[Antitumor effect of synthetic cord factor analogue, 6, 6'-Di-O-decanoyl-alpha, alpha-trehalose]

The antitumor effect of a new synthetic cord factor analogue, 6, 6'-Di-O-dacanoyl-alpha, alpha-trehalose (SS 554), was examined in vivo and in vitro. Remarkable life prolongation effects were observed after the intraperitoneal administration of SS554 at a dosage of 150 mg/kg in mice implanted with Ehrlich ascitic tumor cells. Using in vitro tests, the growth of various tumor cell lines i.e. Meth-A, EL-4, RL male-1, X5563, Raji and Jurkat were inhibited by SS554 at a 25 mcg/ml concentration. The mechanism of the direct antitumor activity of SS554 was studied using these tumor cell lines and bacterial cells. After treatment with SS554 at a 50 mcg/ml dose for 30 minutes, tumor cells and bacterial protoplasts but not intact bacterial cells were destroyed, indicating that SS554 causes the lysis of the membranes of these cells.