title: What really cures in autologous bone marrow transplantation? A possible role for dimethylsulfoxide.
abstract: Dimethylsulfoxide has long been known to be a potent inducer of differentiation of various malignant cells in animals and human beings. It is a toxic agent, and high concentrations are needed to induce differentiation. Other compounds that also have methylene groups and a polar/apolar architecture, and are needed in much smaller concentrations to induce differentiation, like hexamethylene bisacetamide have been developed. They are already used in trials in human beings. However dimethylsulfoxide still has a very important role in bone marrow transplantation, being added to the frozen marrow as a cryoprotectant. We suggest that dimethylsulfoxide may induce differentiation of malignant cells present in the marrow or alternatively in the body when it is infused back with the transplanted marrow. This may be an additional factor contributing to the success rate achieved in various malignancies treated by transplantation, especially autologous, complementing the traditional explanations which are based mainly on the high dose chemotherapy and the immunological manipulations that occur during transplantation.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Hematology, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Toren
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rechavi
mesh_terms: D000081:Acetamides / Q000494:pharmacology; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D016465:Bone Marrow Purging; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous
chemical_list: D000081:Acetamides; C014026:hexamethylene bisacetamide; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide