The aim of this experiment is to investigate the effects of Suzie
(spontaneous illuminator) on Human endothelial cell growth for the
treatment of Cancer.
Scientist: Prof Amrita Ahluwalia, Clinical Pharmacology, William Harvey Research Institute, Barts & The London Medical School.
Aim
:
To
investigate
the
effects
of
the
Suzie
on
human
endothelial
cells.
Endothelial
cells
are
the
cells
that
form
a
single
cell
layer
lining
the
luminal
side
of
all
blood
vessels.
These
cells
play
an
essential
role
in
maintaining
the
healthy
state
of
the
blood
vessel
by
ensuring
adequate
provision
to
vital
organs
of
nutrients
and
oxygen
and
by
releasing
substances
that
maintain
the
patency
of
blood
vessels
and
prevent
blockages
(as
those
that
precipitate
heart
attacks).
In
addition,
these
are
the
cells
involved
in
the
formation
of
new
blood
vessels
(angiogenesis).
Method
:
We
plated
human
endothelial
cells
into
6-well
culture
plates
and
counted
the
cells
to
monitor
proliferation.
Endothelial
cells
will
proliferate
over
time
such
that
seeding
of
a
small
number
of
cells
onto
a
culture
plate
over
approximately
4
days
will
proliferate
to
cover
the
culture
plate
area.
The
rate
of
growth
can
be
monitored
by
counting
the
number
of
cells
at
set
times
after
‘seeding’
which
is
how
we
estimated growth rates in this study.
We
conducted
two
types
of
experiment.
In
the
first
series
of
experiments
the
cells
received
continuous
Suzie
exposure
for
the
first
48
hours of growth.
This experiment was halted due to the fact that all cell growth was prevented by the Suzie device
.
In
t
he
second
experiments
the
cells
were
allowed
to
reach
an
active
growth
phase
(72
hours,
see
figure
1
for
normal
growth
pattern)
and
were
then
subjected
to
12
hours
of
exposure
to
the
Suzie.
Plates
were
left
to
grow
in
a
temperature
(37
o
C),
humidity
and
5%
CO
2
in
atmospheric
O
2
environment
in
an
incubator
as
control.
In
a
separate
incubator
cells
were
subjected
to
the
Suzie
which
was
placed
on
top
of the plate. At the end of this time period cells were collected and counted. Cell viability was assessed by trypan blue staining.
Results:
Normal growth of cultured endothelial cells is shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1: Typical cell growth cycle of human endothelial cells
Continuous
exposure
to
the
Suzie
from
time
zero
inhibited
cell
growth
completely
at
48
hours
compared
with
controls, table 1. In light of this the experiment was modified.
Table 1: Cell growth following continuous exposure to the Suzie. Values are mean ± SEM
A further experiment was designed to allow time for the cells to reach an active growth period.
At 72 hours growth the cells received 12 hours of exposure to the Suzie. The growth of the cells was markedly reduced when compared
with control (70000 ± 17320 N=4 vs. 285000 ± 53770 N=4 respectively, p=0.0089), Figure 2. Further investigation also showed the device
to decrease cell viability, i.e. to increase cell death when compared with control (73.00% ± 2.00% N=4 vs. 93.50% ± 3.12% N=4
respectively, p = 0.0015), Figure 3.
Figure 2: Number of cells with and without Suzie light exposure.
Figure 3: Cell viability of cells with and without Suzie light exposure.
The
Scientist
conclusions:
These
experiments
demonstrate
a
profound
inhibitory
effect
of
the
device
on
endothelial
cell
growth.
These
findings
would
suggest
that
the
device
would
be
effective
in
inhibiting
new
vessel
growth.
The
potential
therapeutic
utility
of
such
an
effect
would
likely
fall
in
the
area
of
cancer,
where
new
vessel
growth
perpetuates
tumour
growth
and
survival.
Inhibition
of
new
vessel
growth
would
theoretically
deprive
the tumour of blood flow and thereby inhibit further growth.