Health assessment of gasoline and fuel oxygenate vapors: Developmental toxicity in rats

• Published in: Regulatory toxicology and pharmacology 2014-11, Vol.70 (2), p.S69-S79
• Main Authors: Roberts, Linda G., Gray, Thomas M., Trimmer, Gary W., Parker, Robert M., Murray, F. Jay, Schreiner, Ceinwen A., Clark, Charles R.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air Pollutants - toxicity; Animals; Developmental toxicity; Diisopropyl ether (DIPE); Ethanol (EtOH); Ethyl t-butyl ether (ETBE); Evaporative emissions; Female; Fetal Development - drug effects; Fetal Weight - drug effects; Fuel oxygenates; Gasoline - toxicity; Gasoline vapor condensates; Inhalation; Male; Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE); Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Risk Assessment; t-Amyl methyl ether (TAME); t-Butyl alcohol (TBA); Toxicity Tests
• ISSN: 0273-2300; 1096-0295
• DOI: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2014.05.009

•Gasoline or gasoline/oxygenate vapor condensates tested for developmental toxicity.•Inhalation exposure of rats was 2000, 10,000 or 20,000mg/m3 from GD 5 to 20.•Decreased body weight/weight gain and food consumption seen in maternal rats.•Decreased fetal body weights seen in G/TAME, G/TBA and G/DIPE animals.•Increased number of stunted fetuses in G/TAME; increased skeletal variations in G/TBA. Gasoline-vapor condensate (BGVC) or condensed vapors from gasoline blended with methyl t-butyl ether (G/MTBE), ethyl t-butyl ether (G/ETBE), t-amyl methyl ether (G/TAME) diisopropyl ether (G/DIPE), ethanol (G/EtOH), or t-butyl alcohol (G/TBA) were evaluated for developmental toxicity in Sprague–Dawley rats exposed via inhalation on gestation days (GD) 5–20 for 6h/day at levels of 0 (control filtered air), 2000, 10,000, and 20,000mg/m3. These exposure durations and levels substantially exceed typical consumer exposure during refueling (