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Please be aware that this old REACH registration data factsheet is no longer maintained; it remains frozen as of 19th May 2023.

The new ECHA CHEM database has been released by ECHA, and it now contains all REACH registration data. There are more details on the transition of ECHA's published data to ECHA CHEM here.

Diss Factsheets

Toxicological information

Exposure related observations in humans: other data

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Administrative data

Endpoint:
exposure-related observations in humans: other data
Type of information:
experimental study
Adequacy of study:
key study
Reliability:
1 (reliable without restriction)
Rationale for reliability incl. deficiencies:
other: Meets generally accepted scientific standards and is described in sufficient detail.

Data source

Reference
Reference Type:
publication
Title:
Urinary methanol and formic acid as indicators of|occupational exposure to methyl formate.
Author:
Berode M, Sethre T, Laubli T and Savolainen H
Year:
2000
Bibliographic source:
nt Arch Occup Environ Health 73(6), 410-414.

Materials and methods

Type of study / information:
Type of experience: other: Biomonitoring and background levels
GLP compliance:
not specified

Test material

Constituent 1
Chemical structure
Reference substance name:
Methyl formate
EC Number:
203-481-7
EC Name:
Methyl formate
Cas Number:
107-31-3
Molecular formula:
Câ‚‚Hâ‚„Oâ‚‚
IUPAC Name:
methyl formate

Results and discussion

Any other information on results incl. tables

RS-Freetext:
The volunteers exposed to 100 ppm MF vapour at rest for 8 h
excreted 3.62 +/- 1.13 mg MeOH/l (mean +/- SD) at the end of
the exposure. This was statistically different (P < 0.001)
from pre-exposure MeOH excretion (2.15 +/- 0.80 mg/1), or
from that of controls (1.69 +/- 0.48 mg/l). 

In foundrymen, the urinary FA excretion after the 8 h
workshift exposure to a time weighted average (TWA)
concentration of 2 to 156 ppm MF showed a dose-dependent
increase best modelled by a polynomial function. The highest
urinary FA concentration was 129 mg/g creatinine. The
pre-shift urinary FA of the foundrymen (18.3 +/- 5.6 mg/g
creatinine) did not differ from that of controls (13.8 +/-
7.9 mg/g creatinine). The urinary MeOH excretion of the
foundrymen after the shift, varied from < 1 to 15.4 mg/l,
while the correlation with the preceding MF exposure was
poor. The foundrymen excreted more (P = 0.01) FA (2.12 +/-
3.56 mg/g creatinine) after the workshift than
experimentally, once-exposed volunteers (0.32 +/- 0.11 mg/g
creatinine) at a similar inhaled MF level of 1 ppm).

Applicant's summary and conclusion

Executive summary:

The urinary FA excretion was 32.2 +/- 11.3 mg/g creatinine after the exposure, which was statistically different (P < 0.001) from
pre-exposure excretion (18.0 +/- 9.3 mg/g creatinine) or that of controls (13.8 +/- 7.9 mg/g creatinine). 

The authors concluded that, in spite of its high background level in non-exposed subjects, urinary FA seems to be a useful biomarker

of methyl formate exposure. There remain questions regarding the reason for the differences in chronic and acute exposure, respectively.