Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is an aggressive form of brain cancer with a 15-month survival rate. The present study characterizes the effects of several chemotherapy agents on a mouse-derived glioblastoma tumor model: cultured GL261 cells. Anthracyclines are widely used chemotherapeutic agents that are cytotoxic to tumor cells but are associated with Multiple Drug Resistance and dose-dependent cardiotoxicity. Because of these negative attributes, substantial research effort has been directed towards synthesizing novel anthracyclines with effective anticancer properties and reduced side effects. In this study, we examined five anthracyclines and assessed cell viability using the MTT assay. All tested anthracyclines decreased cell viability in a dose-dependent manner. Doxorubicin, Idarubicin, Epirubicin, GPX-100, and novel GPX-150 had EC50 values of 9.5 μM, 3.6 μM, 7.0 μM, 126.1 μM, and 70.9 μM respectively. GPX-150 was tolerated by GL261 cells at a dose 7-fold higher than Doxorubicin. We also investigated the cellular localization of anthracyclines using fluorescent microscopy. Preliminary results indicate that Doxorubicin and GPX-150 have intrinsic fluorescence that will enable further studies of cellular localization. Together, our results inform pre-clinical drug discovery efforts by characterizing the effects of novel anthracyclines on a cell-based model of glioblastoma.

The Cytotoxic Effects of Anthracyclines on the GL261 Cell Line