Decorporation of plutonium by oral administration of a partially lipophilic polyaminocarboxylic acid.

A new, orally administered, partially lipophilic polyaminocarboxylic acid chelator was tested for its ability to remove incorporated 239Pu deposits in rats. Animals were injected with 239Pu-citrate and 14 d later were treated for an additional 10 d with docosyl-triethylenetetraminepentaacetic acid (C22TT) added to the diet. There were significant reductions in the 239Pu content of selected organs in the chelated animals compared with controls. These results suggest that this class of chelators should be studied further for their ability to remove plutonium deposits from the body when given orally.