Acute toxicity of ethylene glycol mono-n-butyl ether in the guinea pig

Acute toxicity values, such as oral and percutaneous LD50s, are often used as the basis for classifying chemicals into toxicity categories, and their subsequent regulation. Such values obtained for ethylene glycol mono-n-butyl ether (EGBE; 2-butoxyethanol) in rats and rabbits indicate that it is moderately toxic. However, the cause of death in these acute studies appeared to be secondary to acute intravascular haemolysis, an effect for which guinea pigs and humans are much less sensitive than rats, mice and rabbits. Recently-conducted acute toxicity studies in the guinea pig resulted in an acute oral LD50 of 1400 mg/kg, an acute percutaneous LD50 of greater than 2000 mg/kg, and a 1-hr LC50 greater than 633 ppm. These data are compared with published acute toxicity values, and indicate that the predicted acute toxicity of EGBE in humans, based on data from the guinea pig, would be less than that observed in other animal species. Based in part on the guinea pig data, EBGE is no longer classified as a poisonous substance by either the United Nations or US Department of Transportation.