Hydrogen + Platinum Combo Kills Gastric Cancer Cells Safely
- Authors
- Yasukazu Saitoh, Naho Kawasaki, Natsumi Eguchi, Minoru Ikeshima
- Journal
- Free Radical Research
- Year
- 2021
- DOI
- 10.1080/10715762.2021.1902514
- Study Type
- Cell Culture
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Japan
- Health Condition
- Gastric Cancer
- Body System
- Digestive System
TL;DR
A combination of hydrogen gas and tiny platinum particles can selectively stop the growth of certain human cancer cells by increasing harmful oxygen molecules within those cells.
Key Finding
Combined treatment with dissolved hydrogen and platinum nanoparticles increased reactive oxygen species levels roughly 200-fold in gastric cancer cells, triggering cell death while sparing normal cells.
Summary
Researchers tested a combination treatment using dissolved hydrogen molecules and tiny platinum particles on human gastric cancer cells in a laboratory dish. The treatment killed cancer cells by increasing reactive oxygen species (unstable molecules that damage cells), while leaving normal cells largely unharmed. The cancer cells died through multiple mechanisms including changes in cell structure and blocked DNA copying.
Practical Takeaway
This is early laboratory research in cancer cells only—not yet tested in humans or animals. While the selective killing of cancer cells over normal cells is promising, many treatments that work in cell cultures fail in living organisms. Much more research would be needed before any clinical application could be considered.
Abstract
Many studies have shown that redox regulation is an effective therapeutic strategy for different types of cancer. We have previously demonstrated that combined treatment with dissolved hydrogen molecule (H2) and platinum nanocolloid (Pt-nc) has carcinostatic effects and that increased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were closely associated with carcinostatic effects in Ehrlich mouse ascites tumor cells. However, it is unknown whether combined treatment-induced ROS generation can occur in human cancer cells. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the carcinostatic effect of the combined treatment in human cells and investigate the relationship between treatment efficacy and ROS generation. H2 and Pt-nc treatment could exert cytostatic action by inhibiting the growth of human promyelocytic leukemia HL60 and human gastric adenocarcinoma-derived NUGC-4 cells; however, no effect was observed in normal human embryo fibroblast OUMS-36 cells by the temporary exposure. These findings indicate that combined treatment with H2 and Pt-nc may act selectively in tumor cells compared with normal cells. Additionally, combined treatment with H2 and Pt-nc resulted in an approximately 200-fold increase in intracellular ROS levels compared with the control, whereas the suppressive effect of tumor cell growth was abrogated entirely by catalase treatment in NUGC-4 cells. Furthermore, combined treatment with H2 and Pt-nc induced hydrogen peroxide generation, cellular morphological changes, cell death, and a decline in DNA synthesis-positive cells. In conclusion, combined treatment with H2 and Pt-nc can induce carcinostatic/carcinocidal effects through intracellular ROS increase, morphological changes, cell death, and DNA synthesis suppression in the human tumor cell line.