SENSITIZATION OF RESISTANT MYELOID-LEUKEMIA CLONE CELLS BY ANTI-CANCER DRUGS TO FACTOR-STIMULATING DIFFERENTIATION

  • 1 January 1979
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 70  (2) , 235-238
Abstract
The effect of cancer chemotherapeutic drugs on in vitro differentiation of a mouse myeloid leukemic cells (MI) clone (R4) that is resistant to inducers is studied. Treatment of the cells with 50% ascitic fluid (an inducer) plus 0.25 .mu.g/ml of adriamycin or 0.3 .mu.g/ml of daunomycin induced phagocytic activity and suppressed cell growth, but had little effect on cell viability; treatment with ascitic fluid or the drugs alone had no effect. In combination with ascitic fluid, mitomycin-C, hydroxyurea, 5-fluorouracil or bleomycin also induced phagocytic activity, but 6-mercaptopurine, amethopterin or aminopterin did not. These drugs also induced other differentiation-associated properties, lysozyme activity and locomotive activity. Some cancer chemotherapeutic drugs apparently sensitize resistant leukemic cells to an inducer of cell differentiation.