Human stromal cells are required for an anti-breast cancer effect of zoledronic acid.

ABSTRACT: Previous studies suggested that bisphosphonate zoledronic acid exerts an anti-tumor effect by interacting with the microenvironment. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the mechanism behind the anti-breast cancer effect of zoledronic acid.Here we showed that zoledronic acid did not influence in vitro human breast cancer cell survival, but did affect human stromal cell survival. Breast cancer cell death in co-culture with stromal cells was analyzed in vitro by fluorescent microscopy and flowcytometry analysis. In co-culture, the addition of stromal cells to breast cancer cells induced tumor cell death by zoledronic acid, which was abolished by transforming growth factor (TGF)-β. In the in vivo chicken chorioallantoic membrane model, zoledronic acid reduced the breast cancer cells fraction

SUBMITTER: Nienhuis HH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4695196 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature