Percutaneous Absorption of Chemical Mixtures Relevant to the Gulf War

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to quantitate the dermal absorption and cutaneous toxicity of chemical mixtures that veterans may have been exposed to during the Persian Gulf War. The primary focus in the first year of this proposal has been on chemical mixtures composed of the insect repellent DEET and the insecticide permethrin exposed in various vehicles. Analytical methods for these penetrants have been developed. These studies were conducted using three in vitro systems of increasing biological complexity: inert silastic and dermatomed pig skin flow-through diffusion cells as well as the isolated perfused porcine skin flap (lPPSF). This allows physical chemical interactions to be separated from those involving the stratum comeum lipid barrier and from true physiological and metabolic effects. Secondly, assays for a number of cytokines (IL-8, TNFalpha, PGE-2) have been developed and utilized as biomarkers of direct toxic effects of these mixtures. These experiments have provided the basis for conducting experiments in the second year of this proposal designed to assess the effect of systemic pyridostigmine on DEET and permethrin absorption, and finally to assess the effects of other organophosphates, jet fuel or sulfur mustard on chemical absorption. Conducting these studies in all three model systems will allow the mechanisms of these interactions to be identified, and extrapolated to additional chemical mixture exposure scenarios.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 01, 2000
Accession Number
ADB253401

Entities

People

  • Jim B. Riviere
  • Nancy Monteiro-riviere
  • Ronald A. Baynes

Organizations

  • North Carolina State University

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Absorption
  • Albumins
  • Biological Markers
  • Biomedical Research
  • Chemical Warfare Agents
  • Chemistry
  • Detectors
  • Diffusion
  • Drug Abuse
  • Epidermis
  • Fuels
  • Insect Repellents
  • Jet Engine Fuels
  • Materials
  • Organophosphates
  • Pesticides
  • Skin

Readers

  • Gulf War Illness and Chronic Multisymptom Illness in Veterans.
  • Toxicology/Environmental Toxicology