Tissue distribution and urinary excretion of inorganic arsenic and its methylated metabolites in mice following acute oral administration of arsenate

Toxicol Sci. 2005 May;85(1):468-75. doi: 10.1093/toxsci/kfi107. Epub 2005 Feb 9.

Abstract

The relationship of exposure dose and tissue concentration of parent chemical and metabolites is a critical issue in cases where toxicity may be mediated by a metabolite or by parent chemical and metabolite acting together. This has emerged as an issue for inorganic arsenic (iAs), because both its trivalent and pentavalent methylated metabolites have unique toxicities; the methylated trivalent metabolites also exhibit greater potency than trivalent inorganic arsenic (arsenite, As(III)) for some endpoints. In this study, the time-course tissue distributions for iAs and its methylated metabolites were determined in blood, liver, lung, and kidney of female B6C3F1 mice given a single oral dose of 0, 10, or 100 micromol As/kg (sodium arsenate, As(V)). Compared to other organs, blood concentrations of iAs, mono- (MMA), and dimethylated arsenic (DMA) were uniformly lower across both dose levels and time points. Liver and kidney concentrations of iAs were similar at both dose levels and peaked at 1 h post dosing. Inorganic As was the predominant arsenical in liver and kidney up to 1 and 2 h post dosing, with 10 and 100 micromol As/kg, respectively. At later times, DMA was the predominant metabolite in liver and kidney. By 1 h post dosing, concentrations of MMA in kidney were 3- to 4-fold higher compared to other tissues. Peak concentrations of DMA in kidney were achieved at 2 h post dosing for both dose levels. Notably, DMA was the predominant metabolite in lung at all time points following dosing with 10 micromol As/kg. DMA concentration in lung equaled or exceeded that of other tissues from 4 h post dosing onward for both dose levels. These data demonstrate distinct organ-specific differences in the distribution and methylation of iAs and its methylated metabolites after exposure to As(V) that should be considered when investigating mechanisms of arsenic-induced toxicity and carcinogenicity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Administration, Oral
  • Animals
  • Arsenates / blood
  • Arsenates / pharmacokinetics
  • Arsenates / urine*
  • Arsenicals / urine*
  • Cacodylic Acid / urine*
  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • Female
  • Inactivation, Metabolic
  • Kidney / metabolism
  • Liver / metabolism
  • Lung / metabolism
  • Methylation
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred Strains
  • Time Factors
  • Tissue Distribution

Substances

  • Arsenates
  • Arsenicals
  • Cacodylic Acid
  • monomethylarsonic acid