A physiologically based pharmacokinetic model for chloropentafluorobenzene in primates to be used in the evaluation of protective equipment against toxic gases.

Chloropentafluorobenzene (CPFB) has been proposed as an innocuous simulant for the uptake of toxic gases. Exposure to CPFB in a training exercise could be inferred afterwards from a measurement of CPFB in expired breath. To understand the relationship between exposure and measurement, we have developed a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PB-PK) model for CPFB in primates. To test the model, inhalation exposures were conducted on anesthetized rhesus monkeys. CPFB concentration in expired breath was measured during and after exposure. Simulations of CPFB uptake and clearance agreed with experimental measurements in seven of eight monkeys. A human version of the model was used to simulate exposures consisting of a single breath or a few breaths. By showing a measurable CPFB concentration in expired breath after several hours of clearance, simulations with the human model indicated the suitability of CPFB as a simulant for toxic gases.