1.800.858.7378 npic@ace.orst.edu
We're open from 8:00AM to 12:00PM Pacific Time, Mon-Fri

Resmethrin

Technical Fact Sheet

As of 2011, NPIC stopped creating technical pesticide fact sheets. The old collection of technical fact sheets will remain available in this archive, but they may contain out-of-date material. NPIC no longer has the capacity to consistently update them. To visit our general fact sheets, click here. For up-to-date technical fact sheets, please visit the Environmental Protection Agency’s webpage.

Molecular Structure - Resmethrin

Laboratory Testing: Before pesticides are registered by the U.S. EPA, they must undergo laboratory testing for short-term (acute) and long-term (chronic) health effects. Laboratory animals are purposely given high enough doses to cause toxic effects. These tests help scientists judge how these chemicals might affect humans, domestic animals, and wildlife in cases of overexposure.

Chemical Class and Type:

Physical / Chemical Properties:

Uses:

Mode of Action:

Target Organisms

Non-target Organisms

Acute Toxicity:

Oral

LD50/LC50: A common measure of acute toxicity is the lethal dose (LD50) or lethal concentration (LC50) that causes death (resulting from a single or limited exposure) in 50 percent of the treated animals. LD50 is generally expressed as the dose in milligrams (mg) of chemical per kilogram (kg) of body weight. LC50 is often expressed as mg of chemical per volume (e.g., liter (L)) of medium (i.e., air or water) the organism is exposed to. Chemicals are considered highly toxic when the LD50/LC50 is small and practically non-toxic when the value is large. However, the LD50/LC50 does not reflect any effects from long-term exposure (i.e., cancer, birth defects or reproductive toxicity) that may occur at levels below those that cause death.

Dermal

TOXICITY CLASSIFICATION - RESMETHRIN
High Toxicity Moderate Toxicity Low Toxicity Very Low Toxicity
Acute Oral LD50 Up to and including 50 mg/kg
(≤ 50 mg/kg)
Greater than 50 through 500 mg/kg
(>50-500 mg/kg)
Greater than 500 through 5000 mg/kg
(>500-5000 mg/kg)
Greater than 5000 mg/kg
(>5000 mg/kg)
Inhalation LC50 Up to and including 0.05 mg/L
(≤0.05 mg/L)
Greater than 0.05 through 0.5 mg/L
(>0.05-0.5 mg/L)
Greater than 0.5 through 2.0 mg/L
(>0.5-2.0 mg/L)
Greater than 2.0 mg/L
(>2.0 mg/L)
Dermal LD50 Up to and including 200 mg/kg
(≤200 mg/kg)
Greater than 200 through 2000 mg/kg
(>200-2000 mg/kg)
Greater than 2000 through 5000 mg/kg
(>2000-5000 mg/kg)
Greater than 5000 mg/kg
(>5000 mg/kg)
Primary Eye Irritation Corrosive (irreversible destruction of ocular tissue) or corneal involvement or irritation persisting for more than 21 days Corneal involvement or other eye irritation clearing in 8 - 21 days Corneal involvement or other eye irritation clearing in 7 days or less Minimal effects clearing in less than 24 hours
Primary Skin Irritation Corrosive (tissue destruction into the dermis and/or scarring) Severe irritation at 72 hours (severe erythema or edema) Moderate irritation at 72 hours (moderate erythema) Mild or slight irritation at 72 hours (no irritation or erythema)
The highlighted boxes reflect the values in the "Acute Toxicity" section of this fact sheet. Modeled after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Pesticide Programs, Label Review Manual, Chapter 7: Precautionary Labeling. https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2018-04/documents/chap-07-mar-2018.pdf

Inhalation

Signs of Toxicity - Animals

Signs of Toxicity - Humans

Chronic Toxicity:

Animals

Humans

Exposure: Effects of resmethrin on human health and the environment depend on how much resmethrin is present and the length and frequency of exposure. Effects also depend on the health of a person and/or certain environmental factors.

Endocrine Disruption:

Cancer: Government agencies in the United States and abroad have developed programs to evaluate the potential for a chemical to cause cancer. Testing guidelines and classification systems vary. To learn more about the meaning of various cancer classification descriptors listed in this fact sheet, please visit the appropriate reference, or call NPIC.

Carcinogenicity:

Animals

Humans

Reproductive or Teratogenic Effects:

Animals

Humans

Fate in the Body:

Absorption

Distribution

Metabolism

Excretion

Medical Tests and Monitoring:

Environmental Fate:

Soil

Water

Air

Plants

Indoor

Food Residue

Ecotoxicity Studies:

Birds

Fish and Aquatic Life

Terrestrial Invertebrates

Reference Dose (RfD): The RfD is an estimate of the quantity of chemical that a person could be exposed to every day for the rest of their life with no appreciable risk of adverse health effects. The reference dose is typically measured in milligrams (mg) of chemical per kilogram (kg) of body weight per day.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Integrated Risk Information System, IRIS Glossary, 2009. https://www.epa.gov/iris/iris-glossary#r

Regulatory Guidelines:

Date Reviewed: July 2008

Please cite as: Jackson, D.; Luukinen, B.; Buhl, K.; Stone, D. 2008. Resmethrin Technical Fact Sheet; National Pesticide Information Center, Oregon State University Extension Services. https://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/archive/ResTech.html.

References:

  1. Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) - Resmethrin; EPA 738-R-06-003; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, Office of Pesticide Programs, U.S. Government Printing Office: Washington, DC, 2006.
  2. Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB), Resmethrin; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/source/hsdb/1516 (accessed Aug 2007), updated May 2007.
  3. Tomlin, C. D. S. The Pesticide Manual, 11th ed.; British Crop Protection Council: Surrey, UK, 1997; p 1092-1094.
  4. Preliminary Environmental Fate and Effects Risk Assessment Chapter for the Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) Document for: Resmethrin; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Fate and Effects Division: Washington, DC, 2006.
  5. Vogue, P. A.; Kerle, E. A.; Jenkins, J. J. OSU Extension Pesticide Properties Database: Resmethrin; Oregon State University: Corvallis, OR, 1994.
  6. Pesticide Products. Pest-Bank [CD-ROM] 2008.
  7. Klaassen, C. D. Casarett & Doull's Toxicology: The Basic Science of Poisons, 5th ed.; McGraw-Hill: New York, 1996; pp 666-669.
  8. Song, J.; Narahashi, T. Modulation of Sodium Channels of Rat Cerebellar Purkinje Neurons by the Pyrethroid Tetramethrin. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. 1996, 277 (1), 445-455.
  9. WHO. Environmental Health Criteria 92 - Resmethrin; International Programme on Chemical Safety, World Health Organization: Geneva, Switzerland, 1989; pp 1-79.
  10. Soderlund, D. M.; Clark, J. M.; Sheets, L. P.; Mullin, L. S.; Piccirillo, V. J.; Sargent, D.; Stevens, J. T.; Weiner, M. L. Mechanisms of Pyrethroid Neurotoxicity: Implications for Cumulative Risk Assessment. Toxicol. 2002, 171 (1), 3-59.
  11. Reigart, J. R.; Roberts, J. R. Recognition and Management of Pesticide Poisonings, 5th ed.; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances, Office of Pesticide Programs, U.S. Government Printing Office: 1999; pp 77, 87-88.
  12. Plumlee, K. H. Clinical Veterinary Toxicology; Mosby: St. Louis, 2004; pp 188-189.
  13. Resmethrin: Report of the Cancer Assessment Review Committee; PC Code: 097801; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances, Office of Pesticide Programs, Health Effects Division: Washington, DC, 2005; pp 1-34.
  14. Resmethrin HED Revised Risk Assessment for Reregistration Eligibility Document (RED); U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances, Office of Pesticide Programs, Health Effects Division: Washington, DC, 2005; pp 1-68.
  15. Draft List of Initial Pesticide Active Ingredients and Pesticide Inerts to be Considered for Screening Under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Fed. Regist. June 18, 2007, 72 (116), 33486-33503.
  16. Miyamoto, J. Degradation, Metabolism and Toxicity of Synthetic Pyrethroids. Environ. Health Perspect. 1976, 14, 15-28.
  17. Toxicological Profile for Pyrethrins and Pyrethroids; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry: Atlanta, 2003.
  18. Leng, G.; Gries, W. Simultaneous Determination of Pyrethroid and Pyrethrin Metabolites in Human Urine by Gas Chromatography- High Resolution Mass Spectrometry. J. Chromatogr. Part B 2005, 814.
  19. CDC. Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Atlanta, 2005.
  20. Ueda, K.; Gaughan, L. C.; Casida, J. E. Photodecomposition of Resmethrin and Related Pyrethroids. J. Agr. Food Chem. 1974, 22 (2), 212-220.
  21. Resmethrin; Tolerances for Residues. Fed.Regist. June 24, 1998, 63 (121), 497.
  22. FDA Pesticide Program Residue Monitoring 1993-2003; U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Office of Plant and Dairy Foods. https://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodSafety/FoodContaminantsAdulteration/Pesticides/ResidueMonitoringReports/default.htm (accessed Feb 2008), updated Sept 2005.
  23. Pesticide Data Program Annual Summary, Calendar Year 2006; U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Service: Washington, DC, 2007; pp 1-167.
Facebook Twitter Youtube