Effect of VEGF-targeted antisense gene therapy on retinoblastoma cell line SO-RB50 in vitro and in vivo.

AIM: To evaluate the possibility of generation 4 polyamidoamine (G4PAMAM) dendrimers acting as the delivery system of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (VEGFASODN), and to investigate the anti-tumor effect of G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN complex on the cultured cells and the mouse tumor xenograft model.
METHODS: The transfection efficiency was assessed by Flow cytometry (FCM). Thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay was performed to determine the relative growth rate (RGR) of the cells after transfection. Then a mouse tumor xenograft model of human retinoblastoma was established. Different interventions were given to the mice by intratumoral injection and the tumor growth was monitored. The expression of VEGF mRNA was detected by reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR), the expression of VEGF protein was determined by western blot analysis, and the microvessel density (MVD) was measured by immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining.
RESULTS: G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN exhibited a high transfection rate in vitro, and the transfection rates of different doses of G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN groups increased with higher doses. This effect was accompanied by a dose-depended reduction in cell viability. The tumor growth in the tumor-bearing athymic mice was significantly inhibited in the G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN group. The expressions of VEGF mRNA and protein were obviously inhibited in the G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN group (P<0.05), and the MVD of the G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN group was lower than that of the other groups (P<0.05).
CONCLUSION: VEGFASODN can be delivered into the cultured and transplanted retinoblastoma cells efficiently by G4PAMAM, suppress the expressions of VEGF mRNA and protein, and reduce the MVD of tumor tissues. The G4PAMAM/VEGFASODN complex has antitumor properties in vitro and in vivo.