title: [All-trans retinoic acid enhances bystander effect of suicide-gene therapy against androgen-unresponsive prostate cancer].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the enhancing effect of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) on the bystander effect of the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase(HSV-TK)/ganciclovir (GCV) against androgen unresponsive prostate cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  The bystander effect of the HSV-TK/GCV system was measured by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay on PC-3 cells before and after ATRA treatment. The growth and the histopathology of transplant tumors were observed in 4 groups of nude mice with prostate cancer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  ATRA augmented significantly the bystander effect of the HSV-TK/GCV system by reducing TK positive PC-3 cells from 50% to 30% (P < 0.05). HSV-TK showed an inhibiting effect, while ATRA with the HSV-TK/GCV system produced significant effect on prostate cancer 1 week earlier than the former (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ATRA can argument the in vivo and in vitro bystander effect of the HSV-TK/GCV system in the treatment of androgen unresponsive prostate cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, First Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215006, China. wg.chen@sohu.com
authors.forename: Wei-Guo
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chun-Yin
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Jian-Quan
authors.initials: JQ
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.forename: Duan-Gai
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Jin-Xian
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Pu
authors.forename: Heng-Bing
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D024201:Bystander Effect / Q000187:drug effects*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D015774:Ganciclovir / Q000494:pharmacology; D041722:Genes, Transgenic, Suicide / Q000235:genetics*; D015316:Genetic Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D018139:Simplexvirus / Q000201:enzymology; D013937:Thymidine Kinase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D014212:Tretinoin; D013937:Thymidine Kinase; D015774:Ganciclovir