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1,3-butadiene

CATEGORY: IARC probable, NTP known

USED IN: Outdoor and indoor air pollution, tobacco smoke

1,3-butadiene is an air pollutant created by internal combustion engines and petroleum refineries. It is also a chemical used in the manufacture and processing of synthetic rubber products and some fungicides. In addition, 1,3-butadiene is found in tobacco smoke.

The EPA determined that 1,3-butadiene is carcinogenic to humans, with the main route of exposure being through inhalation. The National Toxicology Program classifies 1,3-butadiene as a known human carcinogen (NTP, 1993). Data from research on animals indicate that females may be more vulnerable to the carcinogenic effects of 1,3-butadiene (EPA, 2003), which is known to cause mammary and ovary tumors in female mice and rats. This pollutant produces even greater toxic effects in younger rodent populations (Melnick, 1999; NTP, 1993). 

• View references, from State of the Evidence (Sixth edition 2010).