The essential role of the mitochondria and reactive oxygen species in Cisplatin-mediated enhancement of fas ligand-induced apoptosis in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Cytotoxic chemotherapeutic drugs such as cisplatin (CDDP) synergistically interact with soluble Fas ligand (sFasL) to mediate profound induction of apoptosis in cancer cells, particularly those refractory to this death-inducing ligand. The goal of this study was to evaluate the roles of the mitochondria-dependent apoptotic cascade and the CDDP-generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mediating the supra-additive enhancement of cytotoxicity and apoptosis in combination-treated malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) cells. MPM cells were treated with sequential CDDP/sFasL in vitro.