title: Neurotoxic metabolites of "commercial hexane" in the urine of shoe factory workers.
abstract: Urinary metabolites were tested in 41 shoe-factory workers exposed to a mixture of 10 solvents among which "commercial hexane" was the prevailing component. Cyclohexanol, 2-methyl-2-pentanol, 3-methyl-2-pentanol, and trichloroethanol were determined in connection with exposure to cyclohexane, 2-methylpentane, 3-methylpentane, and trichloroethylene, respectively. 2-Hexanol, 2,5-hexanedione, 2,5-dimethylfuran, and gamma-valerolactone were all determined in connection with n-hexane exposure only. 2,5-Hexanedione was the principal n-hexane metabolite found in the workers' urine. This finding of the experimentally proven neurotoxin 2,5-hexanedione in the urine of shoe-factory workers exposed to "commercial hexane" is consistent with the idea that this compound is responsible for the development of neuropathy in this group of individuals.
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000652:urine*; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000652:urine*; D006586:Hexanes / Q000652:urine*; D006801:Humans; D010523:Peripheral Nervous System Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced; D012997:Solvents / Q000652:urine*
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D006586:Hexanes; D012997:Solvents; C026385:n-hexane