Assessment of the potential risk to workers from exposure to 1,3-butadiene

Journal Article · Fri Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 1990 · Environmental Health Perspectives; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.9086159· OSTI ID:6418461

Turnbull, D; Rodricks, J V; Brett, S M ^[1]

---

1. Environ Corporation, Arlington, VA (USA)

The available epidemiologic data provide equivocal evidence that 1,3-butadiene is carcinogenic in humans; some available studies suggest that the lymphopoietic system is a target, but there are inconsistencies among studies in the types of tumors associated with 1,3-butadiene exposure, and there is no evidence of a relationship between length of exposure and cancer risk, as one might expect if there was a true causal relationship between 1,3-butadiene exposure and cancer risk. The available chronic animal studies, however, show an increase in tumor incidence associated with exposure to high concentrations of 1,3-butadiene. In addition to the general uncertainty of the relevance of animal data to humans, there are several additional reasons why the National Toxicology Program's mouse study may not be appropriate for assessing possible human risks. These include: (a) the possible involvement of a species-specific tumor virus (MuLV) in the response in mice; (b) apparent differences between mice and humans in the rate of metabolism of 1,3-butadiene to reactive epoxides that may be proximate carcinogens; (c) use of high dose levels that caused excess early mortality; and (d) exposure of animals to 1,3-butadiene for only about half their lifetime. While recognizing the uncertainty in using the available animal data for risk assessment, we have performed low-dose extrapolation of the data to examine the implications of the data if humans were as sensitive as rats or mice to 1,3-butadiene, and to examine how the predictions of the animal data compare to that observed in the epidemiologic studies. With the mouse data, because the study was of less than lifetime duration, we have used the Hartley-Sielken time-to-tumor model to permit estimation of lifetime risk from the less than lifetime exposure of the study.52 references.

• OSTI ID: 6418461
• Journal Information: Environmental Health Perspectives; (USA), Journal Name: Environmental Health Perspectives; (USA) Vol. 86; ISSN 0091-6765; ISSN EVHPA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

560300* -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
BUTADIENE
CARCINOGENESIS
DIENES
DISEASES
DOCUMENT TYPES
HYDROCARBONS
MAMMALS
METABOLISM
MICE
MORTALITY
NEOPLASMS
OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PATHOGENESIS
PERSONNEL
POLYENES
REVIEWS
RISK ASSESSMENT
RODENTS
VERTEBRATES