Bumetanide drug effect on the transmembrane water exchange by T1 relaxation at ultra-low field

Motivation: The transmembrane water exchange (t-Wex) in cancers was demonstrated modulating T1 relaxation at ultra-low field. Goal(s): Our goal was to demonstrate T1 changes under the administration of drugs that act on cell membrane transports. Approach: U87 glioma cells sustained H2O2 stimuli before the administration of the bumetanide drug, a NKCC1 inhibitor. T1 changes were measured by FFC-NMR. Results: At very low field, by comparison to control cells (without H2O2), relaxation rates were found significantly lower under H2O2 stimuli which has been correlated to t-Wex acceleration and higher with the bumetanide addition, that suggests the slowdown of t-Wex. Impact: Using the bumetanide drug, we show at ultra-low field, the potential of the relaxation T1 as biomarker to evaluate the efficiency of drugs that can target t-Wex, a mechanism that has been connected to cancer invasion/migration pathophysiology