JSU Student Symposium 2022

The Utilization of the Xenopus Embryos for the Determination of the Teratogenic Potential of Methylene Blue

Title

The Utilization of the Xenopus Embryos for the Determination of the Teratogenic Potential of Methylene Blue

Date

2-15-2022

Faculty Mentor

James Rayburn, Biology

Loading...

Media is loading
 

Files

Submission Type

Paper

Location

2:30-2:40pm | Houston Cole Library, 11th Floor

Description

Methylene blue is a compound consisting of dark green crystals or crystalline powder, which gives out a deep blue color in solutions with water or alcohol. Its most common uses are as bacteriologic stain and indicator. It has often been used to treat methemoglobin and is often considered to be a safe drug when used in a moderate dose of <2 mg. In recent studies, methylene blue has been found to cause severe central nervous system toxicity with other results such as nitrogen and ammonia poisoning. To understand the harmful developmental effects of Methylene blue, Xenopus frog embryos under lab conditions were exposed to a range of methylene blue concentrations. For the experiment, fertilized embryos were sorted and allowed to develop in methylene blue solutions made by dissolving solid methylene blue in FETAX (frog embryo teratogenesis assay -Xenopus) solution. FETAX is a 96-hour test that uses early-stage embryos of the South African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) to measure the potential of substances to cause mortality, malformation, and growth inhibition in developing embryos. The major reason behind Xenopus frogs being the primary subject to tests is due to Xenopus embryos developing outside of the body making them easy to manipulate or treated with chemicals and proteins that have a direct effect on their development. The experiment setup was to expose the embryos to methylene blue concentrations ranging from 0-100 mg/ L with 4 sets of control for each trial. The control consisted of Xenopus embryos kept in only FETAX solutions. The results indicate an LC50 (mortality) of approximately 256.41 and EC50 (malformation) of 135.63. Abnormalities were observed in the abdominal, notochord, gut, eye, brain, and many other body structures including conditions such as edema, hemorrhage, and blisters. The results suggested that methylene blue has slight teratogenic effects.

Keywords

student research, biology

Rights

This content is the property of Jacksonville State University and is intended for non-commercial use. Video and images may be copied for personal use, research, teaching or any "fair use" as defined by copyright law. Users are asked to acknowledge Jacksonville State University. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@jsu.edu.

Disciplines

Biology

The Utilization of the Xenopus Embryos for the Determination of the Teratogenic Potential of Methylene Blue
COinS