Documenting the kinetic time course of lambda-cyhalothrin metabolites in orally exposed volunteers for the interpretation of biomonitoring data

•Time courses of key biomarkers of exposure to lambda-cyhalothrin were assessed.•CFMP and 3-PBA were confirmed as major metabolites of lambda-cyhalothrin.•Time profiles of CFMP and 3-PBA concentrations evolved in parallel.•Metabolites were rapidly cleared from the body.•CFMP and 3-PBA appear as useful biomarkers of exposure to lambda-cyhalothrin.

Lambda-cyhalothrin is a pyrethroid pesticide largely used in agriculture. Exposure assessment can be performed by measuring key urinary metabolites. For a proper use of biomonitoring data, it is however important to gain information on the toxicokinetics of these key biomarkers of exposure. A human volunteer study was performed to document the plasma and urinary time courses of major lambda-cyhalothrin metabolites. Seven volunteers ingested 0.025 mg kg−1 body weight of lambda-cyhalothrin. Blood samples were withdrawn prior to dosing and at fixed time periods over the 72 h-period following ingestion and complete urine voids were collected pre-exposure and at pre-established intervals over 84 h post-dosing. The cis-3-(2-chloro-3,3,3-trifluoroprop-1-en-1-yl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylic acid (CFMP) and 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA) metabolites were quantified in these samples. Plasma concentrations of CFMP and 3-PBA increased rapidly after ingestion, with average peak values at 3.1 and 4.0 h post-dosing, respectively; subsequent elimination phase showed a rapid decay with a mean half-life (t½) of ≈5.3 and 6.4 h for CFMP and 3-PBA, respectively. Urinary rate time courses displayed a profile similar to the plasma concentration-time curves with corresponding mean t½ of ≈4.2 and 5.9 h. In the 84-h period post-treatment, on average 21% of lambda-cyhalothrin dose were excreted in urine as CFMP as compared to 30% as 3-PBA. Overall, CFMP and 3-PBA metabolites were confirmed to be major metabolites of lambda-cyhalothrin and exhibited similar kinetics with short half-lives; they thus both appear as useful biomarkers of exposure to lambda-cyhalothrin in humans.