The inactivation of Cobalamin by nitrous oxide : application in experimental chemotherapy of leukemia

The subject of this thesis is the investigation of the role of cobalamin in leukemic cell proliferation. This has been studied by the application of the nitrous oxide-induced inactivation of the cobalamin coenzyme function in methionine synthetase. In most of the studies, the well-characterized myeloid leukemia of BN rats (BNML) has been employed as a model for human leukemia. In some studies leukemic bone marrow cells from patients have been used. The results of these studies may lead to a tentative conclusion with regard to the perspectives of cobalamin inactivation in antileukemic chemotherapy. Prior to the presentation of these studies in chapters 3 to 8, some essential experimental methods are described in chapter 2. This involves the BN rat leukemia model, the exposure of rats to nitrous oxide, and the deoxyuridine suppression test