Tin distribution in adult rat tissues after exposure to trimethyltin and triethyltin.

The time course of distribution of tin in the adult rat was determined in brain, liver, kidneys, heart, and blood following single ip administrations of trimethyltin hydroxide (TMT) and triethyltin bromide (TET). Adult Long-Evans rats were killed 1, 4, 12, and 24 hr, and at 5, 10, or 22 days following injection of TMT and TET (N = 6/time), and tissues were analyzed for total tin by atomic absorbance spectroscopy. TET exposure resulted in higher tin concentrations in brain, liver, and kidney tissues, while the two trialkyltins resulted in approximately equal tin concentrations in the heart and blood. Rates of elimination of tin (expressed as elimination rate constants, Kel) were greater in all tissues following TET exposure than following TMT exposure. The concentration of tin in the brain 12 hr after TMT exposure was 4.4, 8.5, and 12.7 ng tin/mg protein for dosages of 3.0, 6.0, and 9.0 mg/kg, respectively. Tin was evenly distributed across the cerebellum, medulla-pons, hypothalamus, hippocampus, and striatum following TMT exposure. These results describe major differences in the disposition and rates of elimination of tin from body tissues after TMT and TET exposure, and demonstrate that the regional disposition of tin is not related to the region-specific pathology reported following TMT exposure.