METABOLIC FATE OF ABATE INSECTICIDE IN RAT

The fate of tritium-labeled Abate insecticide, O,O,O′,O′-tetramethyl O,O′-thiodi-p-phenylene phosphorothioate, was determined when administered orally in sesame oil to rats. Fecal and urinary routes were the principal means of elimination over a 48- to 72-hour period. Gross radioactivity levels in the blood peaked between 5 and 8 hours after ingestion and dissipated with a half life of approximately 10 hours. Appreciable residual levels of radioactivity were found only in the gastrointestinal tract and fatty tissue. Injfeces and in fatty tissue the radioactivity was due principally to unchanged Abate insecticide, with minor amounts of its sulfoxide derivative also present. While traces of Abate were found in urine, the principal urinary metabolic products were sulfate ester conjugates of the phenolic hydrolysis products 4,4′-thiodiphenol, 4,4′-sulfinyldiphenol, and 4,4 ′-sulfonyldiphenol. © 1969, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.