Electrical Stimulation of Rhabdomyosarcoma Cells Induces Cell Cycle Arrest and Autophagy

Rhabdomyosarcoma is a family of rare juvenile cancers that express molecular factors implicated in myogenic differentiation. Cell cycle arrest is absolutely necessary for muscle maturation, while abnormal cell cycle and cell death programs are hallmarks of cancer onset and progression. The cancerous rhabdomyosarcoma cells continue to uncontrollably proliferate in part due to deficiencies in the myogenic program. Electrical stimulation is known to alter the phenotype of myogenic cells, such changes include cell cycle arrest and enhanced myoblast differentiation. Since rhabdomyosarcoma tumors are muscle-like this thesis looks at the use electrical stimulation towards these cells in an attempt to induce differentiation and prevent growth. The results indicate that the response elicited in rhabdomyosarcoma cells following electrical stimulation is different from the one observed in myoblasts, however cell cycle arrest and cell death through autophagy contribute to a large reduction in the number of cells, which represents a potential therapeutic approach.