Abstract
Purpose: The current standard of care for patients with locally advanced prostate cancer is a combination of androgen deprivation and radiation therapy. Radiation is typically given with androgen suppression when testosterone levels are at their nadir. Recent reports have shown that androgen stimulation of androgen-deprived prostate cancer cells leads to formation of double-strand breaks (DSB). Here, we exploit this finding and investigate the extent and timing of androgen-induced DSBs and their effect on tumor growth following androgen stimulation in combination with ionizing radiation (IR). Experimental Design: Androgen-induced DNA damage was assessed by comet assays and γH2A.X foci formation. Effects of androgen stimulation and radiation were determined in vitro and in vivo with xenograft models. Results: We document that androgen treatment of androgen-deprived prostate cancer cell lines resulted in a dose- and time-dependent induction of widespread DSBs. Generation of these breaks was dependent on androgen receptor and topoisomerase II beta but not on cell-cycle progression. In vitro models demonstrated a synergistic interaction between IR and androgen stimulation when IR is given at a time point corresponding with high levels of androgen-induced DSB formation. Furthermore, in vivo studies showed a significant improvement in tumor growth delay when radiation was given shortly after androgen repletion in castrated mice. Conclusions: These results suggest a potential cooperative effect and improved tumor growth delay with androgen-induced DSBs and radiation with implications for improving the therapeutic index of prostate cancer radiation therapy.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 3310-3319 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Clinical Cancer Research |
Volume | 22 |
Issue number | 13 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 1 2016 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine