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An Investigation into the Mechanism by which Silicone Breast Implant Shells Negatively Impact Cells in the Breast Microenvironment
Jini Jeon
*1, Riley Mayne
2, Tim Y. Li
2, Sophia Salingaros
2, Dylan K. Kim
2, Xue Dong
2, Jason A. Spector
21Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY; 2Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY
Background: Textured silicone breast implants have sparked safety concerns due to their association with BIA-ALCL. Recent work in our lab has shown decreased growth of both normal, and surprisingly, breast cancer cells when cultured with silicone implant shells. Herein we explore the possible mechanism mediating these effects.
Methods: Textured and smooth silicone implant shells were cut, and sterilized to line the walls of a 96-well plate. HUVECs and Human Fibroblasts (HF) were seeded at 10-15% confluency. Every 48 hours, conditioned media (CM) from these wells was used to replenish a second plate with the same cell confluency. Varying ratios of CM:fresh media (FM) were used-1:0, 2:1, 1:3, 1:6, 1:15, 0:1. Media from wells without any shell lining was used as control. A parallel experiment used CM from wells with silicone shells but without cells. Imaging and cell counting was performed on Day 1, 4, and 8.
Results: On Day 8, normalized HUVEC cell counts were significantly lower (p<0.05) in wells that received 1:0 CM:FM from both textured (TCM) and smooth (SCM) implant lined wells compared to higher dilutions with FM. HF counts were notably reduced in wells receiving 1:0 and 2:1 TCM:FM, the latter to a lesser extent. Additionally, HF counts were lower in wells receiving 1:0 SCM:FM. Interestingly, when exposed to CM from cell-free wells, reductions in cell count were more pronounced. HUVEC cell counts were reduced with 1:0 and 1:2 TCM:FM, and 1:0 SCM:FM. HF cell counts were lower with 1:0 and 2:1 for both shell type CM, in addition to 1:2 and 1:5 TCM:FM.
Conclusion: These data demonstrate harmful effects of implant shells when cells are indirectly exposed via conditioned media. Notably, these effects are mitigated with increasing dilutions of implant shell-exposed CM with FM, suggesting release of an injurious factor by the implant shell into its surroundings. Interestingly, cell presence attenuated negative effects of implant shell CM. Further exploration of cell-shell interactions is vital for understanding associated risks with these prostheses.
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