Fatal Accidental Ingestion of Carbon Tetrachloride: A Postmortem Distribution Study

Abstract

This paper reports a fatality involving a 75-year-old white male, who ingested an unknown quantity of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)—a toxic agent able to induce central neryous system depression and severe renal and hepatic damage—and who died after two days of intensive care. The analytical assessment of CCl4 concentration was performed on several biological fluids and tissues employing gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) head space method. Both urine (328.5 mg/L) and bile (169.8 mg/L) had high concentrations of CCl4, proving that the chemical undergoes extensive urinary and biliary excretion. In accordance with the high clearance power of lungs, systemic venous blood, (143.4 mg/L) had a concentration of CCl4 almost two and half times greater than in arterial blood (57.5 mg/L), representing the best specimen to correlate CCl4 blood concentration with the deep of narcosis. Vitreous humor, (170.5 mg/L) concentration of CCl4 proves the capability of the chemical to enter eyes and its relatively slow release into the systemic blood. Pancreas (657.9 mg/kg), brain (243 mg/kg) and testis (237.3 mg/kg) have great affinity for CCl4. The concentrations of the chemical in brain are cortex: 243.2 mg/kg, basal ganglia: 216.1 mg/kg, medulla oblongata: 243.3 mg/kg and crebellum: 175.3 mg/kg. As the depth of narcosis is correlated with CCl4 concentration, brain represents the most suitable tissue for toxicologic analysis. Lower concentrations of the chemical are found in lungs (127.3 mg/kg), kidneys (150.5 mg/kg), muscle (71.1 mg/kg), myocardium (78.5 mg/kg) and spleen (68.3 mg/kg). Liver (58.6 mg/Kg), a frequently analyzed tissue in forensic toxicology, shows the lowest concentration.

Ameliorating Effect of Various Fractions ofRumex hastatusRoots against Hepato- and Testicular Toxicity Caused by CCl4

“…Medicinal plants extracts and their bioactive metabolites play important role in the prevention of oxidative damages especially CCl 4 induced hepatic and testicular injuries in experimental animals [7, 26]. In the present investigations administration of various fractions of R. hastatus revealed reduction in elevated concentrations of AST, ALT, ALP, and γ GT to maintain the structural consistency of the hepatocellular structure.…”

Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy: a pharmacotoxicologic tool for in vivo monitoring radical aggression

“…CCl 4 could also have a direct toxic effect (Clemedson et al 1990) through its lipophilic properties, by exposing the sensitive methylene groups of the fatty acid backbone to molecular oxygen. Although the activation of CCl 4 occurs mainly in liver, brain membranes have a high affinity for CCl 4 and the concentration of the chemical seems to be almost independent from the brain zone of sampling (Tombolini and Cingolani 1996). The brain is sensitive to free radical attack (Patole and Ramasarma 1988) because of its elevated consumption of oxygen and the high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in its cell membranes (Sastry 1986).…”

Expand+In Vivoiv.iiarjournals.orgIn Vivo September-October 2017 vol. 31 no. 5 877-884 Antrodia Cinnamomea Reduces Carbon Tetrachloride-induced Hepatotoxicity In Male Wister Rats

“…Medicinal plant extracts and their bioactive metabolites have been shown to induce the prevention of oxidative damages which especially from CCl 4 induced hepatic injuries animals studies (26). Antrodia, one of the widely known medicinal mushrooms, belongs to the family Fomitopsidaceae which is valued in Taiwan Our results demonstrated that treatment with CCl 4 promoted a marked increase in serum GPT and GOT activities that were due to liver damage in rats.…”