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Previous Volume 347:1980-1982 December 12, 2002 Number 24 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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To the Editor: Kreiss et al. (Aug. 1 issue)¹ report a high incidence of bronchiolitis obliterans at a microwave-popcorn factory. The chemical diacetyl (2,3-butanedione) was singled out as a possible causal agent of this deadly condition and other medical problems found in workers in this plant. As a chemist, biochemist, and toxicologist, I would like to point out that 2,3-butanedione is in chemical equilibrium with 1,3-butane-diene-2,3-diol (Figure 1). This phenomenon, which is well known in organic chemistry, is called keto-enol tautomerism. This isomer is expected to be very reactive with oxygen both at room temperature and on heating. . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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