Evidence of DMSO-induced protein aggregation in cells

We report on a study of protein aggregation induced on different cell samples by dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) addition. DMSO is the most commonly used cryoprotectant because it is supposed to readily diffuse across lipid bilayers, thus reducing water activity within cells; despite its large use, the mechanism of penetration and even the main interaction features with cell components are far from being understood. In the present work, infrared absorption spectroscopy is successfully applied to real time detection of chemical and structural changes occurring in cells during dehydration from water and water/DMSO suspensions. As a most interesting result, DMSO is observed to favor protein aggregation both in cellular model systems, as cultured lymphocytes and fibroblasts, and in human samples for clinic use, as hematopoietic stem cells from cord blood. This effect is evidenced at low water content, analogously to what is observed for protein solutions. Such tendency is not specific of the type of protein and suggests one possible origin of DMSO toxicity.