Figure 2. ccRCC cells are more susceptible than benign renal cells to growth suppression with iron chelators.

ccRCC (786–0, A704, 769-P, RCC4) and benign renal epithelial (RPTEC, HRCEp) cell line growth was measured by MTS assay after 72-hour (A-D) and 120-hour (E) treatments with different micromolar concentrations of iron chelating drugs, DFO or DFX. Cell line growth was plotted for each drug concentration as a percentage relative to the untreated cell line growth. (A) Growth of DFO-treated cell lines relative to untreated cell lines after 72 hours. (B) Representative cell line density and morphology after 72-hour DFO treatment using light microscopy. (C) Growth of DFX-treated cell lines relative to untreated cell lines after 72 hours. (D) Representative cell line density and morphology after 72-hour DFO treatment using light microscopy. (E) Comparative growth of A704, HRCEp and RPTEC cell lines measured by MTS assay after 120-hour treatment with increasing concentrations of DFO. All data are from at least 3 independent experiments with error bars denoting SEM. Horizontal dashed lines in (A) and (C) represent cut-offs for determining growth IC₅₀, IC₈₀ and IC₉₀ values. Data in (E) were compared between groups two-tailed Student’s t-test and are compiled from three independent experiments. *, p<0.05; error bars denote SEM.