Conclusions
In this study, we tested a novel drug C188-9 at a low, clinic-relevant concentration, together with several traditional chemotherapy agents. PSPCs from ten out of fifteen patient donors were sensitive to C188-9, while some of traditional chemotherapy agents failed. This finding suggested that C188-9 could have treatment effects only on those ten PSPC patient donors, indicating the future personalized utilization of PSPCs.
Methods
PSPCs were isolated from breast cancer samples obtained via biopsy or surgery from fifteen patient donors with their full acknowledgements. PSPCs were treated with C188-9 or other chemotherapeutic agents, and then analyzed with cell viability assay. Western blot assay and real-time quantitative PCR were also used to determine the expression and activity of STAT3 signaling pathway of corresponding PSPCs.
Results
C188-9 treatment at normal (experimental) concentration had valid inhibition on PSPCs proliferation. Meanwhile, treatment at a low (clinic-relevant) concentration of C188-9 for an extended period reduced cell viability of PSPCs still more than some of other traditional chemotherapy drugs. In addition, C188-9 decreased expression level of pSTAT3 in PSPCs from some, but not all patient samples. The treatment of C188-9 reduced cell viability of the breast cancer samples through inhibiting the STAT3 to C-myc signaling pathway. Conclusions: In this study, we tested a novel drug C188-9 at a low, clinic-relevant concentration, together with several traditional chemotherapy agents. PSPCs from ten out of fifteen patient donors were sensitive to C188-9, while some of traditional chemotherapy agents failed. This finding suggested that C188-9 could have treatment effects only on those ten PSPC patient donors, indicating the future personalized utilization of PSPCs.