Superior gallstone dissolubility and safety of tert-amyl ethyl ether over methyl-tertiary butyl ether
Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: BACKGROUND: The use of methyl-tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) to dissolve gallstones has been limited due to concerns over its toxicity and the widespread recognition of the safety of laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The adverse effects of MTBE are largely attributed to its low boiling point, resulting in a tendency to evaporate. Therefore, if there is a material with a higher boiling point and similar or higher dissolubility than MTBE, it is expected to be an attractive alternative to MTBE. AIM: To determine whether tert-amyl ethyl ether (TAEE), an MTBE analogue with a relatively higher boiling point (102 °C), could be used as an alternative to MTBE in terms of gallstone dissolubility and toxicity. METHODS: dissolubility was determined by comparing the weights of solvent-treated gallstones and control (dimethyl sulfoxide)-treated gallstones, after the direct infusion of each solvent into the gallbladder in both hamster models with cholesterol and pigmented gallstones. RESULTS: experiment, the 24 h-dissolubility of TAEE was 71.7% and 63.0% for cholesterol and pigmented gallstones, respectively, which represented a 1.4- and 1.9-fold increase in dissolubility compared to that of MTBE. In addition, the results of the cell viability assay and western blot analysis indicated that TAEE had a lower toxicity towards gallbladder epithelial cells than MTBE. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated that TAEE has higher gallstone dissolubility properties and safety than those of MTBE. As such, TAEE could present an attractive alternative to MTBE if our findings regarding its efficacy and safety can be consistently reproduced in further subclinical and clinical studies.
Institutions: The Catholic University of Korea St. Vincent's Hospital, Catholic University of Korea, Chungbuk National University, The Catholic University of Korea Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, The Catholic University of Korea Daejeon St. Mary's Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea Uijeongbu St. Mary's Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital
Language: English
Subfield: Gastroenterology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W2980440486