Final answer:
Highly soluble inhalation agents are metabolized by the liver, which performs detoxification and drug metabolism through processes like oxidation and conjugation.
Step-by-step explanation:
Inhalation agents that are highly soluble in the body are typically metabolized by the liver. The liver has a crucial role in drug metabolism, where substances undergo modifications to become less harmful and more easily excretable. The metabolism of these substances, such as inhalation agents, involves two phases. Phase I includes oxidation, reduction, and hydrolysis, while Phase II involves conjugation. For example, ethanol, which is used as a therapy for methanol and ethylene glycol poisoning, is processed through oxidation in the liver into carbon dioxide and water. The liver's detoxification mechanisms convert toxic substances into less harmful products and then into forms that can be readily excreted. This detoxification is a part of the over 500 functions that the liver performs.