H35 in Breast Cancer Research

Datum: 24^th November 2017

Inhibition of pH regulation as a therapeutic strategy in hypoxic human breast cancer cells. Oncotarget. 2017 Jun 27;8(26):42857-42875

“Many papers investigating breast cancer culture cells at 20% O₂, while studies have shown that the O₂ tensions of cells in both normal breast tissue and cancerous tissue are actually much lower. Discrepancies in O₂ conditions between 2D cell culture and O₂ tensions in vivo can be resolved through using cell culture incubators that have the capacity to produce O₂ concentrations that are more representative of physiological levels. 

The length of time the cells are present in the Hypoxystation varied. Some cells are present in the Hypoxystation for times ranging between 24-120h, while others are cultured within the Hypoxystation for a number of weeks. CO₂ % and temperature are important factors to take into account when carrying out pH measurements. Because the temperature and CO₂ % of the Hypoxystation can be set to match that of the incubator, pH measurements have also been carried out within the Hypoxystation. 

The Hypoxystation is extremely user friendly, making the adjustment of the atmosphere of the Hypoxystation very easy. While some small changes in O₂ % may occur when manipulating cells within the Hypoxystation, the changes seen in O₂ % are small and are quickly rectified. “

James Meehan

University of Edinburgh