Sirolimus-eluting stents: opposite in vitro effects on the clonogenic cell potential on a long-term exposure

We evaluated the long-term effects of sirolimus on three different cell in vitro models, cultured in physiological conditions mimicking sirolimus-eluted stent, in order to clarify the effectiveness of sirolimus in blocking cell proliferation and survival. Three cells lines (WPMY-1 myofibroblasts, HT-29 colorectal adenocarcinoma, and U2OS osteosarcoma) were selected and growth in 10 ml of Minimum Essential Medium for 5 weeks with serial dilutions of sirolimus. The number of colonies and the number of cells per colony were counted. As main result, the number of WPMY-1 surviving colonies increased in a dose-dependent manner when treated with sirolimus (p = 0.0011), while the number of U2OS colonies progressively decreased (p = 0.0011). The clonal capacity of HT-29 was not modified by the exposure to sirolimus (p = 0.6679). In conclusion sirolimus showed the well-known cytostatic effect, but with an effect on clonogenic potential different among the different cell types. In the practice, the plaque typology and composition may influence the response to sirolimus and thus the effectiveness of eluted stent.