Relative distribution of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin in human hepatic and adipose tissues.

Paired human hepatic and adipose tissues from 26 people were assayed for 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD). On a whole tissue weight basis, TCDD concentration in the liver was about one-tenth that in the adipose tissue. When expressed in total tissue lipid basis, the TCDD concentrations in the liver and adipose tissue were about equal. At low levels of exposure, presumably below those necessary to cause hepatic enzyme induction, TCDD appeared to be partitioning into the human liver predominantly on the basis of its lipid solubility in that tissue store. The partitioning behavior of TCDD in the livers of humans exposed to higher levels of TCDD is currently unclear.