Comparisons among sensitivities of different tumor cells to focused ultrasound in vitro

Abstract

This study is to test the sensitivities of different tumor cells to ultrasound irradiation at the frequency of 2.2 MHz for 60 s duration, and investigate the potential mechanism underlying different sensitivities. Three murine tumor models with distinct aggressiveness (S180, H-22 and EAC) were exposed to ultrasound to evaluate their sonodynamic efficiencies, and several biological parameters such as cell membrane permeability, lipid peroxidation (LPO), ultra-structure observation, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondria membrane potential (MMP) were analyzed after exposures. The results showed that cellular responses of different cells were distinct, of interest to note, the aggressive S180 cells were much more sensitive than others, whereas EAC cells were relatively more resistant to ultrasound irradiation. The direct comparisons among different types of cells indicate that the sono-sensitization seems to depend on the physiological and chemical properties of tumor cells. Perhaps sections of cell membrane became destabilized following the initial radical attack and LPO reaction, which caused S180 cells more susceptible to mechanical stresses during sonolysis. This study provides important implications for cancer therapy.