Respiration of mammalian cells at low concentrations of oxygen: I. Effect of hypoxic-cell radiosensitizing drugs.

Drugs which sensitize hypoxic mammalian cells to radiation damage in vitro can also affect the cellular respiration rate. This phenomenon was studied in detail to determine whether the changes in oxygen consumption occur at low oxygen concentrations and under optimal nutritional conditions. We have found that cells in tissue culture can undergo adaptive changes in respiration (electron flow) which make them insensitive to the effects of radiosensitizing drugs and even respiration uncouplers such as dinitrophenol, and the inhibitors rotenone and cyanide. At low cell densities, where nutrient depletion in the medium would be negligible, the drugs have reduced effects, particularly at low oxygen concentrations (below 40 mmHg oxygen partial pressure). Parallel cytotoxicity and growht inhibition studies indicate that most drugs are unlikely to have substantial effect on respiration at non-cytotoxic levels.