Anticancer drugs as inducers of thermotolerance in yeast

Yeast cell viability was evaluated microscopically following exposure to heat shock for 30 min at 53°C. The cells were previously grown in the presence of potential stressors (anticancer drugs;e.g., 5-fluorouracil, methotrexate, cisplatin, bleomycin, mitomycin-C and camptothecin-11). The induction of thermotolerance was documented by significantly increased viability after heat shock. This effect, which was reversed by cycloheximide, was comparable to that observed following exposure to a mild heat stress. These data demonstrate that pretreatment with sub-toxic concentrations of some of the clinically used antineoplastic agents conferres thermotolerance to yeast, possibly through the synthesis of protein components.