Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 3, 2026
Autonomously Bioluminescent Mammalian Cells for Continuous and Real-time Monitoring of Cytotoxicity
Published on: October 28, 2013
Safety testing of blue vital dyes using cell culture models
Fabrizio Giansanti1, Nicola Schiavone, Laura Papucci
11 Department of Translational Medicine and Surgery, Eye Clinic, University of Florence , Italy .
Purpose:
To investigate the safety of trypan blue, brilliant blue G (BBG), Evans blue (EB), patent blue, Chicago blue (CB), and bromophenol blue (BB), with and without halogen and xenon light exposure.
Methods:
All dyes were diluted in a balanced saline solution at a concentration of 0.5%. Cells of the human RPE line ARPE-19 and rat RGC5 were exposed to vital dyes for 5 min. Experiments with and without xenon or halogen illumination were performed. The viability of ARPE-19 and RGC5 cells was determined at 12, 24, or 120 h by a cell proliferation assay using WST-1 reagent. The apoptotic events as well as cell numbers were registered for 72 h and counted by time-lapse videomicroscopy.
Results:
There was no evidence of ARPE-19 or RGC5 toxicity, immediate (0 and 24 h) or delayed (120 h), following exclusive exposure to each single dye. After halogen light exposure, ARPE-19 cell lines did not show any significant toxicity, except for when they were exposed to EB. After xenon illumination, ARPE-19 cells showed a marked decrease in cell viability when exposed to EB or CB and a moderate decrease when exposed to BBG and BB. After xenon illumination, RGC5 cells showed the highest decrease in cell viability when exposed to EB and CB; BB caused the same decrease in cell viability as in ARPE-19 cells.
Conclusion:
Interaction of light from endo-illumination source and blue vital dyes may increase the risk of retinal toxicity.
