Fluorocarbon aerosol propellants. VI: Interspecies differences in solubilities in blood and plasma and their possible implications in toxicity studies.

Solubilities of the three most commonly used fluorocarbon aerosol propellants were determined in the blood and plasma of humans, monkeys, dogs, rats, and mice. Differences as large as approximately fourfold in blood and more than 33-fold in plasma were found in different species. The partitioning of fluorocarbons between blood cells and plasma showed even greater differences between species. An indirect method was suggested for the calculation of plasma concentrations from total blood concentrations. A comparative evaluation was reported for the nonprotein bound fractions of fluorocarbons in the blood samples of various species. A correlation was drawn for the pharmacokinetic properties of the fluorocarbons within and between species, and a rationale was provided for the extrapolation of toxicity data from animals to humans.