Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1984;236(1):107-15.
doi: 10.1007/BF00216519.

Effects of bunaftine on morphology, microfilament integrity, and mitotic activity in cultured human fibroblasts and HeLa cells

S Moskalewski, J Thyberg

Effects of bunaftine on morphology, microfilament integrity, and mitotic activity in cultured human fibroblasts and HeLa cells

S Moskalewski et al. Cell Tissue Res. 1984.

Abstract

Human fibroblasts and HeLa cells were treated with bunaftine (N-butyl-N-/2-(diethylamino)ethyl/-1-naphthalenecarboxamide ) in vitro. At concentrations of 0.5-2.0 mM, the drug caused contraction and rounding of the cells with loss of microvilli-like processes. Aggregates of dense, partly granular, partly fibrillar material formed in the cytoplasm and the rough endoplasmic reticulum became vesiculated. Immunofluorescence microscopy with DNase I and anti-DNase I demonstrated that bundles of actin filaments were disrupted, forming rings, coils, and granules. Filaments stained with antibodies to vimentin (fibroblasts) and prekeratin (HeLa cells) showed less characteristic rearrangements, probably related to the rounding up of the cells. 0.4 mM bunaftine increased and 0.8-1.0 mM markedly decreased the percentage of mitotic cells, without accumulation of cells in any particular stage of mitosis. The drug may arrest the cell cycle at some point before mitosis; it may have a critical concentration above which the arrest becomes permanent. These results suggest that bunaftine interferes with the integrity of microfilament bundles in a different manner from that of cytochalasins. It does not cause any depletion of cellular ATP, indicating that its effect is not a result of inhibition of cell metabolism. It is proposed that bunaftine may be used a complement to cytochalasins in studies of the microfilament system of the cell. The possible binding of bunaftine to actin or myosin and further details of its mechanism of action remain to be elucidated.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. J Cell Biol. 1981 Dec;91(3 Pt 1):695-705 - PubMed
    1. Fed Proc. 1974 Feb;33(2):158-66 - PubMed
    1. Int Rev Cytol. 1979;59:1-96 - PubMed
    1. EMBO J. 1982;1(11):1365-72 - PubMed
    1. Cell. 1980 Jun;20(2):329-41 - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms