The effect of ciprofloxacin on the growth of B16F10 melanoma cells

The antitumor effect of ciprofloxacin has been widely assessed in-vitro, and positive results have been reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of ciprofloxacin treatment on the growth of B16F10 melanoma cells both in-vitro and in-vivo. Groups of C57BL/6 female mice challenged with B16F10 melanoma cells were kept untreated or were treated with sterile water, intraperitoneal ciprofloxacin, or ciprofloxacin through drinking water for 10 days. The serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were measured by ELISA 1 and 3 h after the last dose of ciprofloxacin. Mice were monitored for an additional 10 days for survival assessment. Moreover, B16F10 melanoma cells were cultured in 24-well plates and exposed to different concentrations of ciprofloxacin (10-1000 μg/ml). Viability was determined, after 24 and 48 h, using trypan blue. The serum levels of VEGF significantly decreased in ciprofloxacin-treated mice when compared to the controls. None of the control mice survived beyond day 8, whereas 16.67% of those treated with ciprofloxacin survived up to 18 days. In addition, the viability of B16F10 melanoma cells, in-vitro, significantly decreased with increasing concentrations of ciprofloxacin after 24 and 48 h. Ciprofloxacin seems to exhibit antitumor activity both in-vivo and in-vitro. This effect might be explained by several mechanisms such as directly inducing cancer cell death or altering the immune response through the modification of the normal microbiota.