Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 23, 2026
Establishing 3-Dimensional Spheroids from Patient-Derived Tumor Samples and Evaluating their Sensitivity to Drugs
Published on: December 16, 2022
MTT assays cannot be utilized to study the effects of STI571/Gleevec on the viability of solid tumor cell lines
Jonathan T Sims1, Rina Plattner
1Department of Molecular and Biomedical Pharmacology, University of Kentucky School of Medicine, Lexington, KY 40536, USA.
Purpose:
This study will determine whether MTT assays accurately assess the effect of STI571 (Gleevec; Abl kinase inhibitor) on the viability of cancer cells containing highly active Abl kinases.
Methods:
Growth kinetics, tritiated thymidine, fluorescent caspase, MTT, and Cell Titer Glo (CTG) assays were used to determine the effect of STI571 on growth, proliferation, apoptosis, and viability of melanoma and breast cancer cells.
Results:
STI571 inhibited growth and proliferation, and increased apoptosis. However, MTT assays indicated that STI571 increased cell viability. In contrast, STI571 induced a dose-dependent decrease in viability using CTG assays.
Conclusions:
Doses of STI571 (1-10 microM) required to inhibit endogenous Abl kinases interfere with the MTT assay, and therefore MTT cannot be used to determine the effect of STI571 on viability using these doses. Additionally, caution should be utilized when interpreting the results of MTT assays used to screen kinase inhibitors for anti-cancer activity, as drug effectiveness may be minimized.
