Immunotherapy for the treatment of acute paraquat poisoning.

For the purpose of sequestering paraquat in the plasma compartment and preventing it from accumulating in tissues the effects of intravenous administration of anti-paraquat antibodies to rats were studied. After an intravenous paraquat injection of 0.1 mg/kg, the plasma paraquat concentration from rats pretreated with anti-paraquat antibodies was significantly increased and the amount of paraquat excreted in urine was significantly decreased compared to the control group. The concentration of paraquat in bile and organs except liver, was not changed by the treatment, but the paraquat level in the liver was significantly increased. Although immunotherapy succeeded in sequestering paraquat in the plasma compartment, it could not prevent paraquat from accumulating in tissues.