The effect of ethyl tertiary-butyl ether, a bioethanol-derived fuel oxygenate, on immune responses

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To determine the effect of ETBE, a bioethanol-derived fuel oxygenate, on immune response, the adjuvant effect of ETBE was investigated. First, we injected ovalbumin and 0.1 to 3 % ETBE in saline solution to mice. After 21 days, anti-OVA IgG levels in serum of the mice were measured. The mice injected with 3 % ETBE were dead within a day. ETBE at concentrations between 0.1 to 1 % did not affect anti-OVA IgG level, thus single injection of ETBE with the antigen was considered to have no adjuvant effect on the antibody production. Next, we injected 1 % ETBE 5 times per week from day 0 to day 20 to mice immunized with ovalbumin on day 0. The levels of anti-OVA IgG in serum of immunized mice with successive injection of 1 % ETBE were higher than those of immunized mice without injection of ETBE. This result indicated that the chronic exposure of ETBE might exert adjuvant activity.In addition, 1 % ETBE treatment attenuated the degranulation of mast cell line RBL2H3.These results indicated 1 % ETBE may potentially affect immune responses. Although low concentrations of ETBE evaporated from fuels might not affect human health, accidental exposure to a high concentration of ETBE is likely to affect immune responses.