Effect of methylglyoxal-bis (guanylhydrazone), an inhibitor of spermidine and spermine synthesis, on cell cycle traverse.

Flow cytometric analysis of the cellular DNA content and high pressure liquid chromatographic analysis of the cellular concentration of the polyamines putrescine, spermidine and spermine have been performed on exponentially growing populations of rat brain tumor cells following treatment with methylglyoxal-bis(guanylhydrazone) (MeGAG). This drug has previously been found to be a potent inhibitor of S-adenosyl-l-methionine decarboxylase, the enzyme that catalyzes the initial step in spermidine and spermine biosynthesis.