Antisense oligodeoxyribonucleotides suppress hematologic cell growth through stepwise release of deoxyribonucleotides.

Antisense oligodeoxyribonucleotides (ODNs) are now being extensively investigated in an attempt to achieve cell growth suppression through specific targeting of genes related to cell proliferation, despite increasing evidence of non-antisense cytotoxic effects. In the context of anti-BCR/ABL antisense strategies in chronic myeloid leukemia, we have reexamined the antiproliferative effect of phosphodiester and phosphorothioate ODNs on the leukemic cell line BV173 and on CD34+ bone marrow cells in liquid culture. The 3' sequences of the ODNs determine their effect. At concentrations of 10 micromol/L (for phosphorothioate ODNs) or 25 micromol/L (for phosphodiester ODNs), all the tested ODNs exert an antiproliferative activity, except those that contain a cytosine residue at either their two most terminal 3' positions. We show that this antiproliferative effect is due to the toxicity of the d-NMPs (5' monophosphate deoxyribonucleosides), the enzymatic hydrolysis products of the ODNs in culture medium. The toxicity of the d-NMPs on hematologic cells depends on their nature (d-CMP [2'deoxycytidine 5'-monophosphate] is not cytotoxic), on their concentration (d-GMP [2'-deoxyguanosine 5'-monophosphate], TMP [thymidine 5'-monophosphate], and d-AMP [2'-deoxyadenosine 5'-monophosphate] are cytotoxic at concentrations between 5 and 10 micromol/L), and on the coincident presence of other d-NMPs in the culture medium (d-CMP neutralizes the toxicity of d-AMP, d-GMP, or TMP). The antiproliferative activity of ODNs is thus restricted to conditions where the 3' hydrolysis process by exonucleases generates significant amounts of d-NMPs with a low proportion of d-CMP. Our results reveal a novel example of a nonantisense effect of ODNs, which should be taken into account when performing any experiment using assumed antisense ODNs.