ANGIOGENIC FACTORS EXPRESSED BY HUMAN PROSTATIC CELL-LINES - EFFECT ON ENDOTHELIAL-CELL GROWTH IN-VITRO

BACKGROUND. Antiangiogenic therapy for prostatic cancer should offer a dditional ways of combating tumor progression. Knowledge of the possib le angiogenic factors expressed by prostate cancer cell Lines would th erefore assist in the design and testing of such potential treatments. METHODS. Changes in the proliferation and morphology of several endot helial cell Lines (BAEC, HUVEC, and BACE) in response to either cocult uring with human prostatic cell Lines or culturing with conditioned me dium derived from these lines were assessed. RESULTS. Proliferation of BAEC cells was significantly stimulated by conditioned media from DU1 45, LNCaP, and DuPro-1, and also by coculture with LNCaP and DuPro-1. Growth of HUVEC cells was significantly increased with conditioned med ia from LNCaP, Ten12, and PC3, and by coculture with DU145 and DuPro-1 . FGF2 supplementation is required for BACE growth in vitro, and only conditioned medium from Ten12 cells, which produce the highest levels of this growth factor, significantly increased cell numbers. BACE grow th, however, was stimulated in coculture experiments with DU145, DuPro -1, PC3, and LNCaP. Morphological changes were only observed in the BA EC and BACE cells when cultured with conditioned media. CONCLUSIONS. P rostatic carcinoma cell lines express a variety of angiogenic substanc es, including FGF2, which can stimulate endothelial cell proliferation in vitro, but this response may be modified by the prostatic-cell exp ression of other factors such as TGF alpha and TGF beta. (C) 1997 Wile y-Liss, Inc.