Return to Fluoroacetamide Index Page

Activity: Rodenticide, Insecticide (unclassified)
Structure:

Adverse Effects:
Ataxia
Body Weight Loss (Anorexia, Emaciation)
Brain
CNS
Endocrine: Testicular
Fetotoxic
Genotoxic
Heart
Kidney
Reproductive toxicant
Environmental / Contamination

Ataxia (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

ACUTE EXPOSURE ... Neurologic sequelae have been noted following acute poisoning, including hypertonicity with arm and leg spasms, severe mental deficits, and moderate residual paresis. Severe cerebellar dysfunction, ataxia, and depression were described in a 15-year-old patient who survived acute fluoroacetate poisoning.
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Body weight loss (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

ANIMALS ACUTELY POISONED BY ... /FLUOROACETAMIDE/ SHOW LISTLESSNESS, IRRITABILITY, CLONIC CONVULSIONS, ABASIA, PILOERECTION, & IRREGULAR RESPIRATION. ONE CHARACTERISTIC USUALLY OBSERVED IN ANIMALS DYING FROM ACUTE POISONING WITH FLUOROACETAMIDE AS WELL AS WITH SODIUM FLUOROACETATE IS POSTMORTEM RIGIDITY. DEATH GENERALLY OCCURS IN COMA AFTER CONVULSIONS HAVE STOPPED. SUBACUTELY POISONED ANIMALS SHOW ANOREXIA, EMACIATION, ALOPECIA, & ABSCESS FORMATION. [Hayes, W.J., Jr., E.R. Laws, Jr., (eds.). Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology. Volume 3. Classes of Pesticides. New York, NY: Academic Press, Inc., 1991. 1278]
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Brain (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

Health Hazards (Acute, Delayed, and Chronic): This material is super toxic; probable oral lethal dose in humans is less than 5 mg/kg, or a taste (less than 7 drops) for a 150-lb. person (*Gosselin 1976). Chemically inhibits oxygen metabolism by cells with critical damage occurring to the heart, brain, and lungs resulting in heart failure, respiratory arrest, convulsions, and death (Gilman 1980, p. 1644).
Ref: US EPA Chemical Profile. October 31, 1985
http://www.fluoridealert.org/pesticides/Fluoroacetamide.EPAFacts.87.htm

Neurologic sequelae have been noted following acute poisoning, including hypertonicity with arm and leg spasms, severe mental deficits, and moderate residual paresis. Severe cerebellar dysfunction, ataxia, and depression were described in a 15-year-old patient who survived acute fluoroacetate poisoning.
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Sodium fluoroacetate and fluoroacetamide are readily absorbed by the gut, but only to a limited extent across skin. The toxic mechanism is distinct from that of fluoride salts. Three molecules of fluoroacetate or fluoroacetamide are combined in the liver to form a molecule of fluorocitrate, which poisons critical enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid (Krebs) cycle, blocking cellular respiration. The heart, brain, and kidneys are the organs most prominently affected... Crimidine and sodium fluoroacetate are no longer registered for use as pesticides.
Ref: US EPA.
http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/safety/healthcare/handbook/Chap17.pdf

CNS (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

... /MAJOR EFFECTS/ INVOLVE CNS & CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM. SEVERE EPILEPTIFORM CONVULSIONS ALTERNATE WITH COMA & DEPRESSION; DEATH MAY RESULT FROM ASPHYXIA DURING CONVULSION OR FROM RESP FAILURE. MOST PROMINENT FEATURES ... ARE CARDIAC IRREGULARITIES, NOTABLY VENTRICULAR FIBRILLATION & SUDDEN CARDIAC ARREST. [International Labour Office. Encyclopedia of Occupational Health and Safety. Vols. I&II. Geneva, Switzerland: International Labour Office, 1983. 895]
-- Moderately fast-acting rodenticide which is less likely to lead to poison shyness because of sublethal dosing. It acts chiefly on the heart, with secondary effects on CNS. [Tomlin, C.D.S. (ed.). The Pesticide Manual - World Compendium. 10th ed. Surrey, UK: The British Crop Protection Council, 1994. 492]
-- Mechanism of Action: FLUOROACETATE PRODUCES ITS TOXIC ACTION BY INHIBITING THE CITRIC ACID CYCLE. THE FLUORINE SUBSTITUTED ACETATE BECOMES INCORPORATED, AS A NORMAL ACETATE, INTO FLUOROACETYL COENZYME A, WHICH CONDENSES WITH OXALOACETATE TO FORM FLUOROCITRATE. FLUOROCITRATE INHIBITS THE ENZYME ACONITASE & THEREBY INHIBITS THE CONVERSION OF CITRATE TO ISOCITRATE. AS A RESULT THERE IS AN ACCUMULATION OF LARGE QUANTITIES OF CITRATE IN THE TISSUE, & THE CYCLE IS BLOCKED. ... THE HEART & CNS ARE THE MOST CRITICAL TISSUES INVOLVED IN POISONING BY GENERAL INHIBITION OF OXIDATIVE ENERGY METABOLISM. /FLUOROACETATE/
[Doull, J., C.D.Klassen, and M.D. Amdur (eds.). Casarett and Doull's Toxicology. 3rd ed., New York: Macmillan Co., Inc., 1986. 565]
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Contamination/Poisoning Incident (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

Amnesty International accused Israel of failing to prosecute Jewish settlers for attacking Palestinian locals and poisoning their livestock, the international rights group said. Condemning the "increasingly frequent attacks" against Palestinian villagers, Amnesty urged the Israeli government to investigate all violent incidents, and in particular, the recent spate of cases of poisoning fields that has affected scores of Palestinian livestock. "In recent weeks, toxic chemicals have repeatedly been spread on fields located near the villages of Tuwani, Umm Faggara and Kharruba in the southern Hebron region," the group said in a statement, referring to areas in the southern West Bank. "Scores of sheep as well as gazelles and other animals have been contaminated by the toxins and several have died. Palestinian farmers have been forced to quarantine their flocks and stop using the milk, cheese and meat from them, effectively depriving them of their livelihood." Since the first instance of poisoning was discovered in late March, other fields had also been contaminated, all of them in areas under Israeli security control, known as area C, the rights group said. Until now, however, the Israeli authorities had not decontaminated the fields, nor had they investigated the perpetrators, who were enjoying "impunity", the group said...
Ref: April 25, 2005. Amnesty calls on Israel to halt poisoning of Palestinian livestock.
http://www.fluoridealert.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.apr.25.05.html
See also:
April 6, 2005. Israel Probes Poisoning of Palestinian Sheep. By Haitham Tamimi.
April 12, 2005. Palestinian villagers accuse Israeli settlers of poisoning their flocks. By Agence France Presse.

Endocrine: Testicular (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

Abstract: Orally administered FAA produces severe general toxic effects and massive testicular degeneration. The present study was designed to determine whether low doses of parenterally administered FAA will produce testicular lesions in absence of general toxic effect; and if so, what specific cell types will be affected. Adult rats were used. FAA was administered sc in daily injections in doses varying from 50 to 1000 mcg/rat. Animals were sacrificed at periods varying from 4 to 56 days after institution of treatment. At the dose of 250 mcg daily no general toxic effects were observed, but testes diminished in size by 50%. Microscopic studies revealed a specific effect of the drug, primarily centered on the division process of secondary spermatocytes and on spermiogenesis. The spermatogonia and primary spermatocytes were not affected. At the dose of 50 mcg the testes weight was not affected, but microscopic study revealed changes in the same cell types mentioned above. This is the 1st demonstration of a specific morphologically demonstrable effect of a compound on postmeiotic stages of the spermatogenic process.
Ref: Specificity of the effect of fluoroacetamide (FAA) on spermatogenesis. Authors: Sud BN; Steinberger E. Source: Anatomical Record 163: 271-272. 1969.
http://www.popline.org/docs/691972.html

-- REPRODUCTIVE HAZARDS... In mice, oral administration of fluoroacetamide resulted in a prolonged pregnancy and the young suffered from cyanosis, respiratory distress, reduced growth, and decreased survival. Fluoroacetamide has caused testicular degeneration in rats.
.. MALE RATS THAT RECEIVED A DIETARY LEVEL OF 50 PPM (USUALLY CALCULATED AS ABOUT 2.5 MG/KG/DAY BUT SAID TO BE ABOUT 3.4 MG/KG/DAY IN THESE RATS) SHOWED MARKED MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGES IN THE NUCLEUS OF STEP-13 SPERMATIDS WITHIN 24 HR, & EFFECTS BECAME MORE PRONOUNCED & THE ENTIRE CELL BECAME DISTORTED IN 5 DAYS. AFTER 10 DAYS OF TREATMENT, EARLIER STEP SPERMATIDS SHOWED DEGENERATIVE CHANGES & GIANT CELL FORMATION. EVENTUALLY, EVEN SPERMATOCYTES WERE AFFECTED. DIETARY LEVELS OF 20, 10, & 5 PPM, PRODUCED CHARACTERISTIC CHANGES IN LATE STAGE SPERMATIDS BUT NO EFFECT ON SPERMATOCYTES. ... SC ADMIN ... AT A RATE OF ABOUT 1.0 MG/KG/DAY PRODUCED THE CHARACTERISTIC CHANGES IN STAGE-13 SPERMATIDS WITHIN 4 DAYS & A 50% REDUCTION IN THE WT OF THE TESTES IN 28 DAYS. [Hayes, W.J., Jr., E.R. Laws, Jr., (eds.). Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology. Volume 3. Classes of Pesticides. New York, NY: Academic Press, Inc., 1991. 1279]
-- SELECTIVE DESTRUCTION OF THE GERMINAL EPITHELIUM OF THE TESTES OF MALE RATS WAS REPORTED ... SINGLE DOSAGE LEVEL RESULTING FROM A DIETARY LEVEL OF 50 PPM. ON THIS DIET, THE BODY WT OF 150 TO 160 G RATS INCR BY 88% IN 90 DAYS, BUT THE TESTES WERE REDUCED TO SLIGHTLY LESS THAN 1/3 THE WT OF CONTROLS. AFTER 64 DAYS, THE TUBULES WERE ALMOST COMPLETELY LACKING IN SEMINAL CELLS ... PECULIAR GIANT CELLS WERE OBSERVED. [Hayes, W.J., Jr., E.R. Laws, Jr., (eds.). Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology. Volume 3. Classes of Pesticides. New York, NY: Academic Press, Inc., 1991. 1278]
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Fetotoxicity (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

Abstract: HAPAB The effects of single sublethal oral doses of fluoroacetamide (15 mg/kg in 0.03% aqueous solution), administered to female white mice 2 days before or 10 days after fertilization, were studied on the embryonal and postnatal development. The fluoroacetamide influenced the ovulation and the viability of the ovi (later the embryonic and the postnatal development) which led to increased prenatal mortality, to prolongation of the pregnancy, and reduced viability of the neonates. Females treated 10 days after fertilization showed the greatest increase (by up to 30 days) in the duration of pregnancy while embryonic mortality was highest in the group treated two days before fertilization (11.7% against a control value of 4.6%). Reduced body weight, cyanosis, respiratory distress, and decreased motility were among the anomalies observed in neonates in the test groups. 1971
Ref: The action of fluoroacetamide on albino mouse fecunidty (preliminary report). Authors: Tokareva TG Turov I Alekseyev AN Source: Zh. Mikrobiol. Epidemiol. Immunobiol.; 48: 24-26; 1971.

Genotoxic (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

GENOTOXICITY A. Cytogenetic analysis detected chromosome aberrations in the rat in vivo and in mammal lung cells. In Red Muntjac in vitro, fluoroacetamide caused chromosomal breakage, increased rate of sister chromatid exchanges, and a lag in the cell cycle.
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Heart (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

-- Mechanism of action:... THE HEART & CNS ARE THE MOST CRITICAL TISSUES INVOLVED IN POISONING BY GENERAL INHIBITION OF OXIDATIVE ENERGY METABOLISM. /FLUOROACETATE/
[Doull, J., C.D.Klassen, and M.D. Amdur (eds.). Casarett and Doull's Toxicology. 3rd ed., New York: Macmillan Co., Inc., 1986. 565]
-- Cardiac effects may include tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, and sudden onset of asystole.
-- Moderately fast-acting rodenticide which is less likely to lead to poison shyness because of sublethal dosing. It acts chiefly on the heart, with secondary effects on CNS. [Tomlin, C.D.S. (ed.). The Pesticide Manual - World Compendium. 10th ed. Surrey, UK: The British Crop Protection Council, 1994. 492]
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm

Sodium fluoroacetate and fluoroacetamide are readily absorbed by the gut, but only to a limited extent across skin. The toxic mechanism is distinct from that of fluoride salts. Three molecules of fluoroacetate or fluoroacetamide are combined in the liver to form a molecule of fluorocitrate, which poisons critical enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid (Krebs) cycle, blocking cellular respiration. The heart, brain, and kidneys are the organs most prominently affected... Crimidine and sodium fluoroacetate are no longer registered for use as pesticides.
Ref: US EPA.
http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/safety/healthcare/handbook/Chap17.pdf

Kidney (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

Sodium fluoroacetate and fluoroacetamide are readily absorbed by the gut, but only to a limited extent across skin. The toxic mechanism is distinct from that of fluoride salts. Three molecules of fluoroacetate or fluoroacetamide are combined in the liver to form a molecule of fluorocitrate, which poisons critical enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid (Krebs) cycle, blocking cellular respiration. The heart, brain, and kidneys are the organs most prominently affected... Crimidine and sodium fluoroacetate are no longer registered for use as pesticides.
Ref: US EPA.
http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/safety/healthcare/handbook/Chap17.pdf

Reproductive toxicicant (click on for all fluorinated pesticides)

FLUOROACETAMIDE AT AN ORAL DOSAGE OF 15 MG/KG ... INTERFERES WITH REPRODUCTION IN FEMALE MICE, WHETHER ADMIN 2 DAYS BEFORE OR 10 DAYS AFTER FERTILIZATION; PREGNANCY WAS PROLONGED, PRENATAL MORTSEITY WAS INCR, & THE YOUNG SUFFERED FROM CYANOSIS, RESPIRATORY DISTRESS, REDUCED GROWTH, & DECR SURVIVAL. [Hayes, W.J., Jr., E.R. Laws, Jr., (eds.). Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology. Volume 3. Classes of Pesticides. New York, NY: Academic Press, Inc., 1991. 1279]
Ref: FLUOROACETAMIDE CASRN: 640-19-7. Hazardous Substances Data Bank.
http://www.fluorideaction.org/pesticides/fluoroacetamide.hsdb.htm