phosphorus-radioisotopes and lonidamine

In vivo (31) P MRS demonstrates that human melanoma xenografts in immunosuppressed mice treated with lonidamine (LND, 100 mg/kg intraperitoneally) exhibit a decrease in intracellular pH (pH(i) ) from 6.90 ± 0.05 to 6.33 ± 0.10 (p < 0.001), a slight decrease in extracellular pH (pH(e) ) from 7.00 ± 0.04 to 6.80 ± 0.07 (p > 0.05) and a monotonic decline in bioenergetics (nucleoside triphosphate/inorganic phosphate) of 66.8 ± 5.7% (p < 0.001) relative to the baseline level. Both bioenergetics and pH(i) decreases were sustained for at least 3 h following LND treatment. Liver exhibited a transient intracellular acidification by 0.2 ± 0.1 pH units (p > 0.05) at 20 min post-LND, with no significant change in pH(e) and a small transient decrease in bioenergetics (32.9 ± 10.6%, p > 0.05) at 40 min post-LND. No changes in pH(i) or adenosine triphosphate/inorganic phosphate were detected in the brain (pH(i) , bioenergetics; p > 0.1) or skeletal muscle (pH(i) , pH(e) , bioenergetics; p > 0.1) for at least 120 min post-LND. Steady-state tumor lactate monitored by (1) H MRS with a selective multiquantum pulse sequence with Hadamard localization increased approximately three-fold (p = 0.009). Treatment with LND increased the systemic melanoma response to melphalan (LPAM; 7.5 mg/kg intravenously), producing a growth delay of 19.9 ± 2.0 days (tumor doubling time, 6.15 ± 0.31 days; log(10) cell kill, 0.975 ± 0.110; cell kill, 89.4 ± 2.2%) compared with LND alone of 1.1 ± 0.1 days and LPAM alone of 4.0 ± 0.0 days. The study demonstrates that the effects of LND on tumor pH(i) and bioenergetics may sensitize melanoma to pH-dependent therapeutics, such as chemotherapy with alkylating agents or hyperthermia.

Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents, Alkylating; Cell Line, Tumor; Drug Synergism; Energy Metabolism; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Indazoles; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; Melanoma; Melphalan; Mice; Phosphorus Radioisotopes; Protons; Treatment Outcome

Malignant gliomas have been associated with a high rate of glycolytic activity which is believed necessary to sustain cellular function and integrity. Since lonidamine (LND) is believed to reduce tumor glucose utilization by inhibition of the mitochondrially-bound glycolytic enzyme hexokinase (HK), 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) was used to noninvasively follow the effects of LND on both tumor pH and the high-energy phosphate metabolites: ATP, phosphocreatine (PCr) and inorganic phosphate (Pi) in subcutaneous rat 9L gliosarcomas. 31P tumor spectra acquired in 5 min intervals pre- and post LND administration of 50 and 100 mg/kg, i.p. revealed an acidotic pH shift of -0.25 and -0.45 pH units, respectively within 30 min post administration. The ATP/Pi ratio of 9L tumors decreased to 40% of control and Pi levels increased to 280% of control over a 3 hr period. LND exerted no effect on tumor blood flow and mean arterial blood pressure. Brain and muscle metabolite levels and pH were also unaffected by LND. In vitro measurements of cultured 9L tumor cell intra- and extracellular lactate, pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) and hexokinase (HK) activities suggest that the mode of action of LND involves inhibition of lactate efflux and intracellular acidification. The selective reduction of tumor energy metabolites and pH by LND may be exploitable for sensitizing gliomas to radiation, chemotherapy or hyperthermia.

Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Brain Neoplasms; Gliosarcoma; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Indazoles; Injections, Subcutaneous; Intracellular Fluid; Lactic Acid; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; Male; Muscle Neoplasms; Neoplasm Transplantation; Phosphorus Radioisotopes; Rats; Rats, Inbred F344; Thigh