene to Aquatic Organisms... 

Some human deaths, especially those of children, have been reported following the ingestion of toxaphene-contaminated foods (USEPA 1980a). Known toxaphene residues in food items of victims ranged from 9.7 to 47 mg/kg a total dose of 2 to 7 g of toxaphene is considered acutely toxic to a 70-kg adult. For comparison purposes, a 4.5-kg bird would probably die after consumption of 45 to 450 mg toxaphene (USEPA 1980a). 

The acute and/or chronic nature of the toxicity of a chemical should be part of any decision-making process about its use or subsequent release. The focus cannot be solely on reduction of acute hazards, which tends to be easily achievable. The majority of cases in which chemicals have been released into the environment, only to cause serious ecological impacts over large spatial scales, were usually identified after many years, and at chronic low-dose exposures, with low acute toxicity to nontarget organisms. The classic examples of DDT and other chlorinated pesticides such as dieldrin and toxaphene, along with PCBs, exemplify the flaws in an approach that focuses on acute hazards, with more recent examples being the perfluorinated... 

First toxicological studies with single toxaphene components were carried out in the 1970s to find important relations between structure and toxicity [244]. At that time, the toxic potential of components isolated from technical toxaphene was investigated. The compounds B7-515 (P-32 or Toxicant B) and B8-806/9 (P-42 or Toxicant A) were tested concerning their acute toxicity for fish, rats and insects. 

Toxaphene insecticide contains over 125 distinct Cio-cWoro-compounds, two components of which (a C,oHioCl7 compound and a CiqHj, Cl7 compound) appear to contribute mainly to the acute toxicity of the mixture. Crystal structure analysis establishes the C10H11CI7 component to be 2,2,5-emio,6-exo,8,9,l()-heptachloro-bornane. The crystal structure of the n-n photoproduct (6) obtained from the trans-1,3,5-hexatriene-p-benzoquinone Diels-Alder adduct, reveals the nature of the regiospecific [2 -I- 2] addition. ... 

Acute oral toxicity of toxaphene to birds and mammals... 

Table 27.4 Acute Oral Toxicity of Toxaphene to Birds and Mammals...

Toxicity The acute oral LD50 and dermal LD50 toxicity of toxaphene in rats are 40 and 600 mg/kg, respectively. Toxaphene is an active nerve poison and interferes with fluxes of cations across nerve cell membranes, which increases neuronal irritability and results in convulsions and seizures. Toxaphene also has been found to damage the lungs, liver, and kidney of animals and humans. Although the dermal adsorption efficiency of toxaphene is less than that of other organochlorines, its absorption is enhanced by fat and fat solvents. Toxaphene has been shown to cause cancer in pregnant animals and to induce birth defects.68... 

Warm-blooded organisms are relatively resistant to toxaphene, as determined from results of short-term tests involving oral, dermal, and dietary routes of administration. In acute oral toxicity tests with birds and mammals, LD50 values ranged between 10.0 and... 

Toxaphene is considered to be the most extensively used insecticide in the world. It has been widely used in insect control on cotton and other crops, and in the control of the external insects on livestock [30]. It was banned in the United States in the early 1980s and some time later in Canada and some European countries [31] because of its acute and chronic toxicity to humans, environmental... 

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