Kinetics of hormone-induced tumor cell resistance to killing by antibody and complement

Line 1, a chemically induced guinea pig hepatoma, is susceptible to killing by anti-Forssman immunoglobulin M antibody and guinea pig complement. When these tumor cells are pretreated with insulin, L-epinephrine, hydrocortisone, or prednisolone, the cells show a marked reduction in their susceptibility to antibody-complement-mediated killing within 15 to 60 min; this effect reverses within 4 hr in the continued presence of hormone. Maximal binding of the hormones to the line 1 cells was observed within 60 min. However, the hormones remained bound to the cells after 4 hr of incubation, suggesting that line 1 cells incubated in the continued presence of hormone revert to the susceptible state despite the persistence of cell-bound hormone. Hormone-treated tumor cells, washed free of hormone and reincubated in hormone-free medium, lost nearly all their bound hormone within 15 to 30 min of washing. These cells, however, remained resistant to antibody-complement-mediated killing for up to 2 hr after washing. Line 1 cells, reverted in the continued presence of hormone, remained susceptible to killing by antibody and guinea pig complement after reexposure to the same, but not to a different, hormone. Hormone-treated cells reverted after prolonged incubation in hormone-free media; however, they were rendered resistant to killing after reexposure to the same hormone. The temporary refractoriness of reverted cells to further hormone stimulation was not due to an inability of the cells to bind hormone.