How long after poisoning do mice die? - briefly
Mice generally die within 12 – 48 hours after receiving a lethal dose of typical rodenticides. The exact interval depends on the specific toxin, dosage, and route of exposure.
How long after poisoning do mice die? - in detail
The interval between toxin exposure and mortality in laboratory rodents depends on several variables.
The primary determinants are the chemical nature of the poison, the administered dose, and the route of administration. Highly potent neurotoxins such as organophosphates can cause death within minutes, whereas anticoagulant rodenticides often require 24–72 hours before lethal effects become apparent.
Key factors influencing the time course include:
- Dose‑response relationship: Sub‑lethal doses may produce delayed onset of symptoms, extending survival to several days; lethal concentrations accelerate death proportionally.
- Administration route: Intraperitoneal injection delivers the agent directly to the bloodstream, shortening the interval to 5–30 minutes for many compounds. Oral ingestion introduces digestive processing, typically adding 30 minutes to several hours before systemic toxicity.
- Physiological variables: Age, weight, and strain affect metabolic rate and detoxification capacity. Younger or smaller mice metabolize certain poisons more rapidly, resulting in earlier mortality.
- Chemical class:
- Neurotoxins (e.g., tetrodotoxin, saxitoxin) – onset < 10 minutes, death within 20–60 minutes.
- Cardiotoxins (e.g., digitalis glycosides) – symptom onset 30 minutes to 2 hours, death usually within 2–6 hours.
- Metabolic poisons (e.g., cyanide) – rapid respiratory failure, death < 5 minutes at high concentrations.
- Anticoagulants (e.g., brodifacoum) – internal bleeding manifests after 24 hours, mortality often 48–72 hours post‑exposure.
- Heavy metals (e.g., arsenic, mercury) – progressive organ failure, death may occur over 12–48 hours depending on dose.
Environmental conditions such as temperature and stress level can modify metabolic clearance, thereby altering the timeline. For example, hypothermia slows enzymatic detoxification, extending survival, whereas hyperthermia accelerates it.
In experimental settings, precise timing is recorded by monitoring behavioral changes (e.g., loss of righting reflex, convulsions) and physiological parameters (e.g., heart rate, oxygen saturation). These observations allow researchers to construct dose‑time curves specific to each toxin.
Overall, the period from ingestion or injection to death in mice ranges from a few minutes for fast‑acting neuro‑ or cardiotoxins to several days for anticoagulant rodenticides, with intermediate durations dictated by dose, administration route, and individual physiological factors.