Dimethyl sulphoxide dose-response on rat retinal function

Abstract

The aim of the study is to determine whether dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO), a common laboratory solvent, impacts retinal function. Long Evans rats (n = 17) were intravitreally injected with five different doses of DMSO representative of those reported in the literature and spanning over 3 log units of vitreal concentration (0.01-8%). Retinal function was evaluated 1 h after injection using electroretinograms, and the waveform was decomposed into outer (photoreceptor), middle (ON-bipolar cell) and inner retinal (amacrine and ganglion cell) components. DMSO induces a dose-dependent decrease in retinal function for concentrations of 0.6% or more which is retinal layer specific. The photoreceptors ..