Cancer cells require ATP to maintain normal cellular processes and generate energy for the rapid division. Glycolysis and the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation pathway are two main sources of cancer cells\' energy. Bactericidal antibiotics such as fluoroquinolones cause mitochondrial dysfunction and decrease intracellular ATP level. The aim of this study was to compare the growth rate and migration potential of ciprofloxacin-resistant melanoma cells with ciprofloxacin-sensitive cells. METHODS: For this purpose, human melanoma A375 cells were treated with ciprofloxacin at concentration of 5 μg mL-1 for two weeks. The cells that had been grown exponentially in the presence of 5 μg mL-1 of ciprofloxacin were designated as ciprofloxacin-resistant A375 cells and named A375-CIP5. The cell migration of A375-CIP5 and parental cells -A375- was assessed by wound healing assay. The growth rate of A375-CIP5 and A375 cells were determined by measuring their doubling time. RESULTS: The results indicated that A375-CIP5 cells had a longer doubling time -51 h- and a decreased growth rate compared with the parental A375 cells -doubling time 49 h-. A375-CIP5 cells also showed a delay in wound closure relative to parental cells at 72 h post-wound. Our results indicated that the growth rate and migration potential of ciprofloxacin-resistant A375 cells were lower than those of parental cells. CONCLUSION: These observations demonstrated that the extent of intratumoral heterogeneity in melanoma influences growth rate as well as cell migratory activity. These findings suggested that differential characteristics in the ciprofloxacin-resistant melanoma cells from parental cells.

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