Glutathione levels and chemosensitizing effects of buthionine sulfoximine in human malignant glioma cells

Biopsy samples and cultured cells derived from them were obtained from 39 patients with malignant glioma and were analyzed for 1) glutathione (GSH) content; 2) sensitivity to 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) and/or nitrogen mustard (HN2) treatment and 3) the effect of buthionine sulfoximi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of neuro-oncology 1991-10, Vol.11 (2), p.157-164
Main Authors: Allalunis-Turner, M J, Day, 3rd, R S, McKean, J D, Petruk, K C, Allen, P B, Aronyk, K E, Weir, B K, Huyser-Wierenga, D, Fulton, D S, Urtasun, R C
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic - therapeutic use
Brain Neoplasms - drug therapy
Brain Neoplasms - metabolism
Buthionine Sulfoximine
Carmustine - therapeutic use
Child
Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor
Drug Synergism
Female
Glioma - drug therapy
Glioma - metabolism
Glutathione - metabolism
Humans
Male
Mechlorethamine - therapeutic use
Methionine Sulfoximine - analogs & derivatives
Methionine Sulfoximine - therapeutic use
Middle Aged
Tumor Cells, Cultured
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Biopsy samples and cultured cells derived from them were obtained from 39 patients with malignant glioma and were analyzed for 1) glutathione (GSH) content; 2) sensitivity to 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) and/or nitrogen mustard (HN2) treatment and 3) the effect of buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) treatment on BCNU and/or HN2 cytotoxicity. The average GSH concentration of biopsy specimens was lower than those of cultured cells (2.36 +/- 0.44 vs. 11.42 +/- 2.32 nmol/10(6) cells). While some of the tumor specimens were sensitive to either BCNU or HN2, the majority were resistant to both. However, 8 of 23 tumors tested showed enhanced sensitivity to BCNU following treatment with BSO. Five of 17 tumors were similarly sensitized to HN2 by BSO. These results suggest that BSO chemosensitization may be of value for certain patients and that screening assays may help identify treatment-sensitive individuals.
ISSN:0167-594X
1573-7373
DOI:10.1007/BF02390175