Student Scholarship

Document Type

Research Paper

Abstract

This research investigates the quantitative effects of methylene blue on the growth of transplanted sarcoma 37 in Swiss mice. While some previous literature suggested that oral administration of this thiazine dye could inhibit certain carcinomas, this study focuses on the results of direct intraperitoneal injections. The experimental process involved injecting mice with varying concentrations of the dye and allowing a nine-day growth period before removing the tumors for microscopic analysis. The primary metric for determining growth effects was the mitotic count, which involved averaging the number of dividing cells across multiple sections and fields for each tumor. 

The results indicate that methylene blue has a carcinogenic rather than an inhibitory effect when administered through this method. In the primary experimental group, mice receiving a concentration of 0.024 grams per cubic centimeter showed a 6.4 percent increase in mitotic figures compared to the control group. Statistical analysis yielded a significance factor of 2.1, suggesting that the observed increase in tumor growth was valid and not a result of mere chance. Secondary tests using lower concentrations ranging from 0.015 to 0.020 grams per cubic centimeter also showed consistent, though slightly lower, increases in mitotic activity. 

The discussion explores the possibility that methylene blue acts as an oxidative catalyst within the cell. Specifically, it is hypothesized that the dye may promote the production of desoxyribonucleic acid by oxidizing pentose sugars, such as D-2-desoxyribose. This increase in nucleic acid levels would subsequently accelerate cell division and overall tumor proliferation. The study concludes that further investigation into the catalytic properties of methylene blue and other carcinogens is necessary to understand their role in desoxyribonucleic acid synthesis and neoplastic growth.

Research Highlights

  • The Problem: Investigating the specific effects of the aromatic amine methylene blue on the growth and intracellular mechanisms of transplanted Sarcoma 37 in mice. 

  • The Method: Intraperitoneal injections of methylene blue at concentrations ranging from 0.015 to 0.024 gm./cc. were administered to Swiss mice bearing nine-day-old sarcoma transplants, followed by microscopic mitotic figure counts using iron hematoxylin staining and a cross-hatched ocular lens. 

  • Quantitative Finding: Methylene blue in a 0.024 gm./cc. concentration produced a statistically significant 6.4% increase in mitotic counts with a significance factor of 2.1; injections of 0.015 gm./cc. and 0.019 gm./cc. resulted in mitotic increases of 2.8% and 4.2%, respectively; the average experimental mitotic count was 150.1 per unit field compared to a control average of 141.0. 

  • Finding: The observed carcinogenic effect of methylene blue may result from its role as a respiratory catalyst that oxidizes pentose sugars, specifically D-2-desoxyribose, thereby accelerating the production of desoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) within tumor cells.

Publication Date

5-1951

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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