Fig. 1

Cisplatin-induced cytotoxicity in human lung cancer cells. a MTT assay revealed the significant reduction in the relative cell viability in lung cancer H460 cells after treatment with 10–100 µM cisplatin for 24 h. b Increased level of apoptosis was noted after culturing with cisplatin at 25–100 µM. c Bright blue fluorescence of Hoechst33342, representing apoptosis, was clearly observed in H460 cells after treatment with cisplatin (25–100 µM) for 24 h, while there was no detectable necrosis (red fluorescence of propidium iodide; PI). Actinomycin D (50 µM) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) at 500 µM was used as a positive control for inducing apoptosis and necrosis, respectively. Data are shown as the mean ± SD (n = 3). *p < 0.05 versus untreated control cells