Abstract
1 Föst et al. ( Human & Experimental Toxicology 1991; 10: 25) have shown that ethylene oxide (EO) added to human blood gave rise to a higher level of adducts to haemoglobin (Hb) when the donors were deficient in an erythrocytic glutathione S-transferase (GST, later found to be GST-theta) than in blood from persons pos sessing this enzyme, and drew the conclusion that this polymorphism in detoxification rendered Hb adducts less suitable for biological monitoring.
2 By fitting a kinetic model to the data, the present study shows that the Hb adduct level gives a correct measure of the dose (concentration integrated over time) rele vant to risk estimation.
3 It does illustrate, however, the importance of knowing an individual's detoxification efficiency, when Hb adduct measurements are used to assess environmen tal exposure, for example in occupational surveillance.
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