Abstract
Dexamethasone, a steroidal hormone has potential application in pharmacology. This drug possesses antiinflammatory, immunosuppressive, antibacterial, antimicrobial and antiviral activity. The cytogenetic effects of this drug was studied on human chromosomes in lymphocyte cultures in vitro and in vivo. There was no increase in the chromosomal aberration and sister chromatid exchange (SCE) frequency with dexamethasone at any concentration which was equivalent to plasma level and slightly higher than the plasma level in vitro. However, a significant increase in the frequency of chromosome aberration as well as SCE was seen in patients given therapeutic doses of dexamethasone when compared to the control of two types-(a) Arthritis patients before starting the drug therapy, and (b) the normal healthy individuals from the general population. The most frequently observed abberrations were chromatid gaps and breaks. Therefore, our study indicates that dexamethasone is clastogenic in vivo but not in vitro.