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5-Ethoxydihydro-2(3H)-furanone (4-ethoxy-4-hydroxybutyric acid gamma lactone), a trace component recently isolated from wines, when injected intraperitoneally in rats depressed ambulation, rearing, and defecation in the open-field test. Ethanol injected in conjunction with this ethoxy furanone intensified depression of ambulation. The furanone was lethal at about 600 mg/kg (IP in rats), and ethanol shortened time to death. This ethoxy furanone decomposes at pH 2 - 3; thus passage through the stomach renders it harmless to man.
Louis R. Caplan (1989) studied this question.