Figure 6.
Bioactive transgene (CD) remains functional (as assayed by in vitro oncolysis) when expressed within NSCs. CNS-1 glioblastoma cells (red) were cocultured with CD-transduced murine NSCs (A and B) (blue). Cocultures unexposed to 5-FC grew healthily and confluent (A), whereas plates exposed to 5-FC showed dramatic loss of tumor cells (B), represented quantitatively by the histograms (*, P < 0.001). The oncolytic effect was identical whether 1 × 105 CD-NSCs or half that number were cocultured with a constant number of tumor cells. (In this paradigm, subconfluent NSCs were still mitotic at the time of 5-FC exposure and thus also subject to self-elimination by the generated 5-fluorouracil and its toxic metabolites.)