A study of the biological partitioning behavior of n-alkanes and n-alkanols in causing anesthetic effects.

n-Alkanes and n-alkanols are two groups of common volatile organic compounds (VOCs) having potential anesthetic effects on workers and building occupants. A partition model based on the octanol-air partition coefficient was developed in this investigation to describe the biological partitioning of n-alkanes and n-alkanols in causing general anesthesia. Data on anesthetic potency (minimum alveolar concentration, MAC) for the test groups in rats were found to fit the model. The slight difference between the n-alkanes and n-alkanols in testing the model could be largely eliminated by correcting for the potential partial pressure gradients of the long-chain alkanes across the blood-brain barrier. The corrected MAC data for the two test groups fit well onto one common activity-partition regression line. This suggests that n-alkanes and n-alkanols may share a common biophase or mechanistic pathway for anesthesia. The present findings may provide some useful insight into setting anesthesia-based health standards for VOC mixtures.