Conditioned medium from asbestos-exposed fibroblasts affects proliferation and invasion of lung cancer cell lines

The importance of the role of fibroblasts in cancer microenvironment is well-recognized. However, the relationship between fibroblasts and asbestos-induced lung cancer remains underexplored. To investigate the effect of the asbestos-related microenvironment on lung cancer progression, lung cancer cells (NCI-H358, Calu-3, and A549) were cultured in media derived from IMR-90 lung fibroblasts exposed to 50 mg/L asbestos (chrysotile, amosite, and crocidolite) for 24 h. The kinetics and migration of lung cancer cells in the presence of asbestos-exposed lung fibroblast media were monitored using a real-time cell analysis system. Proliferation and migration of A549 cells increased in the presence of media derived from asbestos-exposed lung fibroblasts than in the presence of media derived from normal lung fibroblasts. We observed no increase in proliferation and migration in lung cancer cells cultured in asbestos-exposed lung cancer cell medium. In contrast, increased proliferation and migration in lung cancer cells exposed to media from asbestos-exposed lung fibroblasts was observed for all types of asbestos. Media derived from lung fibroblasts exposed to other stressors, such as hydrogen peroxide and UV radiation didn’t show as similar effect as asbestos exposure. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)-based cytokine array identified interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-8, which show pleiotropic regulatory effects on lung cancer cells, to be specifically produced in higher amounts by the three types of asbestos-exposed lung fibroblasts than normal lung fibroblasts. Thus, the present study demonstrated that interaction of lung fibroblasts with asbestos may support the growth and metastasis of lung cancer cells and that chrysotile exposure can lead to lung cancer similar to that caused by amphibole asbestos (amosite and crocidolite).