Evaluation of the effect of protamine on human prostate carcinoma PC-3m using contrast enhanced Doppler ultrasound.
OBJECTIVE
We evaluated the ability of contrast enhanced Doppler ultrasound (CEDU) to demonstrate changes in tumor vascularity during angiogenesis inhibitive therapy in PC-3m human prostate carcinoma.


METHODS
Pieces of human prostate carcinoma PC-3m tumor (Institute of Urology, Beijing University, Beijing, People's Republic of China) were transplanted subcutaneously into 48 male BALB/C nude mice (Center of Animal Quarantine, Beijing, People's Republic of China). Protamine (Shanghai Biochemistry Pharmaceutical Co., People's Republic of China) was injected subcutaneously as an angiogenesis inhibitor. The animals were randomly divided into 3 groups according to protamine dose. The color flow signal-pixel rate (SPR) of the images was calculated using the number of pixels showing color Doppler signals as a ratio of the total number of pixels covering the lesion.


RESULTS
The SPR of the high and low dose groups were significantly lower than that of the control group (p <0.01). Mean SPR +/- SD in the 3 groups was 0.09 +/- 0.05, 0.11 +/- 0.05 and 0.22 +/- 0.10, respectively. SPR correlated significantly with microvessel density (r = 0.86 to 0.94, p <0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
CEDU can effectively reveal the change in vascularity in a tumor that was treated with protamine. In addition to microvessel density, CEDU may become one of several independent prognostic indexes of angiogenesis inhibitor therapy.
Tang
Jie
J
Department of Ultrasound, Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital, Beijing, Peole's Republic of China.
Li
Song
S
Li
Junlai
J
Zhang
Yan
Y
Li
Xin
X
Dong
Baowei
B
Shi
Huaiyin
H
Zhang
Gaokui
G
D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D003287:Contrast Media; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008819:Mice, Nude; D008833:Microcirculation; D009368:Neoplasm Transplantation; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy; D011479:Protamines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D018615:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Color
D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D003287:Contrast Media; D011479:Protamines