Azidothymidine (AZT) Inhibits Proliferation of Human Ovarian Cancer Cells by Regulating Cell Cycle Progression
Yeun-Ting Hsieh, Jenn-Jhy Tseng
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIM: Drug resistance is a significant cause of high mortality in ovarian cancer (OC) patients. The reverse transcriptase inhibitor azidothymidine (AZT) has been utilized as a treatment for tumors, but its role in OC treatment has not been revealed. The aim of the present in vitro study was to examine the influence of AZT on the growth of human OC cells and the involved proteins. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The proliferation, cell cycle distribution, extent of apoptosis, mitotic index, and terminal restriction fragment length were examined in three OC cell lines, CaOV3, TOV112D, and TOV21G, treated with AZT. RESULTS: /M phase arrest on TOV21G cells and S phase arrest on CaOV3 cells. In addition, AZT treatment induced up-regulation of p21 and p16 in the TOV21G and CaOV3 cell line, respectively. CONCLUSION: AZT inhibited cell proliferation in serous and clear cell OC via the regulation of cell cycle distribution.