title: Oxidation of 2-mercaptobenzothiazole in latex gloves and its possible haptenation pathway.
abstract: The rubber accelerator, 2-mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT), has been reported to cause allergic contact dermatitis from gloves and other rubber products, but its chemical fate when exposed to occupational oxidants and the mechanism of its pathogenesis are not known. It was hypothesized that the thiol group is critical to MBT's (its oxidation products or metabolites) covalent binding and/or haptenation to nucleophilic protein residues. Oxidative transformation of MBT to the disulfide 2,2'-dithiobis(benzothiazole) (MBTS) was observed within the glove matrix when hypochlorous acid, iodine, and hydrogen peroxide were used as oxidants. Cysteine reduced MBTS to MBT with subsequent formation of the mixed disulfide 2-amino-3-(benzothiazol-2-yl disulfanyl)propionic acid which was identified and characterized. Spectrophotometry and mass spectrometry experiments demonstrated the simultaneous reduction of MBTS and disulfide formation with Cys34 on bovine serum albumin, suggesting a potential route of protein haptenation through covalent bonding between protein cysteinyl residues and the MBT/MBTS thiol moiety. Metabolism of MBT using isoniazid and dexamethasone-induced rat liver microsomes, to give a protein reactive epoxide intermediate and provide an alternative protein haptenation mechanism, was not observed. The data suggest that the critical functional group on MBT is the thiol, and haptenation is via the formation of mixed disulfides between the thiol group on MBT and a protein sulfhydryl group.
authors.affiliation: Allergy and Clinical Immunology Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 1095 Willowdale Road, Morgantown, WV 26505-2888, USA.
authors.forename: Itai
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Chipinda
authors.forename: Justin M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Hettick
authors.forename: Reuben H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Simoyi
authors.forename: Paul D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Siegel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D052160:Benzothiazoles / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity; D001665:Binding Sites; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D003545:Cysteine / Q000737:chemistry; D017449:Dermatitis, Allergic Contact / Q000473:pathology*; D004220:Disulfides / Q000737:chemistry; D017575:Gloves, Protective; D006241:Haptens / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D007840:Latex / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity; D053858:Metabolic Networks and Pathways; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013053:Spectrophotometry; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D052160:Benzothiazoles; D004220:Disulfides; D006241:Haptens; D007840:Latex; C005563:captax; D003545:Cysteine