DMSO? The "universal solvent" in the pharmaceutical field?

Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO for short) is a sulfur-containing organic compound with the molecular formula: C2H6OS.

The industrial chain structure of the dimethyl sulfoxide industry is relatively clear. The upstream of the industrial chain is the supplier of raw materials, mainly dimethyl sulfide, acetone, hydrogen peroxide, etc.; the midstream of the industrial chain is the dimethyl sulfoxide manufacturer; the downstream of the industrial chain is the application field of the dimethyl sulfoxide industry, and the main application fields are medicine, pesticides, carbon fiber, electricity and other fields.

It is a colorless liquid and an important polar aprotic solvent. It is miscible with many organic solvents and water, and is often used as a cosolvent for chemical reactions and PCR reactions, especially ultra-long PCR reactions, to increase the yield. . Dimethyl sulfoxide has the special property of easily penetrating the skin, causing users to feel a taste similar to oysters or garlic. Note: Aprotic polar solvents: There are no protons in the molecule, and compared with water, it is almost non-acidic and has no amphoteric characteristics, but has a weaker tendency to accept protons and different degrees of hydrogen bonding ability, such as amides, ketones, nitriles, dimethyl sulfoxide, pyridine, etc.

Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is a widely used organic compound. Its high polarity and chemical stability give it a variety of properties and uses, making it an indispensable and important substance. Due to its special solvent effect on chemical reactions and solvent properties for many substances, it is known as the "universal flux". Initially, DMSO was only used as a cryoprotectant for freezing bone marrow and blood cells. Subsequently, many experiments have confirmed that DMSO has anti-inflammatory, analgesic, diuretic, sedative, membrane permeability and other effects. As a medical product, it is relatively safe and effective. Therefore, pharmaceutical-grade DMSO has gradually been used as a pharmaceutical solvent and drug carrier in various research projects in the biomedical field, such as drug development, protein crystallization and cell culture, and is often added to drugs as a drug active ingredient.

Cryoprotectant

Due to its small relative molecular mass and strong cell membrane permeability, DMSO is often used as a cryoprotectant in cell biology and biomedical research to protect cells and other biological samples from low-temperature damage. For example, Huang Huiwen et al. found that using 5% DMSO as a cryoprotectant for cryopreservation of peripheral blood hematopoietic stem cells did not affect the short-term hematopoietic reconstruction of patients after infusion. Animal experiments have also shown that 10% DMSO is a more suitable cryoprotectant for freezing immature mouse testicular spermatogenic cells. Researchers pointed out that during the cell cryopreservation process, the oxygen atoms in the DMSO molecules can form hydrogen bonds with water molecules, lowering the crystallization temperature of water, thereby lowering the freezing point of the solution inside and outside the cell. In addition, DMSO can penetrate into the cell, stabilize the cell membrane and the intracellular environment by increasing the intracellular ion concentration, maintain the osmotic pressure balance inside and outside the cell, and reduce the instability of the cell during freezing and thawing, so as to prevent the ice crystals formed in the cell from piercing the cell membrane and protect the cell from mechanical damage caused by low temperature.

Antibacterial and anti-inflammatory

DMSO is not a high-efficiency disinfectant, but studies have shown that DMSO has a certain antibacterial effect. When its concentration is 0.18 mol/L, it has a significant inhibitory effect on Escherichia coli and Shigella dysenteriae; when its concentration is 0.35 mol/L, it has a significant antibacterial effect on Staphylococcus aureus; when its concentration is 0.70 mol/L, it has a significant antibacterial effect on Candida albicans. It can be seen that DMSO has a certain antibacterial and bactericidal effect on common human pathogens.

Analgesia

DMSO has been shown to have a certain analgesic effect, which means that it can relieve pain and discomfort. This analgesic effect allows DMSO to be used as a control group analgesic in some analgesia-related studies. Other scholars have found that the clinical efficacy of using traditional Chinese medicine combined with DMSO for external use in the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia is definite, which can effectively relieve patients' symptoms, reduce their pain, and improve their quality of life. Unlike other analgesics, DMSO only eliminates pain without damaging the pain in the area, and has no other adverse reactions such as disorientation, constipation, vomiting, dry mouth, headache, insomnia and palpitations. It is an excellent anesthetic. Although DMSO has analgesic effects, in the medical field, it is usually only used as an auxiliary drug or solvent, not the main anesthetic. The specific method of use and dosage need to be determined according to the doctor's advice and specific circumstances.

Anti-tumor

Studies have shown that DMSO is a cell differentiation inducer that can be used as a medium for anti-tumor drugs to treat various tumors and study the induction of tumor cell differentiation, which provides a basis for the anti-tumor effect of DMSO. Subsequently, more and more studies have reported the role of DMSO in the development of tumors. At present, studies have shown that high-dose DMSO has obvious toxicity to the growth of human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells cultured in vitro, inhibiting cell proliferation, inducing cell apoptosis and affecting the cell cycle; DMSO in the products of Sigma and Tianjin Komiou can be used as a safe solvent for in vitro screening of anti-tumor drugs for human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells when the volume fraction is less than 0.1% and 0.5% respectively. Studies have also shown that DMSO has the effect of inducing human liver cancer HepG2 to differentiate into normal cells and inhibit cell proliferation. Similarly, studies have found that when the concentration of DMSO is ≤0.6%, it has basically no effect on myeloma cells RPMI8226 cells. When the concentration is ≥0.8%, DMSO has the effect of inhibiting cell proliferation and promoting cell apoptosis. In addition, Song Fengyan et al. observed the changes in the cell morphology and growth state of neurocarcinoma PC12 under the action of different doses of DMSO, and found that the effect of DMSO on the growth of PC12 cancer cells is dose-dependent and time-dependent. Other experiments have shown that DMSO can promote the inhibitory effect of ALA-PDT on A431 cell killing and mouse skin squamous cell carcinoma.

Central nervous system diseases

The biological effects and clinical literature on DMSO in central nervous system damage or dysfunction show that DMSO can be used to treat diseases that cause tissue damage and organ damage, including head and spinal cord injuries, stroke, memory dysfunction and other related diseases.

Diabetes

Xu Xiaoting et al. confirmed through in vitro separation and culture experiments that DMSO can be used to induce BMSCs differentiation, and in the final stage, functional cells that secrete insulin are formed. In the future, it is possible to further explore the synergistic effect of other reagents to induce differentiation into pancreatic islet cells, which lays the foundation for further screening and optimizing induction conditions and improving the efficiency of directional induction differentiation. Similar to this result, the research results of Yu Wenhao et al. also showed that DMSO can activate the expression of the Pdx-1 gene and promote the differentiation of rabbit BMSCs into pancreatic islet precursor cells that can secrete insulin. Methylation inhibitor 5-AZA-dC combined with DMSO, niacinamide, and high glucose can induce rabbit BMSCs to differentiate into insulin-secreting pancreatic islet cells. DNA methylation level is involved in regulating pancreatic islet cell differentiation. Low methylation promotes islet-specific gene expression and further promotes islet cell differentiation and β-cell maturation.

Oral Medicine

Currently, the treatment of dental fluorosis mainly adopts bonding repair, and previous studies have focused on enamel bonding of dental fluorosis. However, in the past two years, there have been related studies on the application of DMSO on dentin to repair dental fluorosis. The results showed that DMSO can effectively improve the bonding strength of fluorosis dentin in dry and wet states, but the bonding strength under wet bonding is higher than that under dry bonding, and the bonding strength decreases with the severity of dental fluorosis. DMSO is highly efficient, low-toxic, and has a certain nuclear radiation protection effect, making it a potential treatment option for preventing radiation oral mucositis.