Metabolism and distribution of 3,4-epithiobutanenitrile in the rat.

The metabolism and distribution of [2-14C]- and 35S-labelled 3,4-epithiobutanenitrile (4ETN), a thiirane occurring naturally in cruciferous vegetables, was studied in the rat. A dose of c. 11 mg 4ETN/kg body weight was rapidly transformed into water-soluble compounds and was mainly excreted in the urine, irrespective of the route of administration (oral or ip). The main metabolite in the urine was identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry as a mercapturic acid derivative. Low residual radioactivity demonstrated in organs 72 hr after administration was consistent with an earlier report that the thiirane may function as a weak biological alkylating agent.

Dose dependence of the excretion of maneb metabolites in urine of rats.

14C-activity in the urine of female rats appeared to be independent of dose when single oral doses of [14C]maneb, a fungicide, manganese ethylene-bis(dithiocarbamate), were given. This was found with [14C]maneb synthesized from [U-14C]ethylenediamine. In the dose range, 23 microgram/kg to 1.4 g/kg of maneb, the excreted activity in urine of 39 female rats was 48.8 +/- 12.6% (n=39).