This report contains the collective views of an international group of experts and does not necessarily represent the decisions or the stated policy of the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Labour Organization, or the World Health Organization. Concise International Chemical Assessment Document 47 ARSINE: HUMAN HEALTH ASPECTS Please note that the layout and pagination of this pdf file are not necessarily identical to the printed hard copy First draft prepared by S. Czerczak, The Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz, Poland; second draft prepared by L. Fishbein, Fairfax, Virginia, USA Published under the joint sponsorship of the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Labour Organization, and the World Health Organization, and produced within the framework of the Inter-Organization Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals. World Health Organization Geneva, 2002 The International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS), established in 1980, is a joint venture of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the World Health Organization (WHO). The overall objectives of the IPCS are to establish the scientific basis for assessment of the risk to human health and the environment from exposure to chemicals, through international peer review processes, as a prerequisite for the promotion of chemical safety, and to provide technical assistance in strengthening national capacities for the sound management of chemicals. The Inter-Organization Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals (IOMC) was established in 1995 by UNEP, ILO, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, WHO, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (Participating Organizations), following recommendations made by the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development to strengthen cooperation and increase coordination in the field of chemical safety. The purpose of the IOMC is to promote coordination of the policies and activities pursued by the Participating Organizations, jointly or separately, to achieve the sound management of chemicals in relation to human health and the environment. WHO Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Arsine: Human health aspects. (Concise international chemical assessment document ; 47) 1.Arsenic - toxicity 2.Arsenic - poisoning 3.Arsenic - physiology 4.Occupational exposure 5.Environmental exposure 6.Hazardous substances - adverse effects I.International Programme on Chemical Safety II.Series ISBN 92 4 153047 2 (NLM Classification: QV 294) ISSN 1020-6167 The World Health Organization welcomes requests for permission to reproduce or translate its publications, in part or in full. Applications and enquiries should be addressed to the Office of Publications, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, which will be glad to provide the latest information on any changes made to the text, plans for new editions, and reprints and translations already available. ©World Health Organization 2002 Publications of the World Health Organization enjoy copyright protection in accordance with the provisions of Protocol 2 of the Universal Copyright Convention. All rights reserved. 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Printed by Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, D-70009 Stuttgart 10 TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD.....................................................................................................................................................................1 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................................................4 2. IDENTITY AND PHYSICAL/CHEMICAL PROPERTIES ....................................................................................5 3. ANALYTICAL METHODS...........................................................................................................................................5 4. SOURCES OF HUMAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE.......................................................................6 5. ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION, AND TRANSFORMATION.....................................6 6. ENVIRONMENTAL LEVELS AND HUMAN EXPOSURE.................................................................................6 6.1 Environmental levels ............................................................................................................................................6 6.2 Human exposure ...................................................................................................................................................7 7. COMPARATIVE KINETICS AND METABOLISM IN LABORATORY ANIMALS AND HUMANS.....8 7.1 Animal studies.......................................................................................................................................................8 7.2 Human studies.......................................................................................................................................................9 7.3 Biological monitoring ..........................................................................................................................................9 8. EFFECTS ON LABORATORY MAMMALS AND IN VITRO TEST SYSTEMS...........................................10 8.1 Single exposure ...................................................................................................................................................10 8.2 Repeated exposure..............................................................................................................................................11 8.3 Carcinogenicity ...................................................................................................................................................12 8.4 Skin and eye irritation and sensitization .........................................................................................................12 8.5 Reproductive toxicity.........................................................................................................................................12 8.6 Genotoxicity.........................................................................................................................................................12 8.7 Mechanisms of toxicity/mode of action..........................................................................................................12 9. EFFECTS ON HUMANS..............................................................................................................................................13 9.1 Acute poisoning..................................................................................................................................................13 9.1.1 Immediate effects....................................................................................................................................13 9.1.2 Late effects...............................................................................................................................................14 9.2 Long-term exposure ...........................................................................................................................................14 9.3 Effects on individual organs .............................................................................................................................14 9.3.1 Blood and haematopoietic tissue .........................................................................................................14 9.3.2 Kidneys.....................................................................................................................................................15 9.3.3 Liver..........................................................................................................................................................15 9.3.4 Nervous system.......................................................................................................................................16 9.3.5 Respiratory and circulatory systems ....................................................................................................16 9.4 Reproductive toxicity.........................................................................................................................................16 9.5 Carcinogenicity ...................................................................................................................................................16 iii Concise International Chemical Assessment