The effects of ethylene oxide (EO) exposure on tissue glutathione levels in rats and mice.

Male Fischer 344 rats and male Swiss-Webster mice were exposed to different atmospheric concentrations of ethylene oxide (EO) for 4 hours. In mice sacrificed immediately after exposure to 100, 450 or 900 ppm EO, there was a concentration related decrease in the GSH levels of all tissues examined. Similar findings were obtained in rats immediately after exposure to 100, 600 or 1200 ppm EO except that blood GSH levels were not affected at any exposure concentration. In both species, lung and liver GSH levels were depressed at all exposure concentrations. Twenty-four hours after exposure to 1200 ppm EO, the GSH concentrations of rat bone marrow and testis had not returned to control levels. Only blood GSH levels remained depressed in mice 48 hours after exposure to 900 ppm EO. The results indicate a marked species difference between rats and mice regarding the effects of EO exposure on blood GSH levels which may have important toxicological implications.