High accumulation of 2,3,4,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran to hepatic microsomes of rats.

Abstract
The tissue and subcellular distributions of 14C-2,3,4,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran (PenCDF), 1 of the most important causal agents of Yusho [outbreak which occurred in Japan in 1968, due to contaminated rice oil] were studied using rats. More than 60% of the radioactivity given orally was accumulated in the liver after 5 days and this high percentage persisted over a period of 3 wk. Subcellular fractionation of the liver homogenate showed unusual separation by PenCDF-pretreatment, but the distribution of radioactivity was just parallel to those of cytochrome P-450 content and G-6-P (EC 3.1.3.9) activity. Gas chromatographic analysis provided evidence that the extracts from the liver and its subcellular fractionations contained only unchanged PenCDF. PenCDF has some affinity to endoplasmic reticulum of rat liver.