Radiosensitizing effects of arsenic trioxide on MCF-7 human breast cancer cells exposed to 89strontium chloride

Liu,Hengchao; Tao,Xinquan; Ma,Fang; Qiu,Jun; Wu,Cuiping; Wang,Mingming

doi:10.3892/or.2012.1979

Radiosensitizing effects of arsenic trioxide on MCF-7 human breast cancer cells exposed to 89strontium chloride

Authors:
- Hengchao Liu
- Xinquan Tao
- Fang Ma
- Jun Qiu
- Cuiping Wu
- Mingming Wang
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Affiliations: Department of Nuclear Medicine, First Affiliated Hospital, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, Anhui 233004, P.R. China , Department of Medical Laboratory, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, Anhui 233030, P.R. China, Institute of Radiation Medicine, School of Clinical Medicine, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230601, P.R. China
Published online on: August 22, 2012 https://doi.org/10.3892/or.2012.1979
Pages: 1894-1902

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the radiosensitizing effects of arsenic trioxide (As2O3) on MCF-7 human breast cancer cells irradiated with 89strontium chloride (89SrCl2). The 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) was calculated from results of an MTT assay. The concentration of As2O3 less than 20% IC50 was selected for subsequent experiments. Cells were treated with As2O3 and 89SrCl2. Morphological changes of cells were observed under an inverted microscope. The radiosensitivity enhancing ratio (SER) was computed based on a clone formation assay. Cell cycle distribution and apoptosis were measured by flow cytometry (FCM). Expression of Bcl-2 and Bax at both the mRNA and protein levels was assessed by RT-PCR and western blotting. The IC50 of As2O3 at 24 h was 11.7 µM. Doses of As2O3 (1 and 2 µM) were used in combination treatments and SER values were 1.25 and 1.79, respectively. As2O3 significantly suppressed cell growth, caused G2/M arrest, enhanced cell death and apoptosis induced by 89SrCl2 and decreased expression of the Bcl-2 gene. Since expression of Bax was unchanged following treatment, As2O3 effectively reduced the Bcl-2/Bax ratio. As2O3 (1-2 µM) enhances the cytotoxic effects of 89SrCl2 on the MCF-7 human breast cancer cell line by inducing G2 phase delay and promoting apoptosis through the reduction of the Bcl-2/Bax ratio.

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