Determination of acetonitrile and cyanide in rat blood: application to an experimental study.

Methods were developed for the analysis of acetonitrile and its metabolite cyanide in the blood of rats exposed to acetonitrile. Acetonitrile was analyzed by the headspace technique coupled to gas chromatography with detection by flame ionization, and cyanide was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (lambdaex = 418 nm and lambdaem = 460 nm) after derivatization of the ion with naphthalene 2,3-dicarboxyaldehyde and taurine. The quantitation limits of the methods for the analysis of acetonitrile and cyanide were 4.875 microg/mL and 0.025 microg/mL, respectively. The coefficients of variation of 10% or less obtained for intra- and interassay precision indicate the precision of these analytical methods and the systematic errors, all less than 5%, indicate that the methods are quite accurate. The methods were applied to an experimental study after the animals received acetonitrile at the doses of 2 mmol/kg or 5 mmol/kg.

Cyanide determination in biological fluids using a microdiffusion method with a flow system and polarographic detection.

The report describes a method for the automated polarographic determination of cyanide as tetracyanonickelate (II) anion complex in a gas-diffusion flow system. The volatile cyanide, existing in whole blood, plasma and urine samples, was measured after gas-diffusion using 8 x 10-5 mol l-1 hexaaminenickel solution as acceptor. The linear range of calibration, for measurements at the hanging mercury-drop electrode (HMDE), was from 0.1 to 2.0 micrograms cyanide with r = 0.998. The RSD was, respectively, 3.4 and 1.2% (n = 5) for 0.4 microgram cyanide measured with and without the flow-system configuration. Detection limits of 7.4 microgram l-1 were calculated using the flow system and the method was compared with the classical method using Cavet flasks. Parameters that affect the cyanide determination in the proposed method, such as acceptor solution, pH, flow rate and temperature, were investigated.

Toxicologic findings in the USS Iowa disaster.

The toxicologic results from the 47 victims of the explosion on the USS Iowa are presented. Good correlation between carboxyhemoglobin saturations and cause of death was found. There were no correlations between blood cyanide concentrations and causes of death. Volatile analysis suggested postmortem ethanol production rather than antemortem ethanol ingestion. No drugs except nicotine were detected in any of the victims.

Cyanide intoxication--III. On the analogous and different effects provoked by non-lethal and lethal challenged doses.

1. The effect of acute cyanide administration to mice in a lethal and a non-lethal dose and the anti-cyanide effect of S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) and thiosulphate were investigated. 2. The poisoning action was determined by measuring cytochrome oxidase, rhodanese and delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALA-D) activity. 3. The toxic metabolizing degree was investigated by measuring plasma and urine thiocyanate levels. 4. The state of the sulfane sulfur pool was investigated by determining cyanide labile-sulfur levels. 5. These results support the belief that rhodanese plays a fundamental role in the detoxification process only when high levels of cyanide are administered.