Use of the lethal body burden in the evaluation of mixture toxicity

Abstract

In many mixtures of xenobiotics in the field situation, narcosis is the predominant mechanism of toxic action. Earlier studies have found that narcotic chemicals are additive based on exposure concentration. In this study it is revealed that the narcotic chemicals 1,2- and 1,4-dichlorobenzene are additive on a lethal body burden level. This applicability of the lethal body burden in risk assessment of mixtures of unknown chemicals is discussed, and it is compared with other methods of managing mixtures of unknown chemical composition.