Multidrug resistance gene expression in rodents and rodent hepatocytes treated with mitoxantrone

Overexpression of P-glycoprotein in tumor cells can represent a severe drawback for cancer chemotherapy. P-glycoprotein acts as an efflux transporter for a variety of chemotherapeutic agents. It is encoded by multidrug resistance (mdr) genes of the subfamily 1 in humans (MDR1) and rodents (mdr1a and 1b). Because mdr1 gene expression is inducible in cultured rat hepatocytes and in rat liver with chemical carcinogens such as 2-acetyiaminofluorene or aflatoxin B-1, which form DNA-binding electrophiles during their metabolism, we investigated whether the DNA-damaging chemotherapeutic drug mitoxantrone may induce multidrug resistance in rodents and in hepatocytes in primary culture. In H4IIE rat hepatoma cells stably transfected with a luciferase construct containing the rat mdr1b promoter, mitoxantrone caused a concentration-dependent increase in promoter activity. Mdr1 gene expression in cultured rat hepatocytes was enhanced at mitoxantrone concentrations greater than or equal to 0.1 mu M and in mouse hepatocytes at 5 mu M. In hepatocytes from both species, a correlation was found between mdr1 induction and the inhibition of protein synthesis. In vivo, mitoxantrone was a very powerful inducer of mdr1 gene expression in rat liver and small intestine. In rat kidney, induction of mRNA was lower, and a marginal effect was seen in lung. In contrast with rats, no significant induction of mdr1 gene expression was obtained in mouse liver. Probably as a consequence of inhibition of protein synthesis, mitoxantrone did not lead to a pronounced elevation of P-glycoprotein levels in rat liver and kidney. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Inc.