Transforming growth factor beta-1 enhances cytotoxic effect of doxorubicin in human lung adenocarcinoma cells of A549 line

Transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGFbeta-1) is a regulator of cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. Doxorubicin (adriamycin), an anthracycline drug causing double-strand DNA breaks, is widely used in anticancer chemotherapy. Here we demonstrated that TGFbeta-1 enhanced cytotoxic (proapoptotic) action of doxorubicin towards cultured human lung carcinoma A549 cells. Western-blot analysis and immunocytochemistry were used to show that doxorubicin induced PARP degradation in A549 cells, and TGFbeta-1 enhanced that action of the drug. The obtained results suggest a possibility of biomodulating effect of TGFbeta-1 on tumor cell treatment with doxorubicin.