ISSN 2410-7751 (Print)
ISSN 2410-776X (Online)

Biotechnologia Acta Т. 18, No. 2, 2025
P.  , Bibliography 11 , Engl.

UDC 601.02: 577.29

EVALUATING THE EFFECTS OF DISINTEGRIN ON TUMOUR GROWTH

O. M. PLATONOV, Y. D. VINNYCHUK

Palladin Institute of Biochemistry of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the world after cardiovascular disease, and many types of cancer have no symptoms in the early stages, making it difficult to diagnose. At the same time, some tumors do not respond well to therapy, with its severe side effects. Tumor cells themselves can spread through the bloodstream or lymphatic system, making treatment difficult, so the search for compounds with antiproliferative and antimetastatic effects is ongoing. In our study, we tested disintegrin from Echis multisquamatus venom as an antitumor drug in an in vivo animal model to determine the degree of inhibition of Walker-256 carcinosarcoma tumor growth.

The work aimed to investigate the effect of disintegrin on the growth dynamics of Walker-256 carcinosarcoma in rats.

Materials and Methods. Crude venom of Echis multisquamatus was fractionated using ion-exchange chromatography followed by size-exclusion chromatography on Superdex 75 using the FPLC system (ӒKTA, GE Healthcare, USA). Analysis of the molecular weight of protein components was performed using SDS-PAGE. The concentration of protein was measured using a spectrophotometer Optizen POP (Korea) at 280 nm. Walker-256 carcinosarcoma cells for transplantation into laboratory animals were obtained from the National Bank of Cell Lines and Tumour Strains of the R.E. Kavetsky Institute of Experimental Pathology, Oncology and Radiobiology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

Results. The two-step chromatography protocol allowed us to obtain the polypeptide from the venom of Echis multisquamatus that possessed the anti-aggregatory action. SDS-PAGE analysis confirmed the homogeneity of the obtained polypeptide with a molecular weight of 14,889 kDa. The tumor cells of Walker-256 carcinosarcoma were transplanted subcutaneously into the inguinal area of the right lower limb of 10 rats in the amount of 1.5×106 cells in 300 µl of saline (0.9% NaCl). The inhibition of tumor growth, which is one of the criteria for the effectiveness of the test substance, was observed during the period of intensive tumor growth and amounted to 18.7% on day 9 after inoculation and 36.2% on day 11.

Conclusions. The studies showed that the use of disintegrin from Echis multisquamatus venom led to inhibition of the growth of Walker’s carcinosarcoma W-256 on the 9th to 11th day after tumor inoculation in rats. The observed inhibitory effect was moderate and less than the expected effect of antitumor agents. From the point of view of the mechanism of action of disintegrins, a reduction in the quality of cell attachment should be expected, which is not crucial in the conditions of tumor grafting.

Keywords: disintegrin, integrin receptors, cancer cells lines, cancer animal models, metastasis

© Palladin Institute of Biochemistry of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 2025