Bistramide A-induced irreversible arrest of cell proliferation in a non-small-cell bronchopulmonary carcinoma is similar to induction of terminal maturation.

Bistramide A, a new toxin isolated from a New Caledonian Urochordata, shows an antiproliferative effect on a non-small-cell lung carcinoma line in vitro and G1-blockade. In this work, the growth arrest induced by bistramide A was shown to be irreversible as assessed by growth kinetics of pretreated cells. Furthermore, the drug caused an underexpression of the nuclear antigen Ki67. These events are similar to a G1-differentiation cell cycle step blockage and a terminal maturation induction.