Anti-metastatic effect of an autooxidation-resistant and lipophilic ascorbic acid derivative through inhibition of tumor invasion.

Anticancer Res 2000 Jan-Feb;20(1A):113-8 (ISSN: 0250-7005)

Liu JW; Nagao N; Kageyama K; Miwa N
Department of Cell Biochemistry, Hiroshima Prefectural University School of BioSciences, Japan.

The invasion of human fibrosarcoma HT-1080 cells through Matrigel was shown to be inhibited by pretreatment with ascorbic acid (Asc) or its four derivatives , such as Asc-6-O-palmitate (Asc6Plm), Asc- 2 -O-phosphate (Asc2P), Asc- 2 -O-phosphate-6-O-palmitate (Asc2P6Plm), and Asc-5,6-benzylidene (Asc5,6Bz) of non -cytotoxic concentrations for 1 or 18 hr. Two lipophilic derivatives such as Asc6Plm and Asc2P6Plm exerted an invasiveness - inhibitory activity more markedly with 1 -hr pretreatment, being a more practical index in terms of the plasma half-life, than Asc, Asc5,6Bz or Asc2P being less lipophilic . Considerably less cytotoxicity ( a > 3.3-fold higher IC50 for 1 -hr pretreatment) of Asc2P6Plm sufficiently compensated a slightly lower invasiveness - inhibitory activity ( a < 1 .8-fold higher EC50) as compared with Asc6Plm. Pulmonary metastasis of mouse melanoma B16BL6 cells injected into the tail vein was also inhibited by intravenous administration with Asc2P6Plm dose-dependently. Thus Asc2P6Plm, a lipophilicity -hydrophilicity balanced molecule protectively blockd in the autooxidation-prone moiety, is anticipated as a potent anti-metastatic agent via inhibition of tumor invasion.