Amended safety assessment of sodium picramate and picramic acid

Int J Toxicol. 2009 Nov-Dec;28(6 Suppl 2):205S-16S. doi: 10.1177/1091581809354650.

Abstract

Sodium picramate is the sodium salt of picramic acid, a substituted phenolic compound. Sodium picramate and picramic acid function as hair colorants; they are reportedly used in 31 and 3 hair-dye products, respectively. No concentration-of-use data were available for sodium picramate, but picramic acid was reported to be used at 0.6%. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel recognized that adding picramic acid to a hair-dye formulation likely results in formation of a salt such as sodium picramate, which suggested that safety test data for one ingredient would be applicable to the other. Hair dyes containing these ingredients bear a caution statement and patch test instructions for determining whether the product causes skin irritation. The panel finds that the available data support the safety of these colorants in hair dyes and expects that sodium picramate would be used at concentrations comparable to those reported for picramic acid.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • 2,4-Dinitrophenol / analogs & derivatives*
  • 2,4-Dinitrophenol / analysis
  • 2,4-Dinitrophenol / chemistry
  • 2,4-Dinitrophenol / pharmacokinetics
  • 2,4-Dinitrophenol / toxicity
  • Animals
  • Bacteria / drug effects
  • Bacteria / genetics
  • Carcinogenicity Tests
  • Carcinogens / toxicity
  • Cosmetics
  • Eye Diseases / chemically induced
  • Eye Diseases / pathology
  • Female
  • Hair Dyes / analysis
  • Hair Dyes / chemistry
  • Hair Dyes / pharmacokinetics
  • Hair Dyes / toxicity*
  • Humans
  • Irritants / toxicity
  • Mutagenicity Tests
  • Mutagens / toxicity
  • Pregnancy
  • Rabbits
  • Reproduction / drug effects
  • Safety
  • Skin Diseases / chemically induced
  • Skin Diseases / pathology

Substances

  • Carcinogens
  • Cosmetics
  • Hair Dyes
  • Irritants
  • Mutagens
  • picramic acid
  • 2,4-Dinitrophenol