Relationship between olive oil:air, saline:air, and rat brain:air partition coefficients of organic solvents in vitro.

Partition coefficients of 28 volatile organic solvents (13 alkylbenzenes, 10 chlorinated hydrocarbons, and 5 ketones) in olive oil, saline, and rat brain tissue homogenates were measured by equilibration in a closed vial and subsequent gas-chromatographic analysis of headspace air. The values of oil and saline partition coefficients correlate well with previously reported data. Brain partition coefficients were fit to a bilinear equation of the form P(brain:air) = alpha(o)P(oil:air) + alpha(s)P(saline:air) + c.