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Updated: Apr 18, 2026

Through the Looking Glass: Time-lapse Microscopy and Longitudinal Tracking of Single Cells to Study Anti-cancer Therapeutics
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Gentamicin arrests cancer cell growth: the intriguing involvement of nuclear sphingomyelin metabolism

Michela Codini1, Samuela Cataldi2, Francesco Saverio Ambesi-Impiombato3

  • 1Department of Pharmaceutical Science, University of Perugia, Perugia 06122, Italy. codini@virgilio.it.

International Journal of Molecular Sciences
|January 27, 2015
PubMed

Insights

High doses of gentamicin show potential in treating lymphoblastic lymphoma by delaying cancer cell growth and inducing cell death. This antibiotic may offer a novel therapeutic approach for certain cancers.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Pharmacology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Gentamicin is primarily used for bacterial infections.
  • Its effects on cancer cells, particularly lymphoblastic lymphoma, are largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of high-dose gentamicin on non-Hodgkin's T-cell human lymphoblastic lymphoma (SUP-T1) cells.
  • To elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying gentamicin's effects on these cancer cells.

Main Methods:

  • Treatment of SUP-T1 cells and lymphocytes with high-dose gentamicin.
  • Analysis of gene expression changes (GAPDH, B2M, CDKN1A, CDKN1B).
  • Investigation of sphingomyelin metabolism and its impact on nuclear sphingomyelin content.

Main Results:

  • Gentamicin significantly delayed SUP-T1 cell growth and induced cell death.
  • Gene expression of GAPDH, B2M, and CDKN1A was restored to lymphocyte levels, while CDKN1B was overexpressed in SUP-T1 cells post-treatment.
  • Gentamicin modulated sphingomyelinase and sphingomyelin-synthase activity, increasing nuclear sphingomyelin content.

Conclusions:

  • High-dose gentamicin exhibits anti-lymphoma activity by altering gene expression and sphingomyelin metabolism.
  • Increased nuclear sphingomyelin may influence chromatin structure and gene expression, contributing to therapeutic effects.
  • Gentamicin presents a potential therapeutic strategy for lymphoblastic lymphoma.

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