Protective effect of amifostine on busulfan induced DNA damage in human hepatoma cells

Busulfan is one of the most effective chemotherapeutic agents used for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. However, as a bifunctional alkylating agent, during clinical use several side effects may occur. In addition, several in vivo and in vitro studies of busulfan have shown a range of genotoxic effects including DNA strand break and inhibition of DNA synthesis. Amifostine, an organic thiophosphate compound, has been shown to exert an important cyto-protective effect in many tissues. The aim of this study was to explore whether amifostine protects against busulfan-induced genotoxicity in HepG2 cell line. Our results showed that amifostine reduced the genotoxic effects of busulfan significantly in both type of experiment conditions, as measured via comet assay. Furthermore, amifostine decreased the intracellular ROS generation induced by busulfan and also increased the intracellular GSH levels in HepG2 cells. Altogether, our results suggest a protective action of amifostine against busulfan cytotoxicity and genotoxicity via various pathways. The most protective effect was observed with amifostine when it was administrated 24 h before busulfan treatment.