Chloracne Caused by Ingestion of Olive Oil Contaminated with PCDDs and PCDFs

1 All members of a Spanish family (father, mother and six children) developed chloracne. 2 The causative agent was found to be the family's stock of olive oil, which had become contaminated with polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), pentachlorophenol, and hexachlorobenzene. 3 The more highly chlorinated PCDDs, in particular octachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, were the predominant congeners in the oil. 4 Three members of the family exhibited either an overt or a sub-clinical disturbance of kidney function. The father also had a chronic respiratory problem. These changes could not be unequivocally attributed to the PCDDs. 5 Experimental toxicity of the oil was limited to the development of an hepatic porphyria in mice. 6 A serum sample, taken 5 years after consumption of the oil ceased, contained high levels of the PCDDs and PCDFs. Extrapolation back to ingested dose was used to validate dosage estimates. 7 The use of toxicity equivalence factors (TEFs) provided estimates of cumulative dosage to produce chloracne as 0.13-0.31 μg 2378-TCDD kg-1 (using EPA TEFs) or 6.7-16 μg 2378-TCDD kg-1 (using Nordic/NATO TEFs). 8 This is the first incident in which human toxicity is related primarily to ingestion of PCDDs and for which estimates of dosage can be made.