title: Establishment of methotrexate-resistant human acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells in culture and effects of folate antagonists.
abstract: A human acute lymphoblastic T-cell line, MOLT-3, was fed with Roswell Park Memorial Institute Medium 1640-10% fetal bovine serum-antibiotics, containing increasing concentrations of methotrexate (MTX). After 10 months of feeding, the cells became resistant to 10(-7) M MTX; resistance was not reversed when the cells were placed in the original MTX-free medium. At 10(-7) M MTX, the concentration which produced complete inhibition of the parent MOLT-3 cell growth, the resistant cells were not inhibited at all. On a 50% inhibitory concentration basis, the resistant cells were approximately 30-fold more resistant to MTX. The parent MOLT-3 and the resistant line had the same doubling time of approximately 36 hr. There were no differences in light microscopic morphology. MOLT-3 produced loose colonies on 0.5% agar enriched with fetal bovine serum, whereas the colonies of the resistant line were tightly packed. The development of resistance was accompanied by a 4- to 5-fold decrease in [3H]MTX transport (MOLT-3/MTXt). Kinetic analysis of MTX uptake showed that the resistant subline did not have an altered Km for MTX (6.6 microM) but had a decreased Vmax of about 20% of the parent cell line. These data suggest that either the number of folate transport sites or the turnover rate of these sites has been reduced in the MTX-resistant cell line. Dihydrofolate reductase was only minimally elevated in the resistant cell line. The MTX-resistant cell line was cross-resistant to dichloromethotrexate. The sensitivity of the resistant line to the substituted 2,4-diaminoquinazoline and pyrimidine compounds, 2,4-diamino-5-methyl-6-[(3',4',5'-trimethoxyanilino) methyl] quinazoline (JB-11) and 2,4-diamino-5-(3',4'-dichlorophenyl)-6-methylpyrimidine, increased more than 3-fold. While leucovorin equally reversed the MTX effects on the parent and resistant cells, leucovorin reversal of 2,4-diamino-5-methyl-6-[(3',4',5'-trimethoxyanilino) methyl] quinazoline and 2,4-diamino-5-(3',4'-dichlorophenyl)-6-methylpyrimidine effects was limited only to the parent cell line. 2,4-diamino-5-methyl-6-[(3',4',5'-trimethoxyanilino) methyl] quinazoline or 2,4-diamino-5-(3',4'-dichlorophenyl)-6-methylpyrimidine plus leucovorin might prove to be unique in treating patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia when the leukemic cells develop transport resistance to MTX.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004347:Drug Interactions; D004351:Drug Resistance; D005493:Folic Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D007700:Kinetics; D002955:Leucovorin / Q000494:pharmacology; D007942:Leukemia, Experimental / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism; D007945:Leukemia, Lymphoid / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011799:Quinazolines / Q000494:pharmacology; D013762:Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D005493:Folic Acid Antagonists; D011799:Quinazolines; C004763:3',5'-dichloromethotrexate; D013762:Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase; D002955:Leucovorin; D008727:Methotrexate