Effect of Distance and Duration of Illumination on Retinal Ganglion Cells Exposed to Varying Concentrations of Brilliant Blue Green

Background: The objective of the study was to determine the safety parameters of using brilliant blue green (BBG) for chromovitrectomy by assessing the cytotoxicity of BBG on cultured retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) exposed to illumination. Methods: RGCs were exposed to two concentrations of BBG (0.25 and 0.5 mg/mL) under metal halide illumination at varying distances (1 and 2.5 cm), intensities (990 and 2,000 Fc), and durations (1, 5 and 15 minutes). Cell viability was assessed using the WST-1 and CellTiter 96 ® AQueous One solution cell proliferation assays. Results: Using the WST-1 assay, with high-intensity illumination, viability of RGCs ranged from 97.5±16.4% of controls with minimum BBG and light exposure (0.25 mg/mL BBG and illuminated for 1 minute at 2.5 cm distance) to 53.1±11.3% of controls with maximum BBG and light exposure (0.50 mg/mL and illuminated for 15 minutes at 1 cm distance; P < 0.01). With medium-intensity illumination, RGCs showed better viability, ranging from 95.1±7.2% of controls with minimum BBG and light exposure to 72.3±12.8% of controls with maximum BBG and light exposure. CellTiter 96 ® AQueous One assay showed similar results. Conclusion: RGCs seem to safely tolerate up to 5 minutes of exposure to 0.5 mg/mL BBG under diffuse medium-intensity illumination (990 Fc). J Clin Med Res. 2015;7(7):517-524 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/jocmr2085e