Therapeutic tumor-specific cell cycle block induced by methionine starvation in vivo
Guo, H.; Lishko, V.K.; Herrera, H.; Groce, A.; Kubota, T.; Hoffman, R.M.
Cancer Research 53(23): 5676-5679
1993
ISSN/ISBN: 0008-5472 PMID: 8242623 Document Number: 413222
The ability to induce a specific cell cycle block selectively in the tumor could have many uses in chemotherapy. In the present study we have achieved this goal of inducing a tumor-specific cell cycle block in vivo by depriving Yoshida sarcoma-bearing nude mice of dietary methionine. Further, we demonstrate that methionine depletion also causes the tumor to eventually regress. The antitumor effect of methionine depletion resulted in the extended survival of the tumor-bearing mice. The mice on the methionine-deprived diets maintained their body weight for the time period studied, indicating that tumor regression was not a function of body weight loss. The data reported here support future experiments utilizing methionine depletion as a target for tumor-selective cell cycle-dependent therapy.