Cytotoxic Effects of Treosulfan on Prostate Cancer Cell Lines

Abstract

Objective: Despite various therapeutical options in metastatic prostate cancer, the lack of a curative approach motivates further investigations. Treosulfan is an alkylating agent that has proven its indication in the treatment of e.g. ovarian carcinoma. This study focused on the objective of evaluating the effect of in vitro intoxication of human prostate carcinoma cell lines with treosulfan. Materials and Methods: Human prostate cancer cell lines LNCaP, DU145 and PC3 were treated with treosulfan concentrations from 0.5-500 μM for up to six days. Analysis of cell viability was performed using colorimetric WST-1 assay. Control data were obtained from identical cell lines cultivated without treosulfan. Results: Incubation with treosulfan inhibited cell viability and led to cell death in all cell lines in a dose- and time-dependent manner. After one day, viability of LNCaP, DU145 and PC3 cells was constantly reduced with a dose rate of at least 10 μM (p<0.001), 10 μM (p<0.0001) and 100 μM (p<0.0001) treosulfan, respectively. Minimum dose rates leading to death of nearly all LNCaP, DU145 and PC3 cells were 250 μM, 100 μM and 200 μM treosulfan, respectively. Conclusion: The results demonstrate a sensitivity of prostate carcinoma cells to the cytotoxic activity of treosulfan. Therefore, treosulfan might be a promising compound for novel treatment protocols for prostate cancer.