Phosphine

Repeated dose toxicity: oral

Administrative data

Endpoint:

chronic toxicity: oral

Type of information:

experimental study

Adequacy of study:

other information

Reliability:

3 (not reliable)

Rationale for reliability incl. deficiencies:

other: Deficiencies: any identifiable toxic effect could be attributed to residus of undecomposed aluminium phosphinde, phosphine, reaction products formed with the food.

Data source

Reference

Reference Type:

publication

Title:

Chronic ingestion by rats of standard diet treated with aluminium phosphide

Author:

Hackenberg U.

Year:

1972

Bibliographic source:

Toxicol. appl. Pharmacol., 23: 147-158

Materials and methods

Test guideline

Qualifier:

equivalent or similar to guideline

Guideline:

OECD Guideline 453 (Combined Chronic Toxicity / Carcinogenicity Studies)

Deviations:

yes

Remarks:

Only one dose with important variation and 30 rats per dose.

GLP compliance:

no

Limit test:

no

Test material

Test material information

Constituent 1

Reference substance name:

Preparation of fumigation

IUPAC Name:

Preparation of fumigation

Details on test material:

Diet fumigated with phastoxin. After fumigation, the diet was tumbled for 2 hours to yield a constant mixing effect. The diet was then aerated for an hour period.

Test animals

Species:

rat

Strain:

Wistar

Sex:

male/female

Administration / exposure

Route of administration:

oral: feed

Vehicle:

unchanged (no vehicle)

Duration of treatment / exposure:

2 years

Frequency of treatment:

The animals had continuous access to the diet.

Doses / concentrations

Remarks:

Doses / Concentrations:
0.996 mg/kg diet
Basis:
other: mean phosphine analytic concentration in feed

No. of animals per sex per dose:

30 rats per sex

Control animals:

yes, concurrent no treatment

Results and discussion

Effect levels

Dose descriptor:

NOAEL

Effect level:

0.996 mg/kg diet

Based on:

act. ingr.

Sex:

male/female

Basis for effect level:

other: Levels of phosphine remaining in the treated diets ranged from 0.377 mg/kg diet to 7.50 mg/kg diet.

Target system / organ toxicity

Critical effects observed:

not specified

Applicant's summary and conclusion

Conclusions:

No effects dose level for rats fed with diet fumigated over a 2-year period wasobserved.
A statistically insignificant tendency for test females to gain weight faster than their control counterparts was found. There were no other differences between controls and treated rats in hemoglobin content, hematocrit, differential white blood cell count, glucose levels, SGPT, serum urea, prothrombin time, organ weights, or tissue histopathology. Survival rates and tumor incidences were similar between controls and experimental animals.