Case study: fatal poisoning by malathion.

A case involving a fatal poisoning (suicide) by the insecticide malathion is described. The intact insecticide was found in the post-mortem blood and gastric contents at concentrations of 1.8 and 978 micrograms/ml, respectively. None of the insecticide was found in the autopsied liver tissue. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) techniques were used for the identification and quantification of malathion in the body fluids.

Elevated blood lead levels from exposure via a radiator workshop.

Elevated lead levels were discovered in blood samples collected from family members where both the father and the mother worked in a radiator repair workshop. The father and mother were found to have blood lead levels of 2.0 and 0.5 mumol/L (41.7 and 10.4 micrograms/dL), respectively. The father's blood lead level was just below the Canadian occupational health and safety intervention level (2.5 mumol/L or 52.1 micrograms/dL). The two children had blood lead levels of 1.0 and 0.8 mumol/L (20.8 and 16.7 micrograms/dL), both of which are in excess of the recommended guideline for intervention in the case of children (0.5 mumol/L or 10.4 micrograms/dL). The exposure of the two children was possibly due to a combination of pathways including exposure at the workshop itself during visits and also the transportation of lead-containing dust to the home environment.

Determination of copper, manganese and zinc in human liver.

Autopsied liver tissue samples collected from 42 males and 31 females were analyzed for copper, manganese and zinc using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). With the exception of two liver samples for which the copper levels were determined to be 74.8 and 104.0 micrograms/g (dry weight), hepatic copper concentrations were found to range from 1.7 to 32.4 micrograms/g with a mean concentration of 14.2 micrograms/g and standard deviation of 7.0 micrograms/g. Manganese concentrations (with the exception of one sample having 12.9 micrograms/g) ranged from 0.22 to 4.6 micrograms/g with a mean of 2.26 +/- 1.00 micrograms/g. Hepatic zinc levels averaged 118.3 +/- 44.4 micrograms/g and ranged from 38.5 to 231.3 micrograms/g. There were no apparent trends for the levels of any metals versus age nor were there any differences in average hepatic metal concentrations for males and females.

Solid phase extraction of 2,4-D from human urine.

A method for determining urinary concentrations of 2,4-D in samples collected from non-occupationally, environmentally exposed individuals was developed. The 2,4-D was extracted from fortified human urine samples using octadecylsilane solid phase extraction cartridges. The average percent recovery for urine samples spiked at 2 and 20 ng/mL was 100% and 93%, respectively. The method detection limit was estimated to be 0.75 ng of 2,4-D per mL of urine based on a 10 mL sample size. The potential use of 2,4-dichlorophenylacetic acid as a surrogate standard was also investigated.

Normal values for pentachlorophenol in urine samples collected from a general population.

Aliquots of urine samples collected over a 24-h period from normal individuals were analyzed for pentachlorophenol (PCP). Urine samples were taken from subjects living in various regions (both rural and urban) throughout the province of Saskatchewan. Urinary PCP concentrations were determined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and stable isotope dilution. The normal PCP concentrations were found to range from 0.05 to 3.6 ng/mliters. Because the aliquots analyzed were taken from 24-h sample collections, the normal range of PCP excreted on a daily basis was determined. A total of 69 samples taken from 26 males and 43 females who ranged in age from 6 to 87 years were analyzed. The average amount of excreted PCP was determined to be 4.3 nmol/day.

Determination of pentachlorophenol in commercially prepared lyophilized human urine control samples.

Commercially available reference materials consisting of lyophilized human urine are routinely utilized by clinical chemists to monitor laboratory performance for a variety of analyses. In this study commercially prepared lyophilized human urine control samples were reconstituted and analyzed for pentachlorophenol. Based on replicate analyses of two different reference materials, the levels of PCP in each were found to be representative of the levels typically present in urine samples collected from the general population of the province of Saskatchewan.

Determination of aluminum in biological fluids by furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry.

Detailed procedures were developed for the furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry (FAAS) determination of aluminum (Al) in serum, urine, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and proportionated dialysate. Of particular note were the use of Mg (NO3)2.6H2O as a matrix modifier and the employment of the standard additions routine in analysis. The accuracy of the method(s) used is supported by work with assayed controls and by recovery studies. The use of a "clean room" was shown to be unnecessary. Normal serum, urine, and CSF Al ranges observed were 4.8-8.9, 5.1-9.1, and 1.0-5.8 micrograms L-1 respectively.