Abstract:Objective:To establish an adriamycin resistant human colon cancer cell line SW480 (SW480/ADM),and study their drug resistance mechanism and reversal.Methods:An ADM-resistant human colon carcinoma cell line SW480/ADM was induced by continuously exposing human colon carcinoma cell line SW480 to gradually increasing doses of Adriamycin(ADM). The multidrug resistance of SW480/ADM was evaluated by MTT assay. The distribution of its cell cycle, the expressions of P-gp, multidrug resistance-associated protein(MRP) and GSH/GST were detected by flow cytometry. ADM content in the SW480/ADM was detected by high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC). Results:Compared with parental cell line SW480, the SW480/ADM cell line had a slower growth rate and longer doubling time,and distribution of its cell cycle had changed. SW480/ADM was resistant to many anti-tumor agents. IC 50 of ADM of SW480/ADM cells was 13.22 times higher than that of parental cell line SW480, and the expressions of P-gp,MRP and GSH/GST were enhanced significantly(P<0.01). ADM content of the SW480/ADM cells was markedly lower than that of SW480 cells. Conclusions:The resistance of SW480/ADM cells to ADM was acquired and had the characteristic of multidrug resistance,and can be used for the study of drug-resistance, reversal and MDR mechanism of human colon carcinoma.