title: Antagonism of cyanide poisoning by dihydroxyacetone.
abstract: Dihydroxyacetone (DHA) effectively antagonized the lethal effect of cyanide in mice and rabbits, particularly if administered in combination with thiosulfate. Oral DHA (2 and 4 g/kg) given to mice 10 min before injection (i.p.) of cyanide increased the LD50 values of cyanide from 5.7 mg/kg to 12 and 17.6 mg/kg, respectively. DHA prevented cyanide-induced lethality most effectively, if given orally 10-15 min before injection of cyanide. A combination of pretreatment with oral DHA (4 g/kg) and post-treatment with sodium thiosulfate (1 g/kg) increased the LD50 of cyanide by a factor of 9.9. Furthermore, DHA given intravenously to rabbits 5 min after subcutaneous injection of cyanide increased the LD50 of cyanide from 6 mg/kg to more than 11 mg/kg, while thiosulfate (1 g/kg) given intravenously 5 min after cyanide injection increased the LD50 of cyanide only to 8.5 mg/kg. DHA also prevented the convulsions that occurred after cyanide intoxication.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Fars 71345, Iran. toxicol@sums.ac.ir
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Niknahad
authors.forename: Esmaeel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ghelichkhani
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D000931:Antidotes / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003486:Cyanides / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000633:toxicity*; D004098:Dihydroxyacetone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007275:Injections, Intravenous; D007928:Lethal Dose 50; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D011817:Rabbits; D012640:Seizures / Q000139:chemically induced; D013885:Thiosulfates / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000931:Antidotes; D003486:Cyanides; D013885:Thiosulfates; D004098:Dihydroxyacetone