Bioavailability of arsenic in soil and house dust impacted by smelter activities following oral administration in cynomolgus monkeys

This study was conducted to determine the extent of arsenic (As) absorption from soil and house dust impacted by smelter activities near Anaconda, Montana. Female cynomolgus monkeys were given a single oral administration via gelatin capsules of soil (0.62 mg As/kg body wt) or house dust (0.26 mg As/kg body wt), or soluble sodium arsenate by the gavage or intravenous route of administration (0.62 mg As/kg body wt) in a crossover design with a minimum washout period of 14 days. Urine, feces, and cage rinse were collected at 24-hr intervals for 168 hr. Blood was collected at specified time points and area under the curves (AUCs) was determined. Arsenic concentrations for the first 120 hr, represent-ing elimination of greater than 94 % of the total administered dose for the three oral treatment groups, were < 0.021 to 4.68 /xg/ml for the urine and <0.24 to 31.1 /xg/g for the feces. In general, peak concentrations of As in the urine and feces were obtained durin