CYTO-TOXICITY OF ALKYL-LYSOPHOSPHOLIPID DERIVATIVES AND LOW-ALKYL-CLEAVAGE ENZYME-ACTIVITIES IN RAT-BRAIN TUMOR-CELLS

  • 1 January 1983
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 43  (2) , 541-545
Abstract
Alkyl-lysophospholipids (ALP) and related derivatives inhibited the in vitro incorporation of [3H]thymidine into 7 permanent cell lines derived from rat brain tumors. The cytostatic effect of ALP was dependent on dosage and incubation time. Naturally occurring 2-lysophosphatidylcholine did not exhibit cytostatic effects. The trypan blue dye exclusion test, which was used to assess severe cell damage, correlated with the extent that [3H]thymidine incorporation was inhibited by ALP. Preincubation of ALP (rac-1-octadecyl-lyso-glycero-3-phosphocholine) for more than 8 min with a tetrahydropteridine-dependent O-alkyl cleavage enzyme preparation from rat liver microsomes destroyed almost all of the cytotoxic properties of ALP when tested at a concentration that previously inhibited tumor growth by more than 50%. [3H]Thymidine incorporation rates were greater than 100% for astrocytoma cells incubated with ALP after exposure to the alkyl cleavage enzyme. Comparison of the microsomal activities of the tetrahydropteridine-dependent alkyl-cleavage enzyme present in astrocytoma 78-FR-G-299 cells and the pleomorphic glioma 78-FR-G-219/S4 cells to that found in normal skin fibroblasts and rat livers revealed a markedly reduced activity in the neoplastic cell lines. Those tumor cells that were more resistant to ALP cytotoxicity (pleomorphic glioma, 78-FR-G-219/S4) had a 3-fold higher tetrahydropteridine-dependent cleavage activity than a more cytotoxic sensitive line (astrocytoma cells, 78-FR-G-299). The low-alkyl-cleavage enzyme activities in these neoplastic cells in comparison to normal cells might be a factor in explaining the relatively high cytotoxicity of ALP in tumor cells.