CUR - The Council on Undergraduate Research

Novel Stilbene Analogues Inhibit Viability of Breast Cancer Cell Lines in Culture

Nheikha Etienne (1), Meghan Seth (1), McKayla Kelly (1), Kaelyn Julmeus (1), Daniel Paull (2), and Lyndsay Rhodes (1) Departments of Biological Sciences (1) and Chemistry and Physics (2) Florida Gulf Coast University 10501 FGCU Blvd S., Fort Myers, FL 33965

Breast cancer will affect 1 in 8 women in the course of their lifetime and 276,480 new cases are estimated this year in the United States alone. Breast cancer, a heterogeneous disease, is divided into several subtypes based on expression of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). These subtypes differ in their growth rate, metastatic potential, and therapeutic response. All subtypes of breast cancer are subject to acquired drug resistance, increasing the need for development of new therapeutic options. Stilbenes are polyphenol defense compounds derived from plants and have been shown to have anti-microbial and anti-cancerous properties. Our lab previously showed several resveratrol analogues significantly inhibited the viability of multiple breast cancer cell lines. We have now synthesized new resveratrol analogues by altering the functional groups of the parent molecule backbone. The overall goal of these experiments is to test the hypothesis that altered functional groups on the novel stilbene compounds will enhance their potency in breast cancer cell lines. In this research, 18 novel stilbenes compounds were tested on a panel of breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7, BT-549 and MDA-MB-231) to determine the effect on cell viability using cell culture assays. Cells were plated at 7,500 cells/well at 100μL and incubated at 37°C overnight. The cells were then treated with stilbene compounds at a final concentration of 10μM. After 72 hours of incubation, cells were stained with crystal violet, lysed and absorbance readings were determined. All experiments were plated with internal triplicates and experiments repeated at least 3 times. 11 compounds were found to significantly inhibit viability in at least two cell lines and have been selected for further study to determine lowest effective doses. 

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