Many chemicals (natural and man-made) in our environment are toxic, but have no chance to exert their toxicity because our bodies have several lines of defense against them. Your skin has a layer of dead cells, called the stratum corneum, that serves mostly as a physical barrier, although some of its action is chemical. If you ingest or breathe in a potential toxin and it manages to bypass the epithelial layer of the respiratory or digestive tract and gets into your blood, your liver attacks it with detoxifying enzymes, which changes it to a form that can be filtered by the kidneys. Cells do not like to have chemicals enter; very few chemicals can pass freely into cells, and they are choosy about the chemicals they internalize.
DMSO is a wonderful solvent, and can leech chemicals from containers. It is not normally stored in plastic because of this property, but if stored in a glass bottle and the wrong kind of stopper or lid is used, it will leach chemicals from the stopper or lid liner.
Knowing how susceptible DMSO is to dissolve any chemical in its environment, and knowing that it permeabilizes the cell membrane and acts as a carrier to carry all of those chemicals right into the cell where they have no natural access and have no business being, I do not want that stuff anywhere near me. Or, to illustrate: if you spill ricin on your skin, not much will happen. But if you spill ricin dissolved in DMSO on your skin—well, it was nice knowing you.
DMSO also interacts with DNA and changes its structure. I have used it in PCR experiments for that property. The fact that it interacts with DNA, however, is a red flag for me—any chemical that directly interacts with DNA and changes its structure is a potential carcinogen. Altering the DNA structure can cause mistakes in the DNA during cell division; even without changing the DNA sequence, a change in structure can alter gene expression, causing too much or too little of the gene product, which has pathologic consequences.
I am well aware of the use of DMSO as a cryoprotectant, since I have used it countless times to freeze cells. Your use of the example of using it to protect organs (from ice crystal damage) for transplant is a bit misplaced on me: with my strong moral convictions against organ transplantation, I would never be a transplant recipient.
Yes, I am aware that “alternative medicine” advocates have promoted the use of DMSO. However, as a medical professional, I am also aware that “alternative medicine” practitioners rely minimally, if at all, on evidence to inform their practices. I firmly support basing medical practice on evidence, which means on exhaustive testing and observation.
“However, as a medical professional...”
Would you care to explain your being a ‘medical professional’? What are your credentials? Do you work for the FDA? Some other government agency? Please, if you are so much an expert, give us reason to have confidence in what espouse.
I consider Dr Stanley Jacobs, MD a medical professional. Do you consider him so?
I know many MD’s I consider to be medical professionals. But not just because they have MD after their name.
DMSO has been studied more than any drug company drug, and has not been found wanting. Many drug company drugs kill people. DMSO does not. And there has never been any evidence that DMSO is a carcinogen.