Protective effects of swainsonine on murine survival and bone marrow proliferation during cytotoxic chemotherapy.
We have investigated the ability of swainsonine, an indolizidine alkaloid with pleiotropic in vivo effects, to confer protection against the cytotoxic effects of both cell cycle-specific and cell cycle-nonspecific cytotoxic anticancer agents. The intraperitoneal administration of swainsonine decreased the lethality of methotrexate (MTX), fluorouracil (5-FU), cyclophosphamide (CPM), and doxorubicin (DOX) in non-tumor-bearing C57BL/6 mice. The increased survival rate was found to correlate with stimulation of bone marrow cell proliferation, as measured by increases in 1) bone marrow cellularity, 2) in vivo and in vitro colony-forming activity, and 3) engraftment efficiency. These responses were critically dependent on the dose, sequence, and timing of swainsonine administration. If these results are confirmed in humans, swainsonine may offer promise in future intensive chemotherapy programs, allowing increased dosage and/or frequency of administration of cytotoxic agents without increasing toxic effects in bone marrow.
Oredipe
O A
OA
Howard University Cancer Center, Washington, D.C.
White
S L
SL
Grzegorzewski
K
K
Gause
B L
BL
Cha
J K
JK
Miles
V A
VA
Olden
K
K
D000470:Alkaloids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000633:toxicity; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000187:drug effects*; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D003520:Cyclophosphamide / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D005260:Female; D005472:Fluorouracil / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D008361:Mannosidases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D015996:Survival Rate; D017026:Swainsonine
D000470:Alkaloids; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D004317:Doxorubicin; D003520:Cyclophosphamide; D008361:Mannosidases; D017026:Swainsonine; D005472:Fluorouracil; D008727:Methotrexate