Effects of B2O3 (boron trioxide) on colon cancer cells: our first-step experience and in vitro results

Boron oxide (B2O3) is derived from dehydration of boric acid and is a colorless, semitransparent, crystalline compound that is moderately soluble in water. On the other hand, boron oxide is chemically hygroscopic. This gives the molecule the ability to soak up water and adhere to tissues. Boron oxide can be used locally after tumor debulking in inoperable tumors and especially when the tumor-free margin distance cannot be provided. For all these reasons we aimed to evaluate the in vitro test results of B2O3 in terms of cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, apoptosis, and necrotic effects on L929 fibroblast cells and DLD-1 colorectal adenocarcinoma cells. Our studies demonstrated that boron oxide compounds appear to be highly cytotoxic for both cell lines according to WST cell viability assay (44.22% and 18.36% on DLD-1 and L929, respectively). Although no genotoxic effects were observed, boron oxide compounds showed antiproliferative effects for both cell lines. The prepared boron oxide compounds may hold the potential to be applied locally to the remaining tissue after surgery and further research and evaluation will be needed to determine its effectiveness.