Sample records for a375 human melanoma

  1. Interaction of dacarbazine and imexon, in vitro and in vivo, in human A375 melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Samulitis, Betty K; Dorr, Robert T; Chow, H-H Sherry

    2011-09-01

    We evaluated mechanisms of interaction between the alkyating agent dacarbazine (DTIC) and the pro-oxidant, imexon, in the human A375 melanoma cell line. The effect of DTIC and imexon, alone and in combination, was evaluated for growth inhibition (MTT), radiolabeled drug uptake, cellular thiol content (HPLC), and DNA strand breaks (Comet assay). Pharmacokinetic and antitumor effects were evaluated in mice. Growth inhibition in vitro was additive with the two drugs. There was no effect on drug uptake or on the number of DNA strand breaks. There was a >75% reduction in cellular glutathione and cysteine with imexon but not DTIC. Co-administration of the two drugs in mice caused an increase in the area under the curve of both drugs, but the combination was not effective in reducing human A375 melanoma tumors in vivo. Imexon and dacarbazine show additive effects in vitro but not in vivo in human A375 melanoma cells.

  2. Curcumin inhibited growth of human melanoma A375 cells via inciting oxidative stress.

    PubMed

    Liao, Wang; Xiang, Wei; Wang, Fei-Fei; Wang, Rui; Ding, Yan

    2017-11-01

    Curcumin, a polyphenol compound, possesses potent pharmacological properties in preventing cancers, which make it as a potential anti-cancer mediator. However, it is still unknown that whether Curcumin induced melanoma A375 cell was associated with oxidative stress. Here, we firstly found a fascinating result that Curcumin could reduce the proliferation and induced apoptosis of human melanoma A375 cells. Meanwhile, IC 50 of Curcumin on A375 cells is 80μM at 48h. In addition, Curcumin caused oxidative stress through inducing further ROS burst, decreasing GSH, and wrecking mitochondria membrane potential (MMP), which were reversed by ROS inhibitor N-acetylcysteine (NAC). Moreover, MMP disruption led to the release of Cytochrome c from mitochondria and subsequently led to intracellular apoptosis. Furthermore, we found that ROS-dependent HIF-1α and its downstream proteins also play an important role on Curcumin induced apoptosis. In conclusion, our results shed new lights on the therapy of melanoma that Curcumin may be a promising candidate. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

  3. Antiproliferative and apoptosis-inducing effects of lipophilic vitamins on human melanoma A375 cells in vitro.

    PubMed

    Ishibashi, Mai; Arai, Mariko; Tanaka, Sachiko; Onda, Kenji; Hirano, Toshihiko

    2012-01-01

    The effects of six lipophilic vitamins: tretinoin (ATRA), vitamin D(3) (VD(3)), VE, VK(1), VK(3), and VK(5) on cell proliferation and apoptosis in human A375 melanoma cells were investigated. VD(3), VK(3), and VK(5) were found to inhibit cell proliferation significantly at concentration ranges of 10-100 μmol/L (p<0.01), while the other vitamins did not show inhibitory effects at 100 μmol/L. VK(3) and VK(5) showed the strongest effects with IC(50) values of less than 10 μmol/L. Dacarbazine slightly inhibited the proliferation of A375 cells at a concentration range of 25-100 μmol/L, but the effects were not statistically significant. VK(3) and VK(5) increased annexin-V positive apoptotic cells, as well as activating caspase-3, in A375 cells. Our findings showed that VD(3), VK(3,) and VK(5) inhibited the growth of dacarbazine resistant human melanoma cells, while ATRA, VE, and VK(1) had little effect on the cell growth. The effects of VK(3) and VK(5) were observed at concentrations lower than 10 μmol/L, which are suggested to have resulted from apoptosis-induction in the melanoma cells.

  4. Licochalcone D induces apoptosis and inhibits migration and invasion in human melanoma A375 cells

    PubMed Central

    Si, Lingling; Yan, Xinyan; Hao, Wenjin; Ma, Xiaoyi; Ren, Huanhuan; Ren, Boxue; Li, Defang; Dong, Zhengping; Zheng, Qiusheng

    2018-01-01

    The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of Licochalcone D (LD) on the apoptosis and migration and invasion in human melanoma A375 cells. Cell proliferation was determined by sulforhodamine B assay. Apoptosis was assessed by Hoechst 33258 and Annexin V-FITC/PI staining and JC-1 assay. Total intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) was examined by DCFH-DA. Wound healing and Transwell assays were used to detect migration and invasion of the cells. The activities of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-2 and MMP-9) were assessed via gelatin zymography. Tumor growth in vivo was evaluated in C57BL/6 mice. RT-PCR, qPCR, ELISA and western blot analysis were utilized to measure the mRNA and protein levels. Our results showed that LD inhibited the proliferation of A375 and SK-MEL-5 cells in a concentration-dependent manner. After treatment with LD, A375 cells displayed obvious apoptotic characteristics, and the number of apoptotic cells was significantly increased. Pro-apoptotic protein Bax, caspase-9 and caspase-3 were upregulated, while anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 was downregulated in the LD-treated cells. Meanwhile, LD induced the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) and increased the level of ROS. ROS production was inhibited by the co-treatment of LD and free radical scavenger N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC). Furthermore, LD also blocked A375 cell migration and invasion in vitro which was associated with the downregulation of MMP-9 and MMP-2. Finally, intragastric administration of LD suppressed tumor growth in the mouse xenograft model of murine melanoma B16F0 cells. These results suggest that LD may be a potential drug for human melanoma treatment by inhibiting proliferation, inducing apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway and blocking cell migration and invasion. PMID:29565458

  5. Physalin B from Physalis angulata triggers the NOXA-related apoptosis pathway of human melanoma A375 cells.

    PubMed

    Hsu, Chia-Chun; Wu, Yang-Chang; Farh, Lynn; Du, Ying-Chi; Tseng, Wei-Kung; Wu, Chau-Chung; Chang, Fang-Rong

    2012-03-01

    Melanoma is a lethal form of skin cancer that can metastasize rapidly. While surgery and radiation therapy provide palliative therapy for local tumor growth, systemic therapy is the mainstay of treatment for metastatic melanoma. However, limited chemotherapeutic agents are available for melanoma treatment. In this study, we investigated the anti-melanoma effect of physalin B, the major active compound from a widely used herb medicine, Physalis angulata L. This study demonstrated that physalin B exhibits cytotoxicity towards v-raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B1 (BRAF)-mutated melanoma A375 and A2058 cells (the IC50 values are lower than 4.6 μg/ml). Cytotoxicity is likely resulted from apoptosis since the apoptotic marker phosphatidylserine are detected immediately under physalin B treatment and apoptotic cells formation. Further examination revealed that physalin B induces expression of the proapoptotic protein NOXA within 2 h and later triggers the expression of Bax and caspase-3 in A375 cells. These results indicate that physalin B can induce apoptosis of melanoma cancer cells via the NOXA, caspase-3, and mitochondria-mediated pathways, but not of human skin fibroblast cells and myoblastic cells. Thus, physalin B has the potential to be developed as an effective chemotherapeutic lead compound for the treatment of malignant melanoma. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Licochalcone D induces apoptosis and inhibits migration and invasion in human melanoma A375 cells.

    PubMed

    Si, Lingling; Yan, Xinyan; Hao, Wenjin; Ma, Xiaoyi; Ren, Huanhuan; Ren, Boxue; Li, Defang; Dong, Zhengping; Zheng, Qiusheng

    2018-05-01

    The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of Licochalcone D (LD) on the apoptosis and migration and invasion in human melanoma A375 cells. Cell proliferation was determined by sulforhodamine B assay. Apoptosis was assessed by Hoechst 33258 and Annexin V‑FITC/PI staining and JC‑1 assay. Total intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) was examined by DCFH‑DA. Wound healing and Transwell assays were used to detect migration and invasion of the cells. The activities of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP‑2 and MMP‑9) were assessed via gelatin zymography. Tumor growth in vivo was evaluated in C57BL/6 mice. RT‑PCR, qPCR, ELISA and western blot analysis were utilized to measure the mRNA and protein levels. Our results showed that LD inhibited the proliferation of A375 and SK‑MEL‑5 cells in a concentration‑dependent manner. After treatment with LD, A375 cells displayed obvious apoptotic characteristics, and the number of apoptotic cells was significantly increased. Pro‑apoptotic protein Bax, caspase‑9 and caspase‑3 were upregulated, while anti‑apoptotic protein Bcl‑2 was downregulated in the LD‑treated cells. Meanwhile, LD induced the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) and increased the level of ROS. ROS production was inhibited by the co‑treatment of LD and free radical scavenger N‑acetyl‑cysteine (NAC). Furthermore, LD also blocked A375 cell migration and invasion in vitro which was associated with the downregulation of MMP‑9 and MMP‑2. Finally, intragastric administration of LD suppressed tumor growth in the mouse xenograft model of murine melanoma B16F0 cells. These results suggest that LD may be a potential drug for human melanoma treatment by inhibiting proliferation, inducing apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway and blocking cell migration and invasion.

  7. Selenium nanoparticles fabricated in Undaria pinnatifida polysaccharide solutions induce mitochondria-mediated apoptosis in A375 human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Chen, Tianfeng; Wong, Yum-Shing; Zheng, Wenjie; Bai, Yan; Huang, Liang

    2008-11-15

    Selenium nanoparticle (Nano-Se) is a novel Se species with novel biological activities and low toxicity. In the present study, we demonstrated a simple method for synthesis of size-controlled Nano-Se by adding Undaria pinnatifida polysaccharides to the redox system of selenite and ascorbic acid. A panel of four human cancer cell lines was shown to be susceptible to Nano-Se, with IC(50) values ranging from 3.0 to 14.1 microM. Treatment of A375 human melanoma cells with the Nano-Se resulted in dose-dependent cell apoptosis as indicated by DNA fragmentation and phosphatidylserine translocation. Further investigation on intracellular mechanisms found that Nano-Se treatment triggered apoptotic cell death in A375 cells with the involvement of oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. Our results suggest that Nano-Se may be a candidate for further evaluation as a chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic agent for human cancers, especially melanoma cancer.

  8. Mechanisms of Tanshinone II a inhibits malignant melanoma development through blocking autophagy signal transduction in A375 cell.

    PubMed

    Li, Xiaojing; Li, Zhifeng; Li, Xianping; Liu, Baoguo; Liu, Zhijun

    2017-05-22

    Malignant melanoma (MM) is one of the high degree of malignancy and early prone to blood and lymph node metastasis. There is not cured for MM. Tan II A has been reported to reduce cancer cell proliferation. But the mechanism by which Tan II A inhibited melanoma growth are not well characterized. We sought to explore the possible mechanism by which Tan II A regulated cell proliferation through autophagy signaling pathway in A375 cells. We tested the effects of Tan II A on melanoma A375, MV3, M14, and other human cell lines including Hacat and HUVEC cells in cell culture model. Cell proliferation was assessed by using methyl thiazol tetrazolium (MTT) assay. Cell migration ability melanoma A375 was monitored by using cell scratch assay. Transwell chamber experimental was performed to assess the effect of Tan II A on A375 melanoma cell invasion ability. The autophagy body was examined by using flow cytometry. The expression of autophagy-associated protein beclin-1 and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3(LC3)-II, as well as phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K)、protein kinase B (Akt)、mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)、p70S6K1 signaling pathways were detected by using Western blotting. The effects of Tan II A on tumor progression was also examined in melanoma A375 induced tumor in mouse model. We found that Tan IIA inhibited melanoma A375, MV3, and M14 cell proliferation in dose and time dependent manner. Tan II A reduced CXCL12-induced A375 cell invasive ability and migration in a dose dependent manner. Tan IIA promoted autophagic body production and increased autophagy-associated protein beclin-1 and LC3-II expression in A375 cells. However, Tan IIA reduced the phosphorylation of PI3K, P-AKT, P-mTOR, and P-p7036k1. We also confirmed that Tan II A reduced melanoma A375 induced tumor volume and weight in mouse model. We concluded that Tan II A reduced A375 cells proliferation by activation of autophagy production, blocked PI3K- Akt - mTOR - p70S6K1

  9. Sodium ascorbate inhibits growth via the induction of cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human malignant melanoma A375.S2 cells.

    PubMed

    Lin, Shuw-Yuan; Lai, Wan-Wen; Chou, Chi-Chung; Kuo, Hsiu-Maan; Li, Te-Mao; Chung, Jing-Gung; Yang, Jen-Hung

    2006-12-01

    Vitamin C has been reported to be useful in the treatment and prevention of cancer. Inconsistent effects from growth stimulation to induction of apoptosis of malignant tumor cells, however, have been reported. Melanoma is an increasingly common and potentially lethal malignancy. It was reported that melanoma cells were more susceptible to ascorbate toxicity than any other tumor cells. The mechanisms accounting for ascorbate-induced apoptosis in human melanoma cells, however, have remained unclear. This study was undertaken to investigate the effect of sodium ascorbate on cytotoxicity and apoptosis in human malignant melanoma A375.S2 cells. A375.S2 cells were incubated with a certain range of concentrations of sodium ascorbate for various time periods. In order to examine the effects of sodium ascorbate on cell proliferation, cell cycle, apoptosis and necrosis, we performed 4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride assays and flow cytometry analysis. Polymerase chain reaction was used to examine the mRNA levels of p53, p21, p27, cyclin A, cyclin E, CDK2 and CDK4, which are associated with cell cycle S-phase arrest and apoptosis. Flow cytometric analysis showed that sodium ascorbate significantly induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in the A375.S2 cell line in a dose-dependent manner. The increased expressions of p53 and p21, and the decreased expressions of cyclin A, cyclin E, CDK2 and CDK4, indicated the cell cycle arrest at G1/S phase after the cells had been treated with sodium ascorbate. Induction of apoptosis involved an increase in the levels of p53, p21 and cellular Ca, and a decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential and activation of caspase 3 before culminating in apoptosis in sodium ascorbate-treated A375.S2 cells.

  10. Norcantharidin Induces Human Melanoma A375-S2 Cell Apoptosis through Mitochondrial and Caspase Pathways

    PubMed Central

    An, Wei-wei; Wang, Min-wei; Tashiro, Shin-ichi; Onodera, Satoshi

    2004-01-01

    Norcantharidin (NCTD) is the demethylated form of cantharidin, which is the active substance of mylabris. To examine the pathway of NCTD-induced A375-S2 cell death, 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-dipheyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, photomicroscopical observation, DNA agarose gel electrophoresis, caspase activity assay and Western blot analysis were carried out. A375-S2 cells treated with NCTD exhibited several typical characteristics of apoptosis. The inhibitory effect of NCTD on human melanoma, A375-S2 cells, was partially reversed by the inhibitors of pan-caspase, caspase-3 and caspase-9. The activities of caspase-3 and -9 were significantly increased after treatment with NCTD at different time. The expression of inhibitor of caspase-activated DNase was decreased in a time-dependent manner, simultaneously, the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax or Bcl-xL/Bax was decreased and the expression ratio of proteins could be reversed by caspase-3 inhibitor. The expression of cytochrome c in cytosol was increased after NCTD treatment and caspase-3 inhibitor had no significant effect on the up-regulation of cytochrom c. These results suggest that NCTD induced A375-S2 cell apoptosis and the activation of caspase and mitochondrial pathway were involved in the process of NCTD-induced A375-S2 cell apoptosis. PMID:15308848

  11. Phenethyl isothiocyanate triggers apoptosis in human malignant melanoma A375.S2 cells through reactive oxygen species and the mitochondria-dependent pathways.

    PubMed

    Huang, S-H; Hsu, M-H; Hsu, S-C; Yang, J-S; Huang, W-W; Huang, A-C; Hsiao, Y-P; Yu, C-C; Chung, J-G

    2014-03-01

    We have reported previously that phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC) induces apoptosis in human osteosarcoma U-2 OS cells. Cytotoxic activity of PEITC towards other cancer cells such as human malignant melanoma and skin cancer cells has not been reported. In this study, the anticancer activity of PEITC towards human malignant melanoma cancer A375.S2 cells was investigated. To determine the mechanisms of PEITC inhibition of cell growth, the following end points were determined in A375.S2 cells: cell morphological changes, cell cycle arrest, DNA damage and fragmentation assays and morphological assessment of nuclear change, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Ca(2+) generations, mitochondrial membrane potential disruption, and nitric oxide and 10-N-nonyl acridine orange productions, expression and activation of caspase-3 and -9, B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2)-associated X protein (Bax), Bcl-2, poly (adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase, and cytochrome c release, apoptosis-inducing factor and endonuclease G. PEITC induced morphological changes in time- and dose-dependent manner. PEITC induced G2/M phase arrest and induced apoptosis via endoplasmic reticulum stress-mediated mitochondria-dependent pathway. Western blot analysis showed that PEITC promoted Bax expression and inhibited Bcl-2 expression associated with the disintegration of the outer mitochondrial membrane causing cytochrome c release, and activation of caspase-9 and -3 cascade leading to apoptosis. We conclude that PEITC-triggered apoptotic death in A375.S2 cells occurs through ROS-mediated mitochondria-dependent pathways.

  12. Reprogramming human A375 amelanotic melanoma cells by catalase overexpression: Upregulation of antioxidant genes correlates with regression of melanoma malignancy and with malignant progression when downregulated

    PubMed Central

    Berenstein, Ariel; Notcovich, Cintia; Cerda, María B.; Klamt, Fabio; Chernomoretz, Ariel; Durán, Hebe

    2016-01-01

    Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are implicated in tumor transformation. The antioxidant system (AOS) protects cells from ROS damage. However, it is also hijacked by cancers cells to proliferate within the tumor. Thus, identifying proteins altered by redox imbalance in cancer cells is an attractive prognostic and therapeutic tool. Gene expression microarrays in A375 melanoma cells with different ROS levels after overexpressing catalase were performed. Dissimilar phenotypes by differential compensation to hydrogen peroxide scavenging were generated. The melanotic A375-A7 (A7) upregulated TYRP1, CNTN1 and UCHL1 promoting melanogenesis. The metastatic A375-G10 (G10) downregulated MTSS1 and TIAM1, proteins absent in metastasis. Moreover, differential coexpression of AOS genes (EPHX2, GSTM3, MGST1, MSRA, TXNRD3, MGST3 and GSR) was found in A7 and G10. Their increase in A7 improved its AOS ability and therefore, oxidative stress response, resembling less aggressive tumor cells. Meanwhile, their decrease in G10 revealed a disruption in the AOS and therefore, enhanced its metastatic capacity. These gene signatures, not only bring new insights into the physiopathology of melanoma, but also could be relevant in clinical prognostic to classify between non aggressive and metastatic melanomas. PMID:27206673

  13. Reprogramming human A375 amelanotic melanoma cells by catalase overexpression: Upregulation of antioxidant genes correlates with regression of melanoma malignancy and with malignant progression when downregulated.

    PubMed

    Bracalente, Candelaria; Ibañez, Irene L; Berenstein, Ariel; Notcovich, Cintia; Cerda, María B; Klamt, Fabio; Chernomoretz, Ariel; Durán, Hebe

    2016-07-05

    Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are implicated in tumor transformation. The antioxidant system (AOS) protects cells from ROS damage. However, it is also hijacked by cancers cells to proliferate within the tumor. Thus, identifying proteins altered by redox imbalance in cancer cells is an attractive prognostic and therapeutic tool. Gene expression microarrays in A375 melanoma cells with different ROS levels after overexpressing catalase were performed. Dissimilar phenotypes by differential compensation to hydrogen peroxide scavenging were generated. The melanotic A375-A7 (A7) upregulated TYRP1, CNTN1 and UCHL1 promoting melanogenesis. The metastatic A375-G10 (G10) downregulated MTSS1 and TIAM1, proteins absent in metastasis. Moreover, differential coexpression of AOS genes (EPHX2, GSTM3, MGST1, MSRA, TXNRD3, MGST3 and GSR) was found in A7 and G10. Their increase in A7 improved its AOS ability and therefore, oxidative stress response, resembling less aggressive tumor cells. Meanwhile, their decrease in G10 revealed a disruption in the AOS and therefore, enhanced its metastatic capacity.These gene signatures, not only bring new insights into the physiopathology of melanoma, but also could be relevant in clinical prognostic to classify between non aggressive and metastatic melanomas.

  14. Reprogramming human A375 amelanotic melanoma cells by catalase overexpression: Reversion or promotion of malignancy by inducing melanogenesis or metastasis

    PubMed Central

    Bracalente, Candelaria; Salguero, Noelia; Notcovich, Cintia; Müller, Carolina B.; da Motta, Leonardo L.; Klamt, Fabio; Ibañez, Irene L.; Durán, Hebe

    2016-01-01

    Advanced melanoma is the most aggressive form of skin cancer. It is highly metastatic and dysfunctional in melanogenesis; two processes that are induced by H2O2. This work presents a melanoma cell model with low levels of H2O2 induced by catalase overexpression to study differentiation/dedifferentiation processes. Three clones (A7, C10 and G10) of human A375 amelanotic melanoma cells with quite distinct phenotypes were obtained. These clones faced H2O2 scavenging by two main strategies. One developed by clone G10 where ROS increased. This resulted in G10 migration and metastasis associated with the increased of cofilin-1 and CAP1. The other strategy was observed in clone A7 and C10, where ROS levels were maintained reversing malignant features. Particularly, C10 was not tumorigenic, while A7 reversed the amelanotic phenotype by increasing melanin content and melanocytic differentiation markers. These clones allowed the study of potential differentiation and migration markers and its association with ROS levels in vitro and in vivo, providing a new melanoma model with different degree of malignancy. PMID:27206672

  15. Reprogramming human A375 amelanotic melanoma cells by catalase overexpression: Reversion or promotion of malignancy by inducing melanogenesis or metastasis.

    PubMed

    Bracalente, Candelaria; Salguero, Noelia; Notcovich, Cintia; Müller, Carolina B; da Motta, Leonardo L; Klamt, Fabio; Ibañez, Irene L; Durán, Hebe

    2016-07-05

    Advanced melanoma is the most aggressive form of skin cancer. It is highly metastatic and dysfunctional in melanogenesis; two processes that are induced by H2O2. This work presents a melanoma cell model with low levels of H2O2 induced by catalase overexpression to study differentiation/dedifferentiation processes. Three clones (A7, C10 and G10) of human A375 amelanotic melanoma cells with quite distinct phenotypes were obtained. These clones faced H2O2 scavenging by two main strategies. One developed by clone G10 where ROS increased. This resulted in G10 migration and metastasis associated with the increased of cofilin-1 and CAP1. The other strategy was observed in clone A7 and C10, where ROS levels were maintained reversing malignant features. Particularly, C10 was not tumorigenic, while A7 reversed the amelanotic phenotype by increasing melanin content and melanocytic differentiation markers. These clones allowed the study of potential differentiation and migration markers and its association with ROS levels in vitro and in vivo, providing a new melanoma model with different degree of malignancy.

  16. Fig latex (Ficus carica L. cultivar Dottato) in combination with UV irradiation decreases the viability of A375 melanoma cells in vitro.

    PubMed

    Menichini, Giulio; Alfano, Carmine; Provenzano, Eugenio; Marrelli, Mariangela; Statti, Giancarlo A; Somma, Francesco; Menichini, Francesco; Conforti, Filomena

    2012-10-01

    Melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancers are among the most prevalent cancers in the human population. In the present work latex of Ficus carica cultivar Dottato from Italy collected from fruits and leaves was examined to assess its free radical-scavenging activity with 1,1-diphenyl-2 picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and its phototoxicity on A375 human melanoma cells. The latex obtained from the fruits of Ficus carica cv. Dottato showed the best antiradical activity with an IC50 value of 0.05 mg/ml while the latex obtained from the leaves showed the best antiproliferative activity with an IC50 value of 1.5 μg/ml on the human tumor cell line A375 (melanoma) after irradiation at a specific UVA dose (1.08 J/cm2). Control experiments with UVA light or drugs alone were carried out without significant cytotoxic effects. Polyphenolic content of the samples was also evaluated. This is the first study comparing F. carica latex of leaves and fruits. Plant derived natural products have long been and will continue to be an important source for anticancer drug development.

  17. Cudraflavone C Induces Apoptosis of A375.S2 Melanoma Cells through Mitochondrial ROS Production and MAPK Activation.

    PubMed

    Lee, Chiang-Wen; Yen, Feng-Lin; Ko, Horng-Huey; Li, Shu-Yu; Chiang, Yao-Chang; Lee, Ming-Hsueh; Tsai, Ming-Horng; Hsu, Lee-Fen

    2017-07-13

    Melanoma is the most malignant form of skin cancer and is associated with a very poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the apoptotic effects of cudraflavone C on A375.S2 melanoma cells and to determine the underlying mechanisms involved in apoptosis. Cell viability was determined using the MTT and real-time cytotoxicity assays. Flow cytometric evaluation of apoptosis was performed after staining the cells with Annexin V-FITC and propidium iodide. The mitochondrial membrane potential was evaluated using the JC-1 assay. Cellular ROS production was measured using the CellROX assay, while mitochondrial ROS production was evaluated using the MitoSOX assay. It was observed that cudraflavone C inhibited growth in A375.S2 melanoma cells, and promoted apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway mediated by increased mitochondrial ROS production. In addition, cudraflavone C induced phosphorylation of MAPKs (p38, ERK, and JNK) and up-regulated the expression of apoptotic proteins (Puma, Bax, Bad, Bid, Apaf-1, cytochrome C, caspase-9, and caspase-3/7) in A375.S2 cells. Pretreatment of A375.S2 cells with MitoTEMPOL (a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant) attenuated the phosphorylation of MAPKs, expression of apoptotic proteins, and the overall progression of apoptosis. In summary, cudraflavone C induced apoptosis in A375.S2 melanoma cells by increasing mitochondrial ROS production; thus, activating p38, ERK, and JNK; and increasing the expression of apoptotic proteins. Therefore, cudraflavone C may be regarded as a potential form of treatment for malignant melanoma.

  18. MiR-767 promoted cell proliferation in human melanoma by suppressing CYLD expression.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Kejin; Guo, Ling

    2018-01-30

    MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as critical regulators for cancer development and progression of human melanoma. However, the potential molecular mechanism of miR-767 in human melanoma has not been intensively investigated. In this present study, we confirmed that miR-767 was frequently up-regulated in human melanoma tissues and cell lines. Ectopic expression of miR-767 promoted cell proliferation in human melanoma cell lines A375 and WM35, whereas miR-767-in reversed the function. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that cylindromatosis (CYLD) was hypothesized to be a possible target gene of miR-767, and this was confirmed by luciferase activity assay. Knockdown of CYLD counteracted the proliferation arrest by miR-767-in in melanoma cells A375 and WM35. In conclusion, our study indicated that miR-767 acted as a role of tumor promoter by targeting CYLD in human melanoma, and might serve as a prognostic or therapeutic target for human melanoma. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Oxyfadichalcone C inhibits melanoma A375 cell proliferation and metastasis via suppressing PI3K/Akt and MAPK/ERK pathways.

    PubMed

    Peng, Xiaolin; Wang, Zhengming; Liu, Yang; Peng, Xin; Liu, Yao; Zhu, Shan; Zhang, Zhe; Qiu, Yuling; Jin, Meihua; Wang, Ran; Zhang, Qingying; Kong, Dexin

    2018-08-01

    Melanoma remains to be one of the most incurable cancers. Discovery of novel antitumor agent for melanoma therapy is expected. We recently isolated Oxyfadichalcone C from Oxytropis falcate and investigated the anti-proliferative and anti-metastatic activity on human melanoma A375 cells in vitro. Cell viability was determined using MTT assay and soft agar cloning formation assay. The effect of Oxyfadichalcone C on cell cycle distribution and apoptosis were analyzed by flow cytometry. Cell metastasis was determined by wound healing assay, Transwell assay and Gelatin zymography assay. The effect of Oxyfadichalcone C on signal proteins of PI3K/Akt and MAPK/ERK pathways was examined by western blot analysis. Synergism assay was employed to determine whether combination of Oxyfadichalcone C with Vemurafenib would enhance the anti-proliferative effect. Oxyfadichalcone C potently inhibited proliferation, induced G1 phase arrest and weak apoptosis in A375 cells. Anti-migration and anti-invasion activities were also indicated. Such effects were associated with upregulation of p27, reduction of cyclin D1, p-pRb, p-Integrin β1, as well as the proteolytic activity of metalloproteinase (MMP)-2/9. Meanwhile, key molecules of PI3K/Akt and MAPK/ERK pathways were downregulated, which might be involved in the inhibition against proliferation and metastasis of A375 cells by Oxyfadichalcone C. In addition, combination of Oxyfadichalcone C with Vemurafenib at a ratio of IC50 Oxyfadichalcone C : 5 × IC 50 Vemurafenib exhibited synergistic anti-proliferative effect on A375 cells. Our findings suggest that Oxyfadichalcone C has the potential to be developed as a promising drug candidate for the treatment of melanoma. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Acid ceramidase expression modulates the sensitivity of A375 melanoma cells to dacarbazine.

    PubMed

    Bedia, Carmen; Casas, Josefina; Andrieu-Abadie, Nathalie; Fabriàs, Gemma; Levade, Thierry

    2011-08-12

    Dacarbazine (DTIC) is the treatment of choice for metastatic melanoma, but its response in patients remains very poor. Ceramide has been shown to be a death effector and to play an important role in regulating cancer cell growth upon chemotherapy. Among ceramidases, the enzymes that catabolize ceramide, acid ceramidase (aCDase) has been implicated in cancer progression. Here we show that DTIC elicits a time- and dose-dependent decrease of aCDase activity and an increase of intracellular ceramide levels in human A375 melanoma cells. The loss of enzyme activity occurred as a consequence of reactive oxygen species-dependent activation of cathepsin B-mediated degradation of aCDase. These events preceded autophagic features and loss of cell viability. Down-regulation of acid but not neutral or alkaline ceramidase 2 resulted in elevated levels of ceramide and sensitization to the toxic effects of DTIC. Conversely, inducible overexpression of acid but not neutral ceramidase reduced ceramide levels and conferred resistance to DTIC. In conclusion, we report that increased levels of ceramide, due to enhanced degradation of aCDase, are in part responsible for the cell death effects of DTIC. These results suggest that down-regulation of aCDase alone or in combination with DTIC may represent a useful tool in the treatment of metastatic melanoma.

  1. Pre-clinical assessment of A-674563 as an anti-melanoma agent

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zou, Ying; Fan, Guobiao; Wang, Xuemin, E-mail: wangxuemeidr@yeah.net

    The present study aims to investigate the anti-melanoma activity by an Akt1 specific inhibitor A-674563. We showed that A-674563 was anti-proliferative and cytotoxic when added to human melanoma cells (A375, WM-115 and SK-Mel-2 lines). A-674563 induced caspase-dependent apoptotic death of human melanoma cells, and its cytotoxicity was inhibited with pre-treatment of caspase inhibitors. Further, A-674563 treatment blocked Akt and its downstream S6 Kinase 1 (S6K1) activation in A375 melanoma cells. Significantly, restoring Akt-S6K1 activation via introduction of constitutively-active Akt1 (ca-Akt1) only partially attenuated A-674563's cytotoxicity against A375 cells. Further, A-674563 induced pro-apoptotic ceramide production in A375 cells. Significantly, sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) inhibited A-674563-inducedmore » ceramide production and subsequent A375 cell apoptosis. On the other hand, co-treatment with the glucosylceramide synthase (GCS) inhibitor PDMP or the cell permeable short-chain ceramide (C6) potentiated A-674563's cytotoxicity against A375 cells. In vivo, A-674563 oral gavage inhibited A375 xenograft growth in severe combined immunodeficiency (scid) mice. Akt inactivation, caspase-3 activation and ceramide production were also observed in A-674563-treated A375 xenografts. Together, these results suggest that A-674563 exerts potent anti-melanoma activity, involving Akt-dependent and Akt-independent mechanisms. - Highlights: • A-674563 inhibits human melanoma cell survival and proliferation. • A-674563 induces melanoma cell apoptotic death, inhibited by caspase inhibitors. • A-674563 inhibits melanoma cells via Akt-dependent and -independent mechanisms. • A-674563 induces ceramide production in melanoma cells, independent of Akt inhibition. • A-674563 oral administration potently inhibits A375 xenograft growth in mice.« less

  2. Acid Ceramidase Expression Modulates the Sensitivity of A375 Melanoma Cells to Dacarbazine*

    PubMed Central

    Bedia, Carmen; Casas, Josefina; Andrieu-Abadie, Nathalie; Fabriàs, Gemma; Levade, Thierry

    2011-01-01

    Dacarbazine (DTIC) is the treatment of choice for metastatic melanoma, but its response in patients remains very poor. Ceramide has been shown to be a death effector and to play an important role in regulating cancer cell growth upon chemotherapy. Among ceramidases, the enzymes that catabolize ceramide, acid ceramidase (aCDase) has been implicated in cancer progression. Here we show that DTIC elicits a time- and dose-dependent decrease of aCDase activity and an increase of intracellular ceramide levels in human A375 melanoma cells. The loss of enzyme activity occurred as a consequence of reactive oxygen species-dependent activation of cathepsin B-mediated degradation of aCDase. These events preceded autophagic features and loss of cell viability. Down-regulation of acid but not neutral or alkaline ceramidase 2 resulted in elevated levels of ceramide and sensitization to the toxic effects of DTIC. Conversely, inducible overexpression of acid but not neutral ceramidase reduced ceramide levels and conferred resistance to DTIC. In conclusion, we report that increased levels of ceramide, due to enhanced degradation of aCDase, are in part responsible for the cell death effects of DTIC. These results suggest that down-regulation of aCDase alone or in combination with DTIC may represent a useful tool in the treatment of metastatic melanoma. PMID:21700700

  3. IL-1-induced ERK1/2 activation up-regulates p21{sup Waf1/Cip1} protein by inhibition of degradation via ubiquitin-independent pathway in human melanoma cells A375

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Arakawa, Tomohiro; Hayashi, Hidetoshi; Itoh, Saotomo

    2010-02-12

    IL-1 inhibits the proliferation of human melanoma cells A375 by arresting the cell cycle at G0/G1 phase, which accompanies the increase of p21{sup Waf1/Cip1} (p21) protein. Here, we demonstrate that IL-1 induces the stabilization of p21 protein via ERK1/2 pathway. The degradation of p21 was inhibited by IL-1, however the ubiquitination level of p21 was not affected. In addition, the degradation of non-ubiquitinated form of lysine less mutant p21-K6R was also inhibited by IL-1, suggesting that IL-1 stabilized p21 protein via ubiquitin-independent pathway. Furthermore, the inhibition of p21 protein degradation was prevented by a selective inhibitor of ERK1/2 pathway, PD98059.more » These results suggest that IL-1-induced ERK1/2 activation leads to the up-regulation of p21 by inhibiting degradation via ubiquitin-independent pathway in human melanoma cells A375.« less

  4. The Efficacy of Dandelion Root Extract in Inducing Apoptosis in Drug-Resistant Human Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Chatterjee, S. J.; Ovadje, P.; Mousa, M.; Hamm, C.; Pandey, S.

    2011-01-01

    Notoriously chemoresistant melanoma has become the most prevalent form of cancer for the 25–29 North American age demographic. Standard treatment after early detection involves surgical excision (recurrence is possible), and metastatic melanoma is refractory to immuno-, radio-, and most harmful chemotherapies. Various natural compounds have shown efficacy in killing different cancers, albeit not always specifically. In this study, we show that dandelion root extract (DRE) specifically and effectively induces apoptosis in human melanoma cells without inducing toxicity in noncancerous cells. Characteristic apoptotic morphology of nuclear condensation and phosphatidylserine flipping to the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane of A375 human melanoma cells was observed within 48 hours. DRE-induced apoptosis activates caspase-8 in A375 cells early on, demonstrating employment of an extrinsic apoptotic pathway to kill A375 cells. Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generated from DRE-treated isolated mitochondria indicates that natural compounds in DRE can also directly target mitochondria. Interestingly, the relatively resistant G361 human melanoma cell line responded to DRE when combined with the metabolism interfering antitype II diabetic drug metformin. Therefore, treatment with this common, yet potent extract of natural compounds has proven novel in specifically inducing apoptosis in chemoresistant melanoma, without toxicity to healthy cells. PMID:21234313

  5. Antihyperglycemic drug Gymnema sylvestre also shows anticancer potentials in human melanoma A375 cells via reactive oxygen species generation and mitochondria-dependent caspase pathway.

    PubMed

    Chakraborty, Debrup; Ghosh, Samrat; Bishayee, Kausik; Mukherjee, Avinaba; Sikdar, Sourav; Khuda-Bukhsh, Anisur Rahman

    2013-09-01

    Ethanolic extract of Gymnema sylvestre (GS) leaves is used as a potent antidiabetic drug in various systems of alternative medicine, including homeopathy. The present study was aimed at examining if GS also had anticancer potentials, and if it had, to elucidate its possible mechanism of action. We initially tested possible anticancer potential of GS on A375 cells (human skin melanoma) through MTT assay and determined cytotoxicity levels in A375 and normal liver cells; we then thoroughly studied its apoptotic effects on A375 cells through protocols such as Hoechst 33258, H2DCFDA, and rhodamine 123 staining and conducted ELISA for cytochrome c, caspase 3, and PARP activity levels; we determined the mRNA level expression of cytochrome c, caspase 3, Bcl2, Bax, PARP, ICAD, and EGFR signaling genes through semiquantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and conducted Western blot analysis of caspase 3 and PARP. We also analyzed cell cycle events, determined reactive oxygen species accumulation, measured annexin V-FITC/PI and rhodamine 123 intensity by flow cytometry. Compared with both normal liver cells and drug-untreated A375, the mortality of GS-treated A375 cells increased in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally, GS induced nuclear DNA fragmentation and showed an increased level of mRNA expression of apoptotic signal related genes cytochrome c, caspase 3, PARP, Bax, and reduced expression level of ICAD, EGFR, and the anti-apoptotic gene Bcl2. Overall results indicate GS to have significant anticancer effect on A375 cells apart from its reported antidiabetic effect, indicating possibility of its palliative use in patients with symptoms of both the diseases.

  6. In vitro and in vivo cytotoxic activity of human lactoferricin derived antitumor peptide R-DIM-P-LF11-334 on human malignant melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Riedl, Sabrina; Rinner, Beate; Schaider, Helmut; Liegl-Atzwanger, Bernadette; Meditz, Katharina; Preishuber-Pflügl, Julia; Grissenberger, Sarah; Lohner, Karl; Zweytick, Dagmar

    2017-01-01

    Di-peptides derived from the human host defense peptide lactoferricin were previously described to specifically interact with the negatively charged lipid phosphatidylserine exposed by cancer cells. In this study one further derivative, namely R-DIM-P-LF11-334 is shown to exhibit even increased cancer toxicity in vitro and in vivo while non-neoplastic cells are not harmed. In liposomal model systems composed of phosphatidylserine mimicking cancerous and phosphatidylcholine mimicking non-cancerous membranes the specific interaction with the cancer marker PS was confirmed by specific induction of membrane perturbation and permeabilization in presence of the peptide. In vitro studies with cell lines of human malignant melanoma, such as A375, or primary cells of human melanoma metastases to the brain, as MUG Mel1, and non-neoplastic human dermal fibroblasts NHDF revealed high cytotoxic effect of R-DIM-P-LF11-334 on melanoma cells of A375 and MUG Mel1, whereas only minor effect on the dermal fibroblasts NHDF was observed, yielding an about 20-fold killing-specificity for A375 and MUG-Mel1. The LC50 values for melanoma A375 and MUG Mel1 were about 10 μM. Analysis of secondary structure of the peptide revealed an increase in the proportion of β-sheets exclusively in presence of the cancer mimic. Stability studies further indicated a potential adequate stability in blood or under stringent conditions. Importantly the cytotoxic effect on cancer cells was also proven in vivo in mouse xenografts of human melanoma, where peptide treatment induced strong tumor regression and in average a tumor area reduction of 85% compared to tumors of control mice without peptide treatment. PMID:29069749

  7. In vitro and in vivo cytotoxic activity of human lactoferricin derived antitumor peptide R-DIM-P-LF11-334 on human malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Riedl, Sabrina; Rinner, Beate; Schaider, Helmut; Liegl-Atzwanger, Bernadette; Meditz, Katharina; Preishuber-Pflügl, Julia; Grissenberger, Sarah; Lohner, Karl; Zweytick, Dagmar

    2017-09-22

    Di-peptides derived from the human host defense peptide lactoferricin were previously described to specifically interact with the negatively charged lipid phosphatidylserine exposed by cancer cells. In this study one further derivative, namely R-DIM-P-LF11-334 is shown to exhibit even increased cancer toxicity in vitro and in vivo while non-neoplastic cells are not harmed. In liposomal model systems composed of phosphatidylserine mimicking cancerous and phosphatidylcholine mimicking non-cancerous membranes the specific interaction with the cancer marker PS was confirmed by specific induction of membrane perturbation and permeabilization in presence of the peptide. In vitro studies with cell lines of human malignant melanoma, such as A375, or primary cells of human melanoma metastases to the brain, as MUG Mel1, and non-neoplastic human dermal fibroblasts NHDF revealed high cytotoxic effect of R-DIM-P-LF11-334 on melanoma cells of A375 and MUG Mel1, whereas only minor effect on the dermal fibroblasts NHDF was observed, yielding an about 20-fold killing-specificity for A375 and MUG-Mel1. The LC 50 values for melanoma A375 and MUG Mel1 were about 10 μM. Analysis of secondary structure of the peptide revealed an increase in the proportion of β-sheets exclusively in presence of the cancer mimic. Stability studies further indicated a potential adequate stability in blood or under stringent conditions. Importantly the cytotoxic effect on cancer cells was also proven in vivo in mouse xenografts of human melanoma, where peptide treatment induced strong tumor regression and in average a tumor area reduction of 85% compared to tumors of control mice without peptide treatment.

  8. Induction of apoptosis in melanoma A375 cells by a chloroform fraction of Centratherum anthelminticum (L.) seeds involves NF-kappaB, p53 and Bcl-2-controlled mitochondrial signaling pathways.

    PubMed

    Looi, Chung Yeng; Moharram, Bushra; Paydar, Mohammadjavad; Wong, Yi Li; Leong, Kok Hoong; Mohamad, Khalit; Arya, Aditya; Wong, Won Fen; Mustafa, Mohd Rais

    2013-07-10

    Centratherum anthelminticum (L.) Kuntze (scientific synonyms: Vernonia anthelmintica; black cumin) is one of the ingredients of an Ayurvedic preparation, called "Kayakalp", commonly applied to treat skin disorders in India and Southeast Asia. Despite its well known anti-inflammatory property on skin diseases, the anti-cancer effect of C. anthelminticum seeds on skin cancer is less documented. The present study aims to investigate the anti-cancer effect of Centratherum anthelminticum (L.) seeds chloroform fraction (CACF) on human melanoma cells and to elucidate the molecular mechanism involved. A chloroform fraction was extracted from C. anthelminticum (CACF). Bioactive compounds of the CACF were analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Human melanoma cell line A375 was treated with CACF in vitro. Effects of CACF on growth inhibition, morphology, stress and survival of the cell were examined with MTT, high content screening (HSC) array scan and flow cytometry analyses. Involvement of intrinsic or extrinsic pathways in the CACF-induced A375 cell death mechanism was examined using a caspase luminescence assay. The results were further verified with different caspase inhibitors. In addition, Western blot analysis was performed to elucidate the changes in apoptosis-associated molecules. Finally, the effect of CACF on the NF-κB nuclear translocation ability was assayed. The MTT assay showed that CACF dose-dependently inhibited cell growth of A375, while exerted less cytotoxic effect on normal primary epithelial melanocytes. We demonstrated that CACF induced cell growth inhibition through apoptosis, as evidenced by cell shrinkage, increased annexin V staining and formation of membrane blebs. CACF treatment also resulted in higher reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and lower Bcl-2 expression, leading to decrease mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). Disruption of the MMP facilitated the release of mitochondrial cytochrome c, which

  9. Vitamin E δ-tocotrienol triggers endoplasmic reticulum stress-mediated apoptosis in human melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Montagnani Marelli, Marina; Marzagalli, Monica; Moretti, Roberta M.; Beretta, Giangiacomo; Casati, Lavinia; Comitato, Raffaella; Gravina, Giovanni L.; Festuccia, Claudio; Limonta, Patrizia

    2016-01-01

    Malignant melanoma is the leading cause of death from skin cancer. Drug toxicity and resistance represent a serious challange for melanoma treatments. Evidence demonstrates that natural compounds may play a crucial role in cancer prevention, growth and progression. Vitamin E tocotrienols (TT) were shown to possess antitumor activity. Here, we analyzed the effects of δ-TT on melanoma cell growth and the involvement of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in this activity. The experiments were performed on human melanoma cell lines, BLM and A375. δ-TT exerted a significant proapoptotic effect on both cell lines, involving the intrinsic apoptosis pathway; importantly, this compound did not affect the viability of normal human melanocytes. In melanoma cells, δ-TT exerted its antitumor effect through activation of the PERK/p-eIF2α/ATF4/CHOP, IRE1α and caspase-4 ER stress-related branches. Salubrinal, an inhibitor of the ER stress, counteracted the cytotoxic activity of δ-TT. In vivo experiments performed in nude mice bearing A375 xenografts evidenced that δ-TT reduces tumor volume and tumor mass; importantly, tumor progression was significantly delayed by δ-TT treatment. In conclusion, δ-TT exerts a proapoptotic activity on melanoma cells, through activation of the ER stress-related pathways. δ-TT might represent an effective option for novel chemopreventive/therapeutic strategies for melanoma. PMID:27461002

  10. Withania somnifera Root Extract Has Potent Cytotoxic Effect against Human Malignant Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Halder, Babli; Singh, Shruti; Thakur, Suman S.

    2015-01-01

    In Ayurveda, Withania somnifera is commonly known as Ashwagandha, its roots are specifically used in medicinal and clinical applications. It possesses numerous therapeutic actions which include anti-inflammatory, sedative, hypnotic and narcotic. Extracts from this plant have been reported for its anticancer properties. In this study we evaluated for the first time, the cytotoxic effect of Withania root extract on human malignant melanoma A375 cells. The crude extract of Withania was tested for cytotoxicity against A375 cells by MTT assay. Cell morphology of treated A375 cells was visualized through phase contrast as well as fluorescence microscopy. Agarose gel electrophoresis was used to check DNA fragmentation of the crude extract treated cells. Crude extract of Withania root has the potency to reduce viable cell count in dose as well as time dependent manner. Morphological change of the A375 cells was also observed in treated groups in comparison to untreated or vehicle treated control. Apoptotic body and nuclear blebbing were observed in DAPI stained treated cells under fluorescence microscope. A ladder of fragmented DNA was noticed in treated cells. Thus it might be said that the crude water extract of Withania somnifera has potent cytotoxic effect on human malignant melanoma A375 cells. PMID:26334881

  11. A DC-81-indole conjugate agent suppresses melanoma A375 cell migration partially via interrupting VEGF production and stromal cell-derived factor-1{alpha}-mediated signaling

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hsieh, Ming-Chu; Hu, Wan-Ping; Yu, Hsin-Su

    2011-09-01

    Pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzodiazepine (PBD) chemicals are antitumor antibiotics inhibiting nucleic acid synthesis. An indole carboxylate-PBD hybrid with six-carbon spacer structure (IN6CPBD) has been previously demonstrated to induce melanoma cell apoptosis and reduce metastasis in mouse lungs. This study aimed at investigating the efficacy of the other hybrid compound with four-carbon spacer (IN4CPBD) and elucidating its anti-metastatic mechanism. Human melanoma A375 cells with IN4CPBD treatment underwent cytotoxicity and apoptosis-associated assays. Transwell migration assay, Western blotting, and ELISA were used for mechanistic study. IN4CPBD exhibited potent melanoma cytotoxicity through interrupting G1/S cell cycle progression, increasing DNA fragmentation and hypodipoidic DNA contents, and reducing mitochondrialmore » membrane potential. Caspase activity elevation suggested that both intrinsic and extrinsic pathways were involved in IN4CPBD-induced melanoma apoptosis. IN4CPBD up-regulated p53 and p21, thereby concomitantly derailing the equilibrium between Bcl-2 and Bax levels. Transwell migration assay demonstrated that stromal cell-derived factor-1{alpha} (SDF-1{alpha}) stimulated A375 cell motility, while kinase inhibitors treatment confirmed that Rho/ROCK, Akt, ERK1/2, and p38 MAPK pathways were involved in SDF-1{alpha}-enhanced melanoma migration. IN4CPBD not only abolished the SDF-1{alpha}-enhanced chemotactic motility but also suppressed constitutive MMP-9 and VEGF expression. Mechanistically, IN4CPBD down-regulated Akt, ERK1/2, and p38 MAPK total proteins and MYPT1 phosphorylation. In conclusion, beyond the fact that IN4CPBD induces melanoma cell apoptosis at cytotoxic dose, the interruption in the VEGF expression and the SDF-1{alpha}-related signaling at cytostatic dose may partially constitute the rationale for its in vivo anti-metastatic potency. - Research Highlights: > A novel carboxylate-PBD hybrid as anti-melanoma drug. > IN4CPBD interrupts

  12. Genetically engineered mesenchymal stromal cells producing TNFα have tumour suppressing effect on human melanoma xenograft.

    PubMed

    Tyciakova, Silvia; Matuskova, Miroslava; Bohovic, Roman; Polakova, Katarina; Toro, Lenka; Skolekova, Svetlana; Kucerova, Lucia

    2015-01-01

    Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) are a promising tool for targeted cancer therapy due to their tumour-homing ability. Intrinsic resistance enables the MSC to longer tolerate therapeutic factors, such as prodrug converting enzymes, cytokines and pro-apoptotic proteins. Tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) is known to be cytotoxic to a variety of cancer cells and exert a tumour-destructive capacity. MSC were retrovirally transduced to stable express an exogenous gene encoding the desired therapeutic agent hTNFα. The effect of a TNFα-producing adipose tissue-derived MSC (AT-MSC/hTNFα) was tested on the tumour cell lines of different origins: melanoma (A375), breast carcinoma (SKBR3, MDA-MB-231), colon carcinoma (HT29), ovarian carcinoma (SKOV3) and glioblastoma (U87-MG) cells. The tumour suppressing effect of AT-MSC/hTNFα on A375 melanoma xenografts was monitored in an immunodeficient mouse model in vivo. Engineered AT-MSC are able to constitutively secrete human TNFα protein, induce apoptosis of tumour cell lines via caspase 3/7 activation and inhibit the tumour cell proliferation in vitro. Melanoma A375 and breast carcinoma SKBR3 cells were the most sensitive, and their proliferation in vitro was reduced by conditioned media produced by AT-MSC/hTNFα to 60% and 40%, respectively. The previously reported tumour supportive effect of AT-MSC on subcutaneous A375 melanoma xenograft growth was neutralised and suppressed by engineered AT-MSC stably producing hTNFα. When AT-MSC/hTNFα were coinjected with A375 melanoma cells, the tumour mass inhibition was up to 97.5%. The results of the present study demonstrate that tumour cells respond to hTNFα-based treatment mediated by genetically engineered AT-MSC/hTNFα both in vitro and in vivo. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  13. Dihydroxyacetone induces G2/M arrest and apoptotic cell death in A375P melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Smith, Kelly R; Granberry, Molley; Tan, Marcus C B; Daniel, Casey L; Gassman, Natalie R

    2018-03-01

    The active ingredient in sunless tanning products (STPs) is a simple sugar, dihydroxyacetone (DHA). Several studies have demonstrated that DHA is absorbed within the viable layers of skin and not fully contained within the stratum corneum. Additionally, spray tanning and other aerosolized application methods have increased the risk of internal exposure through mucous membranes and inhalation. Beyond its presence in STPs, DHA also occurs as an endogenous by-product of fructose metabolism, and an excess of DHA in cells can induce advanced glycation end (AGE) products and oxidative stress. Therefore, exogenous and endogenous exposures to DHA may be harmful to cells, and it has already been demonstrated that exogenous exposure to DHA is cytotoxic in immortalized keratinocytes. Still, little is known about the exogenous DHA exposure effects on other skin components. In this study, we explore the effects of exogenous DHA exposure in a human melanoma cell line, A375P. Melanoma cells were sensitive to DHA and displayed a transient burst of reactive oxygen species within an hour of exposure. Cell cycle arrest at G2/M was observed within 24 h of exposure, and apoptosis, monitored by the cleavage of PARP-1 and Caspase-3, was detected within 72 h of exposure to DHA. Together, these demonstrate that exogenous exposure to DHA has cytotoxic effects in our selected cell model and indicates the need to further investigate the exogenous exposure effects of DHA in other relevant exposure models. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  14. Sporadic naturally occurring melanoma in dogs as a preclinical model for human melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Simpson, R Mark; Bastian, Boris C; Michael, Helen T; Webster, Joshua D; Prasad, Manju L; Conway, Catherine M; Prieto, Victor M; Gary, Joy M; Goldschmidt, Michael H; Esplin, D Glen; Smedley, Rebecca C; Piris, Adriano; Meuten, Donald J; Kiupel, Matti; Lee, Chyi-Chia R; Ward, Jerrold M; Dwyer, Jennifer E; Davis, Barbara J; Anver, Miriam R; Molinolo, Alfredo A; Hoover, Shelley B; Rodriguez-Canales, Jaime; Hewitt, Stephen M

    2014-01-01

    Melanoma represents a significant malignancy in humans and dogs. Different from genetically engineered models, sporadic canine melanocytic neoplasms share several characteristics with human disease that could make dogs a more relevant preclinical model. Canine melanomas rarely arise in sun-exposed sites. Most occur in the oral cavity, with a subset having intra-epithelial malignant melanocytes mimicking the in situ component of human mucosal melanoma. The spectrum of canine melanocytic neoplasia includes benign lesions with some analogy to nevi, as well as invasive primary melanoma, and widespread metastasis. Growing evidence of distinct subtypes in humans, differing in somatic and predisposing germ-line genetic alterations, cell of origin, epidemiology, relationship to ultraviolet radiation and progression from benign to malignant tumors, may also exist in dogs. Canine and human mucosal melanomas appear to harbor BRAF, NRAS, and c-kit mutations uncommonly, compared with human cutaneous melanomas, although both species share AKT and MAPK signaling activation. We conclude that there is significant overlap in the clinical and histopathological features of canine and human mucosal melanomas. This represents opportunity to explore canine oral cavity melanoma as a preclinical model. PMID:24128326

  15. Regulation of miR-21 expression in human melanoma via UV-ray-induced melanin pigmentation.

    PubMed

    Lin, Kuan-Yu; Chen, Chien-Min; Lu, Cheng-You; Cheng, Chun-Yuan; Wu, Yu-Hsin

    2017-08-01

    Excessive environmental ultraviolet (UV) radiation produces genetic mutations that can lead to skin cancer. This study was designed to assess the potential inhibitory activity of microRNA-21 (miR-21) on the UV irradiation-stimulated melanogenesis signal pathway in melanoma cells. The molecular mechanism of miR-21-induced inhibitory activity on UV-ray-stimulated melanogenesis-regulating proteins was examined in A375.S2 human melanoma and B16F10 mouse melanoma cells. UV irradiation for 30 min induced melanogenesis signal pathway by increasing melanin production and the number of A375.S2 cells. Similarly, UV radiation increased the expression of α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) protein and decreased the melanogenesis-regulating signal, such as EGFR and Akt phosphorylation. Notably, miR-21 overexpression in UV-ray-stimulated A375.S2 cells decreased α-MSH expression and increased EGFR and Akt phosphorylation levels. Furthermore, miR-21 on UV-ray- induced melanogenesis was down-regulated by the Akt inhibitor and the EGFR inhibitor (Gefitinib). Results suggest that the suppressive activity of miR-21 on UV-ray-stimulated melanogenesis may involve the down-regulation of α-MSH and the activation in both of EGFR and Akt. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  16. A novel interaction between calcium-modulating cyclophilin ligand and Basigin regulates calcium signaling and matrix metalloproteinase activities in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Long, Tingting; Su, Juan; Tang, Wen; Luo, Zhongling; Liu, Shuang; Liu, Zhaoqian; Zhou, Honghao; Qi, Min; Zeng, Weiqi; Zhang, Jianglin; Chen, Xiang

    2013-10-01

    Intracellular free calcium is a ubiquitous second messenger regulating a multitude of normal and pathogenic cellular responses, including the development of melanoma. Upstream signaling pathways regulating the intracellular free calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) may therefore have a significant impact on melanoma growth and metastasis. In this study, we demonstrate that the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated protein calcium-modulating cyclophilin ligand (CAML) is bound to Basigin, a widely expressed integral plasma membrane glycoprotein and extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN, or CD147) implicated in melanoma proliferation, invasiveness, and metastasis. This interaction between CAML and Basigin was first identified using yeast two-hybrid screening and further confirmed by co-immunoprecipitation. In human A375 melanoma cells, CAML and Basigin were co-localized to the ER. Knockdown of Basigin in melanoma cells by siRNA significantly decreased resting [Ca2+]i and the [Ca2+]i increase induced by the sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase (SERCA) inhibitor thapsigargin (TG), indicating that the interaction between CAML and Basigin regulates ER-dependent [Ca2+]i signaling. Meanwhile upregulating the [Ca2+]i either by TG or phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) could stimulate the production of MMP-9 in A375 cells with the expression of Basigin. Our study has revealed a previously uncharacterized [Ca2+]i signaling pathway that may control melanoma invasion, and metastasis. Disruption of this pathway may be a novel therapeutic strategy for melanoma treatment. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. FOXP3 expression is modulated by TGF-β1/NOTCH1 pathway in human melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Skarmoutsou, Eva; Bevelacqua, Valentina; D'Amico, Fabio; Russo, Angela; Spandidos, Demetrios A.; Scalisi, Aurora

    2018-01-01

    Forkhead box protein 3 (FOXP3) transcription factor is expressed by immune cells and several human cancers and is associated with tumor aggressiveness and unfavorable clinical outcomes. NOTCH and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) protumorigenic effects are mediated by FOXP3 expression in several cancer models; however, their interaction and role in melanoma is unknown. We investigated TGF-β-induced FOXP3 gene expression during NOTCH1 signaling inactivation. Primary (WM35) and metastatic melanoma (A375 and A2058) cell lines and normal melanocytes (NHEM) were used. FOXP3 subcellular distribution was evaluated by immuno cytochemical analysis. Gene expression levels were assessed by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Protein levels were assessed by western blot analysis. The γ-secretase inhibitor (GSI) was used for NOTCH1 inhibition and recombinant human (rh)TGF-β was used for melanoma cell stimulation. Cell proliferation and viability were respectively assessed by MTT and Trypan blue dye assays. FOXP3 mRNA and protein levels were progressively higher in WM35, A375 and A2058 cell lines compared to NHEM and their levels were further increased after stimulation with rh-TGF-β. TGF-β-mediated FOXP3 expression was mediated by NOTCH1 signaling. Inhibition of NOTCH1 with concomitant rh-TGF-β stimulation determined the reduction in gene expression and protein level of FOXP3. Finally, melanoma cell line proliferation and viability were reduced by NOTCH1 inhibition. The results show that nn increase in FOXP3 expression in metastatic melanoma cell lines is a potential marker of tumor aggressiveness and metastasis. NOTCH1 is a central mediator of TGF-β-mediated FOXP3 expression and NOTCH1 inhibition produces a significant reduction of melanoma cell proliferation and viability. PMID:29620159

  18. SIRT1 deacetylase is overexpressed in human melanoma and its small molecule inhibition imparts anti-proliferative response via p53 activation.

    PubMed

    Wilking, Melissa J; Singh, Chandra; Nihal, Minakshi; Zhong, Weixiong; Ahmad, Nihal

    2014-12-01

    Melanoma causes more deaths than any other skin cancer, and its incidence in the US continues to rise. Current medical therapies are insufficient to control this deadly neoplasm, necessitating the development of new target-based approaches. The objective of this study was to determine the role and functional significance of the class III histone deacetylase SIRT1 in melanoma. We have found that SIRT1 is overexpressed in clinical human melanoma tissues and human melanoma cell lines (Sk-Mel-2, WM35, G361, A375, and Hs294T) compared to normal skin and normal melanocytes, respectively. In addition, treatment of melanoma cell lines A375, Hs294T, and G361 with Tenovin-1, a small molecule SIRT1 inhibitor, resulted in a significant decrease in cell growth and cell viability. Further, Tenovin-1 treatment also resulted in a marked decrease in the clonogenic survival of melanoma cells. Further experiments showed that the anti-proliferative response of Tenovin-1 was accompanied by an increase in the protein as well as activity of the tumor suppressor p53. This increase in p53 activity was substantiated by an increase in the protein level of its downstream target p21. Overall, these data suggest that small molecule inhibition of SIRT1 causes anti-proliferative effects in melanoma cells. SIRT1 appears to be acting through the activity of the tumor suppressor p53, which is not mutated in the majority of melanomas. However, future detailed studies are needed to further explore the role and mechanism of SIRT1 in melanoma development and progression and its usefulness in melanoma treatment.

  19. Long-term efficiency of mesenchymal stromal cell-mediated CD-MSC/5FC therapy in human melanoma xenograft model.

    PubMed

    Kucerova, L; Skolekova, S; Demkova, L; Bohovic, R; Matuskova, M

    2014-10-01

    Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) can be exploited as cellular delivery vehicles for the enzymes converting non-toxic prodrugs to toxic substances. Because of their inherent chemoresistance, they exert potent bystander and antitumor effect. Here we show that the human adipose tissue-derived MSC expressing fusion yeast cytosine deaminase::uracil phosphoribosyltransferase (CD-MSC) in combination with 5-fluorocytosine (5FC) mediated a long-term tumor-free survival in the 83.3% of tumor-bearing animals. CD-MSC/5FC treatment induced cytotoxicity against model human melanoma cells EGFP-A375. Only 4% of the therapeutic CD-MSC cells eliminated >98.5% of the tumor cells in vitro. Long-term tumor-free survival was confirmed in 15 out of the 18 animals. However, repeatedly used CD-MSC/5FC therapeutic regimen generated more aggressive and metastatic variant of the melanoma cells EGFP-A375/Rel3. These cells derived from the refractory xenotransplants exhibited increased resistance to the CD-MSC/5FC treatment, altered cell adhesion, migration, tumorigenic and metastatic properties. However, long-term curative effect was achieved by the augmentation of the CD-MSC/5FC regimen along with the inhibition of c-Met/hepatocyte growth factor signaling axis in this aggressive melanoma derivative. In summary, the CD-MSC/5FC regimen can be regarded as a very effective antitumor approach to achieve long-term tumor-free survival as demonstrated on a mouse model of aggressive human melanoma xenografts.

  20. Evaluation of Melanogenesis in A-375 Cells in the Presence of DMSO and Analysis of Pyrolytic Profile of Isolated Melanin

    PubMed Central

    Chodurek, Ewa; Orchel, Arkadiusz; Orchel, Joanna; Kurkiewicz, Sławomir; Gawlik, Natalia; Dzierżewicz, Zofia; Stępień, Krystyna

    2012-01-01

    The increase of a skin malignant melanoma (melanoma malignum) incidence in the world has been observed in recent years. The tumour, especially in advanced stadium with metastases, is highly resistant to conventional treatment. One of the strategies is to modulate melanogenesis using chemical compounds. In this study, the processes of differentiation and melanogenesis induced by dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) in human melanoma cells (A-375) were investigated. Natural melanin isolated from A-375 melanoma cell line treated with 0.3% DMSO was analyzed by pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) method. The products derived from pheomelanin have not been stated in the pyrolytic profile of analyzed melanin. Within all products derived from eumelanins, 1,2-benzenediol has been predominated. It has been shown that in the melanoma cells stimulated with 0.3% and 1% DMSO, the increase of transcriptional activity of the tyrosinase gene took place. It was accompanied by the rise of tyrosinase activity and an accumulation of melanin in the cells. The better knowledge about the structure of melanins can contribute to establish the uniform criteria of malignant melanoma morbidity risk. PMID:22654640

  1. Hypericum perforatum L. subsp. perforatum induces inhibition of free radicals and enhanced phototoxicity in human melanoma cells under ultraviolet light.

    PubMed

    Menichini, G; Alfano, C; Marrelli, M; Toniolo, C; Provenzano, E; Statti, G A; Nicoletti, M; Menichini, F; Conforti, F

    2013-04-01

    Our interest continues in discovering phytocomplexes from medicinal plants with phototoxic activity against human melanoma cells; thus the aim of the present study was to assess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and phototoxic activity of Hypericum perforatum L. subsp. perforatum, and relate these properties to the plant's chemical composition. Components of H. perforatum subsp. perforatum were extracted by hydroalcoholic solution and chemical profiles of preparations (HyTE-3) performed by HPTLC. Linoleic acid peroxidation and DPPH tests were used to assess antioxidant activity, while MTT assay allowed evaluation of anti-proliferative activity with respect to A375 human melanoma cells after irradiation with UVA dose, 1.8 J/cm(2) . Inhibition of nitric oxide production of macrophages was also investigated. HyTE-3 indicated better antioxidant activity with β-carotene bleaching test in comparison to DPPH assay (IC50 = 0.89 μg/ml); significant phototoxicity in A375 cells at 78 μg/ml concentration resulted in cell destruction of 50%. HyTE-3 caused significant dose-related inhibition of nitric oxide production in murine monocytic macrophage cell line RAW 264.7 with IC50 value of 342 μg/ml. The H. perforatum subsp. perforatum-derived product was able to suppress proliferation of human malignant melanoma A375 cells; extract together with UVA irradiation enhanced phototoxicity. This biological activity of antioxidant effects was combined with inhibition of nitric oxide production. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  2. CD147 silencing inhibits tumor growth by suppressing glucose transport in melanoma.

    PubMed

    Su, Juan; Gao, Tianyuan; Jiang, Minghao; Wu, Lisha; Zeng, Weiqi; Zhao, Shuang; Peng, Cong; Chen, Xiang

    2016-10-04

    Melanoma is a very malignant disease and there are still no effective treatments. CD147 participates in the carcinogenesis of multiple human cancers and GLUT-1, as a glucose transporter, is associated with tumor growth. However, the function of CD147 and GLUT-1 in melanoma have not been completely understood. Thus, in this study we investigated the expression of CD147 and GLUT-1 in melanoma tissue, which were overexpressed compared with that in nevus tissue. In addition, CD147 and GLUT-1 were co-localized in the cytoplasm of human melanoma A375 cells. Immunoprecipitation proved that CD147 interacted with GLUT-1 at D105-199. Silencing CD147 by specific siRNA could downregulate GLUT-1 level via inhibiting PI3K/Akt signaling and decrease glucose uptake in A375 cells. In vivo experiments also supported that CD147 knockdown suppressed the tumor growth in melanoma subcutaneous mice model, observed by micro PET/CT. Our results could help validate CD147 as a new therapeutic target for treating melanoma.

  3. CD147 silencing inhibits tumor growth by suppressing glucose transport in melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Su, Juan; Gao, Tianyuan; Jiang, Minghao; Wu, Lisha; Zeng, Weiqi; Zhao, Shuang; Peng, Cong; Chen, Xiang

    2016-01-01

    Melanoma is a very malignant disease and there are still no effective treatments. CD147 participates in the carcinogenesis of multiple human cancers and GLUT-1, as a glucose transporter, is associated with tumor growth. However, the function of CD147 and GLUT-1 in melanoma have not been completely understood. Thus, in this study we investigated the expression of CD147 and GLUT-1 in melanoma tissue, which were overexpressed compared with that in nevus tissue. In addition, CD147 and GLUT-1 were co-localized in the cytoplasm of human melanoma A375 cells. Immunoprecipitation proved that CD147 interacted with GLUT-1 at D105-199. Silencing CD147 by specific siRNA could downregulate GLUT-1 level via inhibiting PI3K/Akt signaling and decrease glucose uptake in A375 cells. In vivo experiments also supported that CD147 knockdown suppressed the tumor growth in melanoma subcutaneous mice model, observed by micro PET/CT. Our results could help validate CD147 as a new therapeutic target for treating melanoma. PMID:27556188

  4. Neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell-derived exosomes stimulate dendrite-like outgrowths and modify the differentiation of A375 melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Park, Seyeon; Ahn, Eun Sook; Kim, Yunjoo

    2015-04-01

    The identification of small vesicles released by many cell types as tools of intercellular communication is proposed. Here, we identify SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma-derived exosomes comprised of major histocompatibility complex II (MHC II), Hsp90 and flotillin-1. Our data also suggest that, when applied extracellularly, exosomes released from neuronal cells stimulate dendrite-like outgrowth and melanogenesis of A375 melanoma cells through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAP kinase), extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 (ERK1) activation. These results suggest a modification of differentiation of melanocyte by the treatment of neuronal cell exosomes. Since exosomes from neuronal cells have the capacity to affect melanoma cells, they could be generally implicated in intercellular communication between different types of cells. © 2014 International Federation for Cell Biology.

  5. Synthesis and preclinical characterization of [18F]FPBZA: a novel PET probe for melanoma.

    PubMed

    Wu, Shih-Yen; Huang, Shih-Pin; Lo, Yen-Chen; Liu, Ren-Shyan; Wang, Shyh-Jen; Lin, Wuu-Jyh; Shen, Chih-Chieh; Wang, Hsin-Ell

    2014-01-01

    Benzamide can specifically bind to melanoma cells. A 18F-labeled benzamide derivative, [18F]N-(2-diethylaminoethyl)-4-[2-(2-(2-fluoroethoxy) ethoxy)ethoxy]benzamide ([18F]FPBZA), was developed as a promising PET probe for primary and metastatic melanoma. [18F]FPBZA was synthesized via a one-step radiofluorination in this study. The specific uptake of [18F]FPBZA was studied in B16F0 melanoma cells, A375 amelanotic melanoma cells, and NB-DNJ-pretreated B16F0 melanoma cells. The biological characterization of [18F]FPBZA was performed on mice bearing B16F0 melanoma, A375 amelanotic melanoma, or inflammation lesion. [18F]FPBZA can be prepared efficiently with a yield of 40-50%. The uptake of [18F]FPBZA by B16F0 melanoma cells was significantly higher than those by A375 tumor cells and NB-DNJ-pretreated B16F0 melanoma cells. B16F0 melanoma displayed prominent uptake of [18F]FPBZA at 2 h (7.81±0.82%ID/g), compared with A375 tumor and inflammation lesion (3.00±0.71 and 1.67±0.56%ID/g, resp.). [18F]FPBZA microPET scan clearly delineated B16F0 melanoma but not A375 tumor and inflammation lesion. In mice bearing pulmonary metastases, the lung radioactivity reached 4.77±0.36%ID/g at 2 h (versus 1.16±0.23%ID/g in normal mice). Our results suggested that [18F]FPBZA PET would provide a promising and specific approach for the detection of primary and metastatic melanoma lesions.

  6. Amino Acid Signature in Human Melanoma Cell Lines from Different Disease Stages.

    PubMed

    Wasinger, Christine; Hofer, Alexandra; Spadiut, Oliver; Hohenegger, Martin

    2018-04-19

    Cancer cells rewire metabolism to sustain high proliferation rates. Beside glycolysis and glutaminolysis, amino acids substitute as energy source, feed fatty acid biosynthesis and represent part of the secretome of transformed cells, including melanoma. We have therefore investigated acetate, pyruvate and the amino acid composition of the secretome of human melanoma cells representing the early slow (WM35, WM278, WM793b and VM21) and metastatic fast (A375, 518a2, 6F and WM8) growth phase in order to identify possible signalling components within these profiles. Proliferation assays and a principle component analysis revealed a stringent difference between the fast and slow growing melanoma cells. Moreover, upon inhibition of the mevalonate pathway, glutamic acid and alanine were identified as the central difference in the conditional media. A supplementation of the media with glutamic acid and the combination with alanine significantly accelerated the proliferation, migration and invasion of early stage melanoma cells, but not metastatic cells. Finally, the inhibition of the mevalonate pathway abolished the growth advantage of the melanoma cells in a time dependent manner. Taken together, these data corroborate a stage specific response in growth and aggressiveness to extracellular glutamic acid and alanine, indicative for microenvironmental signalling of individual amino acids.

  7. Synthesis and Preclinical Characterization of [18F]FPBZA: A Novel PET Probe for Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Shih-Pin; Lo, Yen-Chen; Liu, Ren-Shyan; Shen, Chih-Chieh

    2014-01-01

    Introduction. Benzamide can specifically bind to melanoma cells. A 18F-labeled benzamide derivative, [18F]N-(2-diethylaminoethyl)-4-[2-(2-(2-fluoroethoxy) ethoxy)ethoxy]benzamide ([18F]FPBZA), was developed as a promising PET probe for primary and metastatic melanoma. Methods. [18F]FPBZA was synthesized via a one-step radiofluorination in this study. The specific uptake of [18F]FPBZA was studied in B16F0 melanoma cells, A375 amelanotic melanoma cells, and NB-DNJ-pretreated B16F0 melanoma cells. The biological characterization of [18F]FPBZA was performed on mice bearing B16F0 melanoma, A375 amelanotic melanoma, or inflammation lesion. Results. [18F]FPBZA can be prepared efficiently with a yield of 40–50%. The uptake of [18F]FPBZA by B16F0 melanoma cells was significantly higher than those by A375 tumor cells and NB-DNJ-pretreated B16F0 melanoma cells. B16F0 melanoma displayed prominent uptake of [18F]FPBZA at 2 h (7.81 ± 0.82 %ID/g), compared with A375 tumor and inflammation lesion (3.00 ± 0.71 and 1.67 ± 0.56 %ID/g, resp.). [18F]FPBZA microPET scan clearly delineated B16F0 melanoma but not A375 tumor and inflammation lesion. In mice bearing pulmonary metastases, the lung radioactivity reached 4.77 ± 0.36 %ID/g at 2 h (versus 1.16 ± 0.23 %ID/g in normal mice). Conclusions. Our results suggested that [18F]FPBZA PET would provide a promising and specific approach for the detection of primary and metastatic melanoma lesions. PMID:25254219

  8. Keratinocytes negatively regulate the N-cadherin levels of melanoma cells via contact-mediated calcium regulation.

    PubMed

    Chung, Heesung; Jung, Hyejung; Jho, Eek-Hoon; Multhaupt, Hinke A B; Couchman, John R; Oh, Eok-Soo

    2018-06-14

    In human skin, melanocytes and their neighboring keratinocytes have a close functional interrelationship. Keratinocytes, which represent the prevalent cell type of human skin, regulate melanocytes through various mechanisms. Here, we use a keratinocyte and melanoma co-culture system to show for the first time that keratinocytes regulate the cell surface expression of N-cadherin through cell-cell contact. Compared to mono-cultured human melanoma A375 cells, which expressed high levels of N-cadherin, those co-cultured with the HaCaT human keratinocyte cell line showed reduced levels of N-cadherin. This reduction was most evident in areas of A375 cells that underwent cell-cell contact with the HaCaT cells, whereas HaCaT cell-derived extracellular matrix and conditioned medium both failed to reduce N-cadherin levels. The intracellular level of calcium in co-cultured A375 cells was lower than that in mono-cultured A375 cells, and treatment with a cell-permeant calcium chelator (BAPTA) reduced the N-cadherin level of mono-cultured A375 cells. Furthermore, co-culture with HaCaT cells reduced the expression levels of transient receptor potential cation channel (TRPC) 1, -3 and -6 in A375 cells, and siRNA-mediated multi-depletion of TRPC1, -3 and -6 reduced the N-cadherin level in these cells. Taken together, these data suggest that keratinocytes negatively regulate the N-cadherin levels of melanoma cells via cell-to-cell contact-mediated calcium regulation. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  9. Metallic copper nanoparticles induce apoptosis in a human skin melanoma A-375 cell line

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chakraborty, Ruchira; Basu, Tarakdas

    2017-03-01

    In two earlier communications (Chatterjee et al 2012 Nanotechnology 23 085103, Chatterjee et al 2014 Nanotechnology 25 135101), we reported the development of a simple and unique method of synthesizing highly stable metallic copper nanoparticles (Cu NPs) with high antibacterial activity. Here we report on the cytotoxic potency of the NPs against cancer cells. The value of the IC50 dose of the Cu NPs against human skin cancer cell A-375 was found to be 1.71 μg ml-1 only, which was much less than values reported so far, and this concentration had no cytotoxic effect on normal white blood cells. The NPs caused (i) lowering of cell membrane rigidity, (ii) DNA degradation, (iii) chromosomal condensation, (iv) cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase, (v) depolarization of the mitochondrial membrane and (vi) apoptosis of cells. Cellular apoptosis occurred in the caspase-9-mediated intrinsic pathway. This study revealed that our Cu NPs had high anticancer properties by killing tumor cells through the apoptotic pathway. Since this particle has high antibacterial activity, our Cu NPs might be developed in future as a dual action drug—anticancer as well as antibacterial.

  10. Apigenin inhibits proliferation and invasion, and induces apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Guangming; Han, Xiaodong; Cheng, Wei; Ni, Jing; Zhang, Yunfei; Lin, Jingrong; Song, Zhiqi

    2017-04-01

    Malignant melanoma is the most invasive and fatal form of cutaneous cancer. Moreover it is extremely resistant to conventional chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Apigenin, a non-mutagenic flavonoid, has been found to exhibit chemopreventive and/or anticancerogenic properties in many different types of human cancer cells. Therefore, apigenin may have particular relevance for development as a chemotherapeutic agent for cancer treatment. In the present study, we investigated the effects of apigenin on the viability, migration and invasion potential, dendrite morphology, cell cycle distribution, apoptosis, phosphorylation of the extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK) and the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway in human melanoma A375 and C8161 cell lines in vitro. Apigenin effectively suppressed the proliferation of melanoma cells in vitro. Moreover, it inhibited cell migration and invasion, lengthened the dendrites, and induced G2/M phase arrest and apoptosis. Furthermore, apigenin promoted the activation of cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved PARP proteins and decreased the expression of phosphorylated (p)‑ERK1/2 proteins, p-AKT and p-mTOR. Consequently, apigenin is a novel therapeutic candidate for melanoma.

  11. Bromelain inhibits nuclear factor kappa-B translocation, driving human epidermoid carcinoma A431 and melanoma A375 cells through G(2)/M arrest to apoptosis.

    PubMed

    Bhui, Kulpreet; Tyagi, Shilpa; Srivastava, Amit Kumar; Singh, Madhulika; Roy, Preeti; Singh, Richa; Shukla, Yogeshwer

    2012-03-01

    Bromelain, obtained from pineapple, is already in use clinically as adjunct in chemotherapy. Our objective was to test its ability to act as a sole anti-cancer agent. Therefore, we describe its anti-proliferative, anti-inflammatory and subsequent anti-cancer effects in vitro, against human epidermoid carcinoma-A431 and melanoma-A375 cells. Bromelain exhibited reduction in proliferation of both these cell-lines and suppressed their potential for anchorage-independent growth. Further, suppression of inflammatory signaling by bromelain was evident by inhibition of Akt regulated-nuclear factor-kappaB activation via suppression of inhibitory-kappaBα phosphorylation and concomitant reduction in cyclooxygenase-2. Since, the inflammatory cascade is well-known to be closely allied to cancer; we studied the effect of bromelain on events/molecules central to it. Bromelain caused depletion of intracellular glutathione and generation of reactive oxygen-species followed by mitochondrial membrane depolarization. This led to bromelain-induced cell-cycle arrest at G(2)/M phase which was mediated by modulation of cyclin B1, phospho-cdc25C, Plk1, phospho-cdc2, and myt1. This was subsequently followed by induction of apoptosis, indicated by membrane-blebbing, modulation of Bax-Bcl-2 ratio, Apaf-1, caspase-9, and caspase-3; chromatin-condensation, increase in caspase-activity and DNA-fragmentation. Bromelain afforded substantial anti-cancer potential in these settings; hence we suggest it as a potential prospect for anti-cancer agent besides only an additive in chemotherapy. Copyright ©2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  12. Involvement of ER stress and activation of apoptotic pathways in fisetin induced cytotoxicity in human melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Chamcheu, Jean Christopher; Haidar, Omar; Mukhtar, Hasan

    2014-01-01

    The prognosis of malignant melanoma remains poor in spite of recent advances in therapeutic strategies for the deadly disease. Fisetin, a dietary flavonoid is currently being investigated for its growth inhibitory properties in various cancer models. We previously showed that fisetin inhibited melanoma growth in vitro and in vivo. Here, we evaluated the molecular basis of fisetin induced cytoxicity in metastatic human melanoma cells. Fisetin treatment induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in highly aggressive A375 and 451Lu human melanoma cells, as revealed by up- regulation of ER stress markers including IRE1α, XBP1s, ATF4 and GRP78. Time course analysis indicated that the ER stress was associated with activation of the extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways. Fisetin treated 2-D melanoma cultures displayed autophagic response concomitant with induction of apoptosis. Prolonged treatment (16 days) with fisetin in a 3-D reconstituted melanoma model resulted in inhibition of melanoma progression with significant apoptosis, as evidenced by increased staining of cleaved Caspase-3 in the treated constructs. However, no difference in the expression of autophagic marker LC-3 was noted between treated and control groups. Fisetin treatment to 2-D melanoma cultures resulted in phosphorylation and activation of the multifunctional AMPK-activated protein kinase (AMPK) involved in the regulation of diverse cellular processes, including autophagy and apoptosis. Silencing of AMPK failed to prevent cell death indicating that fisetin induced cytotoxicity is mediated through both AMPK-dependent and -independent mechanisms. Taken together, our studies confirm apoptosis as the primary mechanism through which fisetin inhibits melanoma cell growth and that activation of both extrinsic and intrinsic pathways contributes to fisetin induced cytotoxicity. PMID:25016296

  13. Involvement of ER stress and activation of apoptotic pathways in fisetin induced cytotoxicity in human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Syed, Deeba N; Lall, Rahul K; Chamcheu, Jean Christopher; Haidar, Omar; Mukhtar, Hasan

    2014-12-01

    The prognosis of malignant melanoma remains poor in spite of recent advances in therapeutic strategies for the deadly disease. Fisetin, a dietary flavonoid is currently being investigated for its growth inhibitory properties in various cancer models. We previously showed that fisetin inhibited melanoma growth in vitro and in vivo. Here, we evaluated the molecular basis of fisetin induced cytotoxicity in metastatic human melanoma cells. Fisetin treatment induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in highly aggressive A375 and 451Lu human melanoma cells, as revealed by up-regulation of ER stress markers including IRE1α, XBP1s, ATF4 and GRP78. Time course analysis indicated that the ER stress was associated with activation of the extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways. Fisetin treated 2-D melanoma cultures displayed autophagic response concomitant with induction of apoptosis. Prolonged treatment (16days) with fisetin in a 3-D reconstituted melanoma model resulted in inhibition of melanoma progression with significant apoptosis, as evidenced by increased staining of cleaved Caspase-3 in the treated constructs. However, no difference in the expression of autophagic marker LC-3 was noted between treated and control groups. Fisetin treatment to 2-D melanoma cultures resulted in phosphorylation and activation of the multifunctional AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) involved in the regulation of diverse cellular processes, including autophagy and apoptosis. Silencing of AMPK failed to prevent cell death indicating that fisetin induced cytotoxicity is mediated through both AMPK-dependent and -independent mechanisms. Taken together, our studies confirm apoptosis as the primary mechanism through which fisetin inhibits melanoma cell growth and that activation of both extrinsic and intrinsic pathways contributes to fisetin induced cytotoxicity.

  14. A natural product-like JAK2/STAT3 inhibitor induces apoptosis of malignant melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Zhong, Hai-Jing; Dong, Zhen-Zhen; Vellaisamy, Kasipandi; Lu, Jin-Jian; Chen, Xiu-Ping; Chiu, Pauline; Kwong, Daniel W. J.; Han, Quan-Bin; Ma, Dik-Lung

    2017-01-01

    The JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway plays a critical role in tumorigenesis, and has been suggested as a potential molecular target for anti-melanoma therapeutics. However, few JAK2 inhibitors were being tested for melanoma therapy. In this study, eight amentoflavone analogues were evaluated for their activity against human malignant melanoma cells. The most potent analogue, compound 1, inhibited the phosphorylation of JAK2 and STAT3 in human melanoma cells, but had no discernible effect on total JAK2 and STAT3 levels. A cellular thermal shift assay was performed to identify that JAK2 is engaged by 1 in cell lysates. Moreover, compound 1 showed higher antiproliferative activity against human melanoma A375 cells compared to a panel of cancer and normal cell lines. Compound 1 also activated caspase-3 and cleaved PARP, which are markers of apoptosis, and suppressed the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 level. Finally, compound 1 induced apoptosis in 80% of treated melanoma cells. To our knowledge, compound 1 is the first amentoflavone-based JAK2 inhibitor to be investigated for use as an anti-melanoma agent. PMID:28570563

  15. Lipid raft regulates the initial spreading of melanoma A375 cells by modulating β1 integrin clustering.

    PubMed

    Wang, Ruifei; Bi, Jiajia; Ampah, Khamal Kwesi; Zhang, Chunmei; Li, Ziyi; Jiao, Yang; Wang, Xiaoru; Ba, Xueqing; Zeng, Xianlu

    2013-08-01

    Cell adhesion and spreading require integrins-mediated cell-extracellular matrix interaction. Integrins function through binding to extracellular matrix and subsequent clustering to initiate focal adhesion formation and actin cytoskeleton rearrangement. Lipid raft, a liquid ordered plasma membrane microdomain, has been reported to play major roles in membrane motility by regulating cell surface receptor function. Here, we identified that lipid raft integrity was required for β1 integrin-mediated initial spreading of melanoma A375 cells on fibronectin. We found that lipid raft disruption with methyl-β-cyclodextrin led to the inability of focal adhesion formation and actin cytoskeleton rearrangement by preventing β1 integrin clustering. Furthermore, we explored the possible mechanism by which lipid raft regulates β1 integrin clustering and demonstrated that intact lipid raft could recruit and modify some adaptor proteins, such as talin, α-actinin, vinculin, paxillin and FAK. Lipid raft could regulate the location of these proteins in lipid raft fractions and facilitate their binding to β1 integrin, which may be crucial for β1 integrin clustering. We also showed that lipid raft disruption impaired A375 cell migration in both transwell and wound healing models. Together, these findings provide a new insight for the relationship between lipid raft and the regulation of integrins. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Naturally occurring melanomas in dogs as models for non-UV pathways of human melanomas.

    PubMed

    Gillard, Marc; Cadieu, Edouard; De Brito, Clotilde; Abadie, Jérôme; Vergier, Béatrice; Devauchelle, Patrick; Degorce, Frédérique; Dréano, Stephane; Primot, Aline; Dorso, Laetitia; Lagadic, Marie; Galibert, Francis; Hédan, Benoit; Galibert, Marie-Dominique; André, Catherine

    2014-01-01

    Spontaneously occurring melanomas are frequent in dogs. They appear at the same localizations as in humans, i.e. skin, mucosal sites, nail matrix and eyes. They display variable behaviors: tumors at oral localizations are more frequent and aggressive than at other anatomical sites. Interestingly, dog melanomas are associated with strong breed predispositions and overrepresentation of black-coated dogs. Epidemiological analysis of 2350 affected dogs showed that poodles are at high risk of developing oral melanoma, while schnauzers or Beauce shepherds mostly developped cutaneous melanoma. Clinical and histopathological analyses were performed on a cohort of 153 cases with a 4-yr follow-up. Histopathological characterization showed that most canine tumors are intradermal and homologous to human rare morphological melanomas types - 'nevocytoid type' and 'animal type'-. Tumor cDNA sequencing data, obtained from 95 dogs for six genes, relevant to human melanoma classification, detected somatic mutations in oral melanoma, in NRAS and PTEN genes, at human hotspot sites, but not in BRAF. Altogether, these findings support the relevance of the dog model for comparative oncology of melanomas, especially for the elucidation of non-UV induced pathways. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  17. Silymarin Targets β-Catenin Signaling in Blocking Migration/Invasion of Human Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Vaid, Mudit; Prasad, Ram; Sun, Qian; Katiyar, Santosh K.

    2011-01-01

    Metastatic melanoma is a leading cause of death from skin diseases, and is often associated with activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. We have examined the inhibitory effect of silymarin, a plant flavanoid from Silybum marianum, on cell migration of metastasis-specific human melanoma cell lines (A375 and Hs294t) and assessed whether Wnt/β-catenin signaling is the target of silymarin. Using an in vitro invasion assay, we found that treatment of human melanoma cell lines with silymarin resulted in concentration-dependent inhibition of cell migration, which was associated with accumulation of cytosolic β-catenin, while reducing the nuclear accumulation of β-catenin (i.e., β-catenin inactivation) and reducing the levels of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) -2 and MMP-9 which are the down-stream targets of β-catenin. Silymarin enhanced: (i) the levels of casein kinase 1α, glycogen synthase kinase-3β and phosphorylated-β-catenin on critical residues Ser45, Ser33/37 and Thr41, and (ii) the binding of β-transducin repeat-containing proteins (β-TrCP) with phospho forms of β-catenin in melanoma cells. These events play important roles in degradation or inactivation of β-catenin. To verify whether β-catenin is a potent molecular target of silymarin, the effect of silymarin was determined on β-catenin-activated (Mel 1241) and β-catenin-inactivated (Mel 1011) melanoma cells. Treatment of Mel 1241 cells with silymarin or FH535, an inhibitor of Wnt/β-catenin pathway, significantly inhibited cell migration of Mel 1241 cells, which was associated with the elevated levels of casein kinase 1α and glycogen synthase kinase-3β, and decreased accumulation of nuclear β-catenin and inhibition of MMP-2 and MMP-9 levels. However, this effect of silymarin and FH535 was not found in Mel 1011 melanoma cells. These results indicate for the first time that silymarin inhibits melanoma cell migration by targeting β-catenin signaling pathway. PMID:21829575

  18. Silymarin inhibits melanoma cell growth both in vitro and in vivo by targeting cell cycle regulators, angiogenic biomarkers and induction of apoptosis.

    PubMed

    Vaid, Mudit; Singh, Tripti; Prasad, Ram; Katiyar, Santosh K

    2015-11-01

    Cutaneous malignant melanoma is the leading cause of death from skin diseases and is often associated with activating mutations of the proto-oncogene BRAF. To develop more effective strategies for the prevention or treatment of melanoma, we have examined the inhibitory effects of silymarin, a flavanoid from Silybum marianum, on melanoma cells. Using A375 (BRAF-mutated) and Hs294t (non BRAF-mutated but highly metastatic) human melanoma cell lines, we found that in vitro treatment with silymarin resulted in a dose-dependent: (i) reduction in cell viability; (ii) enhancement of either Go/G1 (A375) or G2-M (Hs294t) phase cell cycle arrest with corresponding alterations in cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases; and (iii) induction of apoptosis. The silymarin-induced apoptosis of human melanoma cells was associated with a reduction in the levels of anti-apoptotic proteins (Bcl-2 and Bcl-xl), an increase in the levels of pro-apoptotic protein (Bax), and activation of caspases. Further, oral administration of silymarin (500 mg/kg body weight/2× a week) significantly inhibited (60%, P < 0.01) the growth of BRAF-mutated A375 melanoma tumor xenografts, and this was associated with: (i) inhibition of cell proliferation; (ii) induction of apoptosis of tumor cells; (iii) alterations in cell cycle regulatory proteins; and (iv) reduced expression of tumor angiogenic biomarkers in tumor xenograft tissues. These results indicate that silymarin may have a chemotherapeutic effect on human melanoma cell growth and warrant its further evaluation. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Naturally Occurring Canine Melanoma as a Predictive Comparative Oncology Model for Human Mucosal and Other Triple Wild-Type Melanomas

    PubMed Central

    Hernandez, Belen; Wei, Bih-Rong; Michael, Helen T.; Merlino, Glenn; Simpson, R. Mark

    2018-01-01

    Melanoma remains mostly an untreatable fatal disease despite advances in decoding cancer genomics and developing new therapeutic modalities. Progress in patient care would benefit from additional predictive models germane for human disease mechanisms, tumor heterogeneity, and therapeutic responses. Toward this aim, this review documents comparative aspects of human and naturally occurring canine melanomas. Clinical presentation, pathology, therapies, and genetic alterations are highlighted in the context of current basic and translational research in comparative oncology. Somewhat distinct from sun exposure-related human cutaneous melanomas, there is growing evidence that a variety of gene copy number alterations and protein structure/function mutations play roles in canine melanomas, in circumstances more analogous to human mucosal melanomas and to some extent other melanomas with murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B (BRAF), Neuroblastoma RAS Viral (V-Ras) Oncogene Homolog (NRAS), and neurofibromin 1 tumor suppressor NF1 triple wild-type genotype. Gaps in canine genome annotation, as well as an insufficient number and depth of sequences covered, remain considerable barriers to progress and should be collectively addressed. Preclinical approaches can be designed to include canine clinical trials addressing immune modulation as well as combined-targeted inhibition of Rat Sarcoma Superfamily/Mitogen-activated protein kinase (RAS/MAPK) and/or Phosphatidylinositol-3-Kinase/Protein Kinase B/Mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) signal transduction, pathways frequently activated in both human and canine melanomas. Future investment should be aimed towards improving understanding of canine melanoma as a predictive preclinical surrogate for human melanoma and for mutually benefiting these uniquely co-dependent species. PMID:29385676

  20. Synthesis and biological evaluation of Fotemustine analogues on human melanoma cell lines.

    PubMed

    Winum, Jean Yves; Bouissière, Jean Luc; Passagne, Isabelle; Evrard, Alexandre; Montero, Véronique; Cuq, Pierre; Montero, Jean Louis

    2003-03-01

    Two new analogues of Fotemustine have been synthesized and tested on two melanoma cell lines. Compounds 4 and 8 proved to be more potent than the reference compound on A375 cell line which express the MGMT enzyme involved in the chemoresistance of tumoral cells.

  1. UVA Irradiation Enhances Brusatol-Mediated Inhibition of Melanoma Growth by Downregulation of the Nrf2-Mediated Antioxidant Response

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Mei; Shi, Guangwei; Bian, Chunxiang; Nisar, Muhammad Farrukh; Guo, Yingying; Wu, Yan; Li, Wei; Huang, Xiao; Jiang, Xuemei; Bartsch, Jörg W.

    2018-01-01

    Brusatol (BR) is a potent inhibitor of Nrf2, a transcription factor that is highly expressed in cancer tissues and confers chemoresistance. UVA-generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) can damage both normal and cancer cells and may be of potential use in phototherapy. In order to provide an alternative method to treat the aggressive melanoma, we sought to investigate whether low-dose UVA with BR is more effective in eliminating melanoma cells than the respective single treatments. We found that BR combined with UVA led to inhibition of A375 melanoma cell proliferation by cell cycle arrest in the G1 phase and triggers cell apoptosis. Furthermore, inhibition of Nrf2 expression attenuated colony formation and tumor development from A375 cells in heterotopic mouse models. In addition, cotreatment of UVA and BR partially suppressed Nrf2 and its downstream target genes such as HO-1 along with the PI3K/AKT pathway. We propose that cotreatment increased ROS-induced cell cycle arrest and cellular apoptosis and inhibits melanoma growth by regulating the AKT-Nrf2 pathway in A375 cells which offers a possible therapeutic intervention strategy for the treatment of human melanoma. PMID:29670684

  2. Hibiscus sabdariffa leaf polyphenolic extract induces human melanoma cell death, apoptosis, and autophagy.

    PubMed

    Chiu, Chun-Tang; Hsuan, Shu-Wen; Lin, Hui-Hsuan; Hsu, Cheng-Chin; Chou, Fen-Pi; Chen, Jing-Hsien

    2015-03-01

    Melanoma is the least common but most fatal form of skin cancer. Previous studies have indicated that an aqueous extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa leaves possess hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, and antioxidant effects. In this study, we want to investigate the anticancer activity of Hibiscus leaf polyphenolic (HLP) extract in melanoma cells. First, HLP was exhibited to be rich in epicatechin gallate (ECG) and other polyphenols. Apoptotic and autophagic activities of HLP and ECG were further evaluated by DAPI stain, cell-cycle analysis, and acidic vascular organelle (AVO) stain. Our results revealed that both HLP and ECG induced the caspases cleavages, Bcl-2 family proteins regulation, and Fas/FasL activation in A375 cells. In addition, we also revealed that the cells presented AVO-positive after HLP treatments. HLP could increase the expressions of autophagy-related proteins autophagy-related gene 5 (ATG5), Beclin1, and light chain 3-II (LC3-II), and induce autophagic cell death in A375 cells. These data indicated that the anticancer effect of HLP, partly contributed by ECG, in A375 cells. HLP potentially could be developed as an antimelanoma agent. © 2015 Institute of Food Technologists®

  3. Preparation and biologic evaluation of a novel radioiodinated benzylpiperazine, 123I-MEL037, for malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Pham, Tien Q; Berghofer, Paula; Liu, Xiang; Greguric, Ivan; Dikic, Branko; Ballantyne, Patrice; Mattner, Filomena; Nguyen, Vu; Loc'h, Christian; Katsifis, Andrew

    2007-08-01

    Radiopharmaceuticals that can target the random metastatic dissemination of melanoma tumors may present opportunities for imaging and staging the disease as well as potential radiotherapeutic applications. A novel molecule, 2-(2-(4-(4-(123)I-iodobenzyl)piperazin-1-yl)-2-oxoethyl)isoindoline-1,3-dione (MEL037), was synthesized, labeled with 123I, and evaluated for application in melanoma tumor scintigraphy and radiotherapy. The tumor imaging potential of 123I-MEL037 was studied in vivo in C57BL/6J female mice bearing the B16F0 murine melanoma tumor and in BALB/c nude mice bearing the A375 human amelanotic melanoma tumor by biodistribution, competition studies, and SPECT. 123I-MEL037 exhibited high and rapid uptake in the B16F0 melanoma tumor at 1 h (13 %ID/g [percentage injected dose per gram]), increasing with time to reach 25 %ID/g at 6 h. A significant uptake was also observed in the eyes (2 %ID, at 3-6 h after injection) of black mice. No uptake was observed in the tumor or in the eyes of nude mice bearing the A375 tumor. Because of high uptake and long retention in the tumor and rapid body clearance, the mean contrast ratios (MCR) of 123I-MEL037 were 30 and 60, at 24 and 48 h after injection, respectively. At 24 h after injection of mice bearing the B16 melanoma, SPECT indicated that the radioactivity was located predominately in the tumor followed by the eyes, whereas no specific localization of the radioactivity was noted in mice bearing the A375 human amelanotic tumor. In competition experiments, uptake of 123I-MEL037 in brain, lung, heart, and kidney--organs known to contain sigma-receptors--was not significantly different in haloperidol-treated animals compared with control animals. Therefore, reduction of uptake in tumor and eyes of the pigmented mice bearing the B16F0 tumor suggested that the mechanism of tumor uptake was likely due to an interaction with melanin. These findings suggested that 123I-MEL037, which displays a rapid and very high tumor

  4. Targeting melanoma stem cells with the Vitamin E derivative δ-tocotrienol.

    PubMed

    Marzagalli, Monica; Moretti, Roberta Manuela; Messi, Elio; Marelli, Marina Montagnani; Fontana, Fabrizio; Anastasia, Alessia; Bani, Maria Rosa; Beretta, Giangiacomo; Limonta, Patrizia

    2018-01-12

    The prognosis of metastatic melanoma is very poor, due to the development of drug resistance. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) may play a crucial role in this mechanism, contributing to disease relapse. We first characterized CSCs in melanoma cell lines. We observed that A375 (but not BLM) cells are able to form melanospheres and show CSCs traits: expression of the pluripotency markers SOX2 and KLF4, higher invasiveness and tumor formation capability in vivo with respect to parental adherent cells. We also showed that a subpopulation of autofluorescent cells expressing the ABCG2 stem cell marker is present in the A375 spheroid culture. Based on these data, we investigated whether δ-TT might target melanoma CSCs. We demonstrated that melanoma cells escaping the antitumor activity of δ-TT are completely devoid of the ability to form melanospheres. In contrast, cells that escaped vemurafenib treatment show a higher ability to form melanospheres than control cells. δ-TT also induced disaggregation of A375 melanospheres and reduced the spheroidogenic ability of sphere-derived cells, reducing the expression of the ABCG2 marker. These data demonstrate that δ-TT exerts its antitumor activity by targeting the CSC subpopulation of A375 melanoma cells and might represent a novel chemopreventive/therapeutic strategy against melanoma.

  5. Reduced GNG2 expression levels in mouse malignant melanomas and human melanoma cell lines

    PubMed Central

    Yajima, Ichiro; Kumasaka, Mayuko Y; Naito, Yuji; Yoshikawa, Toshikazu; Takahashi, Hiro; Funasaka, Yoko; Suzuki, Tamio; Kato, Masashi

    2012-01-01

    Heterotrimeric G protein is composed of a Gα-subunit and a Gβγ-dimer. Previous studies have revealed that Gβγ-dimers including the Gγ2 subunit (Gng2/GNG2) are associated with cell proliferation, differentiation, invasion and angiogenesis. At present, however, there is no information on the expression level of Gng2/GNG2 alone in any kind of tumor. In this study, we performed DNA microarray analysis in a benign melanocytic tumor and a malignant melanoma from RET-transgenic mice (RET-mice). Gng2 transcript expression levels in a malignant melanoma were less than 1/10 of the level in a benign tumor. The difference in Gng2 transcript expression levels between benign tumors and malignant melanomas was greatest among all of the G protein γ subunits examined in this study. Moreover, protein expression levels of Gng2 were decreased in malignant melanomas compared with those in benign melanocytic tumors in RET-mice. Analysis of human malignant melanomas also showed reduced GNG2 protein expression levels in five human malignant melanoma cell lines compared with the expression levels in normal human epithelial melanocytes (NHEM). Thus, we demonstrated for the first time that Gng2/GNG2 expression levels are reduced in malignant melanoma, suggesting that GNG2 could be a novel biomarker for malignant melanoma. PMID:22679562

  6. Human Single-Chain Fv Immunoconjugates Targeted to a Melanoma-Associated Chondroitin Sulfate Proteoglycan Mediate Specific Lysis of Human Melanoma Cells by Natural Killer Cells and Complement

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Baiyang; Chen, Yi-Bin; Ayalon, Oran; Bender, Jeffrey; Garen, Alan

    1999-02-01

    Two antimelanoma immunoconjugates containing a human single-chain Fv (scFv) targeting domain conjugated to the Fc effector domain of human IgG1 were synthesized as secreted two-chain molecules in Chinese hamster ovary and Drosophila S2 cells, and purified by affinity chromatography on protein A. The scFv targeting domains originally were isolated as melanoma-specific clones from a scFv fusion-phage library, derived from the antibody repertoire of a vaccinated melanoma patient. The purified immunoconjugates showed similar binding specificity as did the fusion-phage clones. Binding occurred to human melanoma cells but not to human melanocytes or to several other types of normal cells and tumor cells. A 250-kDa melanoma protein was immunoprecipitated by the immunoconjugates and analyzed by mass spectrometry, using two independent procedures. A screen of protein sequence databases showed an exact match of several peptide masses between the immunoprecipitated protein and the core protein of a chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan, which is expressed on the surface of most human melanoma cells. The Fc effector domain of the immunoconjugates binds natural killer (NK) cells and also the C1q protein that initiates the complement cascade; both NK cells and complement can activate powerful cytolytic responses against the targeted tumor cells. An in vitro cytolysis assay was used to test for an immunoconjugate-dependent specific cytolytic response against cultured human melanoma cells by NK cells and complement. The melanoma cells, but not the human fibroblast cells used as the control, were efficiently lysed by both NK cells and complement in the presence of the immunoconjugates. The in vitro results suggest that the immunoconjugates also could activate a specific cytolytic immune response against melanoma tumors in vivo.

  7. A high molecular weight-melanoma associated antigen-specific chimeric antigen receptor redirects lymphocytes to target human melanomas

    PubMed Central

    Burns, William R.; Zhao, Yangbing; Frankel, Timothy L.; Hinrichs, Christian S.; Zheng, Zhili; Xu, Hui; Feldman, Steven A.; Ferrone, Soldano; Rosenberg, Steven A.; Morgan, Richard A.

    2011-01-01

    Immunotherapy, particularly the adoptive cell transfer (ACT) of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), is a very promising therapy for metastatic melanoma. Some patients unable to receive TIL have been successfully treated with autologous peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL), genetically modified to express HLA class I antigen restricted, melanoma antigen-reactive T-cell receptors; however, substantial numbers of patients remain ineligible due to the lack of expression of the restricting HLA class I allele. We sought to overcome this limitation by designing a non-MHC-restricted, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) targeting the high molecular weight-melanoma associated antigen (HMW-MAA), which is highly expressed on over 90% of human melanomas but has a restricted distribution in normal tissues. HMW-MAA-specific CARs containing an antigen recognition domain based on variations of the HMW-MAA-specific monoclonal antibody (mAb) 225.28S and a T-cell activation domain based on combinations of CD28, 4-1BB, and CD3ζ activation motifs were constructed within a retroviral vector to allow stable gene transfer into cells and their progeny. Following optimization of the HMW-MAA-specific CAR for expression and function in human PBL, these gene-modified T cells secreted cytokines, were cytolytic, and proliferated in response to HMW-MAA expressing cell lines. Furthermore, the receptor functioned in both CD4+ and CD8+ cells, was non-MHC-restricted, and reacted against explanted human melanomas. To evaluate this HMW-MAA-specific CAR in patients with metastatic melanoma, we developed a clinical-grade retroviral packaging line. This may represent a novel means to treat the majority of patients with advanced melanoma, most notably those unable to receive current ACT therapies. PMID:20395199

  8. Detention of copper by sulfur nanoparticles inhibits the proliferation of A375 malignant melanoma and MCF-7 breast cancer cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Liu, Hao; Zhang, Yikai; Zheng, Shanyuan

    Selective induction of cell death or growth inhibition of cancer cells is the future of chemotherapy. Clinical trials have found that cancer tissues are enriched with copper. Based on this finding, many copper-containing compounds and complexes have been designed to “copper” cancer cells using copper as bait. However, recent studies have demonstrated that copper boosts tumor development, and copper deprivation from serum was shown to effectively inhibit the promotion of cancer. Mechanistically, copper is an essential cofactor for mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular activating kinase (ERK) kinase (MEK), a central molecule in the BRAF/MEK/ERK pathway. Therefore, depleting copper from cancer cellsmore » by directly sequestering copper has a wider field for research and potential for combination therapy. Based on the affinity between sulfur and copper, we therefore designed sulfur nanoparticles (Nano-S) that detain copper, achieving tumor growth restriction. We found that spherical Nano-S could effectively bind copper and form a tighter surficial structure. Moreover, this Nano-S detention of copper effectively inhibited the proliferation of A375 melanoma and MCF-7 breast cancer cells with minimum toxicity to normal cells. Mechanistic studies revealed that Nano-S triggered inactivation of the MEK-ERK pathway followed by inhibition of the proliferation of the A375 and MCF-7 cells. In addition, lower Nano-S concentrations and shorter exposure stimulated the expression of a copper transporter as compensation, which further increased the cellular uptake and anticancer activities of cisplatin. Collectively, our results highlight the potential of Nano-S as an anticancer agent or adjuvant through its detention of copper. - Highlights: • Nano-S selectively inhibited the mitosis of A375 and MCF-7 cells by depleting copper. • Nano-S inactivated MEK/ERK pathway through the detention of copper. • Nano-S improved the cellular uptake and anticancer

  9. LncRNA MEG3 repressed malignant melanoma progression via inactivating Wnt signaling pathway.

    PubMed

    Li, Peng; Gao, Ying; Li, Jun; Zhou, Yu; Yuan, Jing; Guan, Huiwen; Yao, Peng

    2018-05-21

    Accumulating evidence has indicated that MEG3 can serve as a tumor suppressive lncRNA in various tumors. It is aberrantly expressed in multiple cancers. However, the biological roles of MEG3 in melanoma are poorly understood. Therefore, in our study, we concentrated on the biological mechanism of MEG3 in melanoma progression. First, we observed that MEG3 was obviously decreased in melanoma cells including A375, SK-MEL-1, B16, and A2058 cells compared to human epidermal melanocytes HEMa-LP. MEG3 was restored by transfecting LV-MEG3 in to A375 and A2058 cells. Subsequently, we found that overexpression of MEG3 was able to inhibit cell proliferation and colony formation capacity. Meanwhile, melanoma cell apoptosis was induced by up-regulation of MEG3. Overexpression of MEG3 greatly repressed melanoma cell migration and invasion ability. In addition, Wnt signaling pathway has been identified in the progression of various cancers. Here, in our study, it was indicated that Wnt signaling was highly activated in melanoma cells with β-catenin expression significantly increased and GSK-3β decreased. Interestingly, MEG restoration strongly inactivated Wnt signaling pathway by reducing β-catenin and CyclinD1, elevating GSK-3β levels in vitro. Finally, in vivo experiments were carried out to confirm the inhibitory roles of MEG3 in vivo. Taken these together, we suggested that MEG3 can inhibit melanoma development through blocking Wnt signaling pathway. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  10. Effects of SASH1 on melanoma cell proliferation and apoptosis in vitro.

    PubMed

    Lin, Sheyu; Zhang, Junyu; Xu, Jiawei; Wang, Honglian; Sang, Qing; Xing, Qinghe; He, Lin

    2012-12-01

    The SAM and SH3 domain containing 1 (SASH1) gene was originally identified as a potential tumor suppressor gene in breast cancer, mapped on chromosome 6q24.3. The expression of SASH1 plays a prognostic role in human colon cancer. Its expression is frequently downregulated in several human malignancies. However, the biological function of SASH1 in melanoma cells is yet to be determined. In this study, in order to investigate the tumor suppressive effects of the SASH1 gene, an A-375 stable melanoma cell line was established, overexpressing the SASH1 gene. The stable cell line was examined using proliferation assay, apoptosis assay, cell cycle analysis and real-time PCR. The results indicated that the tumor suppressive activity of SASH1 derived from G2/M arrest in A-375 cells, and that the phosphorylation of Cdc2 or the disruption of cyclin B-Cdc2 binding may be responsible for the G2/M arrest.

  11. Peginterferon Beta-1a Shows Antitumor Activity as a Single Agent and Enhances Efficacy of Standard of Care Cancer Therapeutics in Human Melanoma, Breast, Renal, and Colon Xenograft Models.

    PubMed

    Boccia, Antonio; Virata, Cyrus; Lindner, Daniel; English, Nicki; Pathan, Nuzhat; Brickelmaier, Margot; Hu, Xiao; Gardner, Jennifer L; Peng, Liaomin; Wang, Xinzhong; Zhang, Xiamei; Yang, Lu; Perron, Keli; Yco, Grace; Kelly, Rebecca; Gamez, James; Scripps, Thomas; Bennett, Donald; Joseph, Ingrid B; Baker, Darren P

    2017-01-01

    Because of its tumor-suppressive effect, interferon-based therapy has been used for the treatment of melanoma. However, limited data are available regarding the antitumor effects of pegylated interferons, either alone or in combination with approved anticancer drugs. We report that treatment of human WM-266-4 melanoma cells with peginterferon beta-1a induced apoptotic markers. Additionally, peginterferon beta-1a significantly inhibited the growth of human SK-MEL-1, A-375, and WM-266-4 melanoma xenografts established in immunocompromised mice. Peginterferon beta-1a regressed large, established WM-266-4 xenografts in nude mice. Treatment of SK-MEL-1 tumor-bearing mice with a combination of peginterferon beta-1a and the MEK inhibitor PD325901 ((R)-N-(2,3-dihydroxypropoxy)-3,4-difluoro-2-(2-fluoro-4-iodophenylamino)benzamide) significantly improved tumor growth inhibition compared with either agent alone. Examination of the antitumor activity of peginterferon beta-1a in combination with approved anticancer drugs in breast and renal carcinomas revealed improved antitumor activity in these preclinical xenograft models, as did the combination of peginterferon beta-1a and bevacizumab in a colon carcinoma xenograft model.

  12. COX-2 expression positively correlates with PD-L1 expression in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Botti, Gerardo; Fratangelo, Federica; Cerrone, Margherita; Liguori, Giuseppina; Cantile, Monica; Anniciello, Anna Maria; Scala, Stefania; D'Alterio, Crescenzo; Trimarco, Chiara; Ianaro, Angela; Cirino, Giuseppe; Caracò, Corrado; Colombino, Maria; Palmieri, Giuseppe; Pepe, Stefano; Ascierto, Paolo Antonio; Sabbatino, Francesco; Scognamiglio, Giosuè

    2017-02-23

    The resistance to PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors for the treatment of melanoma have prompted investigators to implement novel clinical trials which combine immunotherapy with different treatment modalities. Moreover is also important to investigate the mechanisms which regulate the dynamic expression of PD-L1 on tumor cells and PD-1 on T cells in order to identify predictive biomarkers of response. COX-2 is currently investigated as a major player of tumor progression in several type of malignancies including melanoma. In the present study we investigated the potential relationship between COX-2 and PD-L1 expression in melanoma. Tumor samples obtained from primary melanoma lesions and not matched lymph node metastases were analyzed for both PD-L1 and COX-2 expression by IHC analysis. Status of BRAF and NRAS mutations was analyzed by sequencing and PCR. Co-localization of PD-L1 and COX-2 expression was analyzed by double fluorescence staining. Lastly the BRAF V600E A375 and NRAS Q61R SK-MEL-2 melanoma cell lines were used to evaluate the effect of COX-2 inhibition by celecoxib on expression of PD-L1 in vitro. BRAF V600E/V600K and NRAS Q61R/Q61L were detected in 57.8 and 8.9% of the metastatic lesions, and in 65.9 and 6.8% of the primary tumors, respectively. PD-L1 and COX-2 expression were heterogeneously expressed in both primary melanoma lesions and not matched lymph node metastases. A significantly lower number of PD-L1 negative lesions was found in primary tumors as compared to not matched metastatic lesions (P = 0.002). COX-2 expression significantly correlated with PD-L1 expression in both primary (P = 0.001) and not matched metastatic (P = 0.048) lesions. Furthermore, in melanoma tumors, cancer cells expressing a higher levels of COX-2 also co-expressed a higher level of PD-L1. Lastly, inhibition of COX-2 activity by celecoxib down-regulated the expression of PD-L1 in both BRAF V600E A375 and NRAS Q61R SK-MEL-2 melanoma cell lines. COX-2 expression correlates

  13. Fisetin Inhibits Human Melanoma Cell Invasion through Promotion of Mesenchymal to Epithelial Transition and by Targeting MAPK and NFκB Signaling Pathways

    PubMed Central

    Pal, Harish Chandra; Sharma, Samriti; Strickland, Leah Ray; Katiyar, Santosh K.; Ballestas, Mary E.; Athar, Mohammad; Elmets, Craig A.; Afaq, Farrukh

    2014-01-01

    Malignant melanoma is responsible for approximately 75% of skin cancer-related deaths. BRAF plays an important role in regulating the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascade in melanoma with activating mutations in the serine/threonine kinase BRAF occurring in 60–70% of malignant melanomas. The BRAF-MEK-ERK (MAPK) pathway is a key regulator of melanoma cell invasion. In addition, activation of NFκB via the MAPK pathway is regulated through MEK-induced activation of IKK. These pathways are potential targets for prevention and treatment of melanoma. In this study, we investigated the effect of fisetin, a phytochemical present in fruits and vegetables, on melanoma cell invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and delineated the underlying molecular mechanism. Treatment of multiple human malignant melanoma cell lines with fisetin (5–20 µM) resulted in inhibition of cell invasion. BRAF mutated melanoma cells were more sensitive to fisetin treatment, and this was associated with a decrease in the phosphorylation of MEK1/2 and ERK1/2. In addition, fisetin inhibited the activation of IKK leading to a reduction in the activation of the NFκB signaling pathway. Treatment of cells with an inhibitor of MEK1/2 (PD98059) or of NFκB (caffeic acid phenethyl ester) also reduced melanoma cell invasion. Furthermore, treatment of fisetin promoted mesenchymal to epithelial transition in melanoma cells, which was associated with a decrease in mesenchymal markers (N-cadherin, vimentin, snail and fibronectin) and an increase in epithelial markers (E-cadherin and desmoglein). Employing three dimensional skin equivalents consisting of A375 cells admixed with normal human keratinocytes embedded onto a collagen-constricted fibroblast matrix, we found that treatment of fisetin reduced the invasive potential of melanoma cells into the dermis and increased the expression of E-cadherin with a concomitant decrease in vimentin. These results indicate that fisetin

  14. Induction of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and interleukin-10 by TGFbeta1 in melanoma enhances tumor infiltration and immunosuppression.

    PubMed

    Díaz-Valdés, Nancy; Basagoiti, María; Dotor, Javier; Aranda, Fernando; Monreal, Iñaki; Riezu-Boj, José Ignacio; Borrás-Cuesta, Francisco; Sarobe, Pablo; Feijoó, Esperanza

    2011-02-01

    Melanoma progression is associated with the expression of different growth factors, cytokines, and chemokines. Because TGFβ1 is a pleiotropic cytokine involved not only in physiologic processes but also in cancer development, we analyzed in A375 human melanoma cells, the effect of TGFβ1 on monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) expression, two known factors responsible for melanoma progression. TGFβ1 increased the expression of MCP-1 and IL-10 in A375 cells, an effect mediated by the cross-talk between Smad, PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase)/AKT, and BRAF-MAPK (mitogen activated protein kinase) signaling pathways. Supernatants from TGFβ1-treated A375 cells enhanced MCP-1-dependent migration of monocytes, which, in turn, expressed high levels of TGF,β1, bFGF, and VEGF mRNA. Moreover, these supernatants also inhibited functional properties of dendritic cells through IL-10-dependent mechanisms. When using in vitro, the TGFβ1-blocking peptide P144, TGFβ1-dependent Smad3 phosphorylation, and expression of MCP-1 and IL-10 were inhibited. In vivo, treatment of A375 tumor-bearing athymic mice with P144 significantly reduced tumor growth, associated with a lower macrophage infiltrate and decreased intratumor MCP-1 and VEGF levels, as well as angiogenesis. Finally, in C57BL/6 mice with B16-OVA melanoma tumors, when administered with immunotherapy, P144 decreased tumor growth and intratumor IL-10 levels, linked to enhanced activation of dendritic cells and natural killer cells, as well as anti-OVA T-cell responses. These results show new effects of TGFβ1 on melanoma cells, which promote tumor progression and immunosuppression, strongly reinforcing the relevance of this cytokine as a molecular target in melanoma.

  15. Human Papilloma Virus in Melanoma Biopsy Specimens and Its Relation to Melanoma Progression

    PubMed Central

    Dréau, Didier; Culberson, Cathy; Wyatt, Sharon; Holder, Walter D.

    2000-01-01

    Objectives To evaluate melanoma biopsy specimens for human papilloma virus (HPV) and determine the relation between the presence of HPV, in vitro growth, and clinical progression of melanoma in the patients from whom the biopsy specimens were derived. Summary Background Data Ultraviolet radiation from sun exposure appears to be the primary causal agent in the development of cutaneous melanoma. However, other agents, including HPV, as observed in different epithelial carcinomas, may also play a role in melanoma development and progression. Methods Twelve melanoma biopsy specimens obtained from 12 patients with AJCC stage III and IV melanoma were stained with antibodies against gp-100 (HMB-45) and S-100 protein to confirm melanoma diagnosis and with a polyclonal HPV antibody. After mechanical dissociation, the melanoma specimen cells’ ability to grow in vitro was assessed. Patients were evaluated for melanoma progression with physical examination, complete blood count, and liver function tests every 3 months and a chest radiograph every 6 months. Results All biopsy specimens were positive for S-100, and nine (75%) were positive for gp-100. Seven of 12 (58%) were positive for HPV by immunohistochemistry. In vitro, none of the HPV-negative tumor cells grew from the tumor biopsies, whereas five of seven (71%) of the HPV-positive melanoma tumor cells grew very well. All patients with HPV-positive tumor cells had recurrences and died of melanoma progression, whereas four of five (80%) patients with HPV-negative tumor cells remained alive and without melanoma recurrence. Conclusions The presence of HPV was found in 58% of the biopsy specimens obtained from patients with stage III and IV melanoma and correlated with rapid melanoma progression. HPV may serve as a cofactor in the development of melanoma and may modulate a more aggressive phenotype in HPV-containing melanoma cells. PMID:10767787

  16. Pleiotropic function of ezrin in human metastatic melanomas.

    PubMed

    Federici, Cristina; Brambilla, Daria; Lozupone, Francesco; Matarrese, Paola; de Milito, Angelo; Lugini, Luana; Iessi, Elisabetta; Cecchetti, Serena; Marino, Marialucia; Perdicchio, Maurizio; Logozzi, Mariantonia; Spada, Massimo; Malorni, Walter; Fais, Stefano

    2009-06-15

    The membrane cytoskeleton cross-linker, ezrin, has recently been depicted as a key regulator in the progression and metastasis of several pediatric tumors. Less defined appears the role of ezrin in human adult tumors, especially melanoma. We therefore addressed ezrin involvement in the metastatic phenotype of human adult metastatic melanoma cells. Our results show that cells resected from melanoma metastatic lesions of patients, display marked metastatic spreading capacity in SCID mice organs. Stable transfection of human melanoma cells with an ezrin deletion mutant comprising only 146 N-terminal aminoacids led to the abolishment of metastatic dissemination. In vitro experiments revealed ezrin direct molecular interactions with molecules related to metastatic functions such as CD44, merlin and Lamp-1, consistent with its participation to the formation of phagocitic vacuoles, vesicular sorting and migration capacities of melanoma cells. Moreover, the ezrin fragment capable of binding to CD44 was shorter than that previously reported, and transfection with the ezrin deletion mutant abrogated plasma membrane Lamp-1 recruitment. This study highlights key involvement of ezrin in a complex machinery, which allows metastatic cancer cells to migrate, invade and survive in very unfavorable conditions. Our in vivo and in vitro data reveal that ezrin is the hub of the metastatic behavior also in human adult tumors. Copyright 2008 UICC.

  17. Identification of cells initiating human melanomas.

    PubMed

    Schatton, Tobias; Murphy, George F; Frank, Natasha Y; Yamaura, Kazuhiro; Waaga-Gasser, Ana Maria; Gasser, Martin; Zhan, Qian; Jordan, Stefan; Duncan, Lyn M; Weishaupt, Carsten; Fuhlbrigge, Robert C; Kupper, Thomas S; Sayegh, Mohamed H; Frank, Markus H

    2008-01-17

    Tumour-initiating cells capable of self-renewal and differentiation, which are responsible for tumour growth, have been identified in human haematological malignancies and solid cancers. If such minority populations are associated with tumour progression in human patients, specific targeting of tumour-initiating cells could be a strategy to eradicate cancers currently resistant to systemic therapy. Here we identify a subpopulation enriched for human malignant-melanoma-initiating cells (MMIC) defined by expression of the chemoresistance mediator ABCB5 (refs 7, 8) and show that specific targeting of this tumorigenic minority population inhibits tumour growth. ABCB5+ tumour cells detected in human melanoma patients show a primitive molecular phenotype and correlate with clinical melanoma progression. In serial human-to-mouse xenotransplantation experiments, ABCB5+ melanoma cells possess greater tumorigenic capacity than ABCB5- bulk populations and re-establish clinical tumour heterogeneity. In vivo genetic lineage tracking demonstrates a specific capacity of ABCB5+ subpopulations for self-renewal and differentiation, because ABCB5+ cancer cells generate both ABCB5+ and ABCB5- progeny, whereas ABCB5- tumour populations give rise, at lower rates, exclusively to ABCB5- cells. In an initial proof-of-principle analysis, designed to test the hypothesis that MMIC are also required for growth of established tumours, systemic administration of a monoclonal antibody directed at ABCB5, shown to be capable of inducing antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity in ABCB5+ MMIC, exerted tumour-inhibitory effects. Identification of tumour-initiating cells with enhanced abundance in more advanced disease but susceptibility to specific targeting through a defining chemoresistance determinant has important implications for cancer therapy.

  18. Identification of cells initiating human melanomas

    PubMed Central

    Schatton, Tobias; Murphy, George F.; Frank, Natasha Y.; Yamaura, Kazuhiro; Waaga-Gasser, Ana Maria; Gasser, Martin; Zhan, Qian; Jordan, Stefan; Duncan, Lyn M.; Weishaupt, Carsten; Fuhlbrigge, Robert C.; Kupper, Thomas S.; Sayegh, Mohamed H.; Frank, Markus H.

    2012-01-01

    Tumour-initiating cells capable of self-renewal and differentiation, which are responsible for tumour growth, have been identified in human haematological malignancies1,2 and solid cancers3–6. If such minority populations are associated with tumour progression in human patients, specific targeting of tumour-initiating cells could be a strategy to eradicate cancers currently resistant to systemic therapy. Here we identify a subpopulation enriched for human malignant-melanoma-initiating cells (MMIC) defined by expression of the chemoresistance mediator ABCB5 (refs 7, 8) and show that specific targeting of this tumorigenic minority population inhibits tumour growth. ABCB5+ tumour cells detected in human melanoma patients show a primitive molecular phenotype and correlate with clinical melanoma progression. In serial human-to-mouse xenotransplantation experiments, ABCB5+ melanoma cells possess greater tumorigenic capacity than ABCB5− bulk populations and re-establish clinical tumour heterogeneity. In vivo genetic lineage tracking demonstrates a specific capacity of ABCB5+ sub-populations for self-renewal and differentiation, because ABCB5+ cancer cells generate both ABCB5+ and ABCB5− progeny, whereas ABCB5− tumour populations give rise, at lower rates, exclusively to ABCB5− cells. In an initial proof-of-principle analysis, designed to test the hypothesis that MMIC are also required for growth of established tumours, systemic administration of a monoclonal antibody directed at ABCB5, shown to be capable of inducing antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity in ABCB5+ MMIC, exerted tumour-inhibitory effects. Identification of tumour-initiating cells with enhanced abundance in more advanced disease but susceptibility to specific targeting through a defining chemoresistance determinant has important implications for cancer therapy. PMID:18202660

  19. The Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Mediates Leflunomide-Induced Growth Inhibition of Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    O’Donnell, Edmond F.; Kopparapu, Prasad Rao; Koch, Daniel C.; Jang, Hyo Sang; Phillips, Jessica Lynne; Tanguay, Robert L.; Kerkvliet, Nancy I.; Kolluri, Siva Kumar

    2012-01-01

    A novel role of the dihydroorotatedehydrogenase (DHODH) inhibitor leflunomide as a potential anti-melanoma therapy was recently reported (Nature 471∶518-22, 2011). We previously reported that leflunomide strongly activates the transcriptional activity of the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR). We therefore tested whether the AhR regulates the anti-proliferative effects of leflunomide in melanoma. We first evaluated the expression of AhR in melanoma cells and found that AhR is highly expressed in A375 melanoma as well as in several other cancer cell types. To evaluate whether AhR plays a role in regulating the growth inhibitory effects of leflunomide in A375 cells, we generated a stable cell line from parental A375 cells expressing a doxycycline (DOX) inducible AhR shRNA. Using these cells in the absence or presence of DOX (normal AhR levels or AhR-knockdown, respectively) we found that the anti-proliferative effects of leflunomide, but not its metabolite A771726, were strongly dependent upon AhR expression. It has been well established that supplementation of cells with exogenous uridine completely rescues the anti-proliferative effects due to DHODH inhibition. Thus, we performed uridine rescue experiments in A375 cells to determine whether the anti-proliferative effects of leflunomide are solely due to DHODH inhibition as previously reported. Interestingly, saturating levels of uridine only modestly rescued A375 cells from the anti-proliferative effects of both leflunomide and A771726, indicating additional mechanism(s), apart from DHODH inhibition are responsible for the anti-proliferative effects of leflunomide in melanoma cells. Uridine also did not rescue MDA-MB-435S melanoma cell proliferation after leflunomide treatment. Our results reveal that the AhR is a molecular target of leflunomide and support the feasibility of the clinical application of leflunomide for treating melanoma. Furthermore, analysis of expression data from 967 cancer cell lines revealed

  20. Arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-conjugated dendrimer-modified quantum dots for targeting and imaging melanoma.

    PubMed

    Li, Zhiming; Huang, Peng; Lin, Jing; He, Rong; Liu, Bing; Zhang, Xiaomin; Yang, Sen; Xi, Peng; Zhang, Xuejun; Ren, Qiushi; Cui, Daxiang

    2010-08-01

    Angiogenesis is essential for the development of malignant tumors and provides important targets for tumor diagnosis and therapy. Quantum dots have been broadly investigated for their potential application in cancer molecular imaging. In present work, CdSe quantum dots were synthesized, polyamidoamine dendrimers were used to modify surface of quantum dots and improve their solubility in water solution. Then, dendrimer-modified CdSe quantum dots were conjugated with arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) peptides. These prepared nanoprobes were injected into nude mice loaded with melanoma (A375) tumor xenografts via tail vessels, IVIS imaging system was used to image the targeting and bio-distribution of as-prepared nanoprobes. The dendrimer-modified quantum dots exhibit water-soluble, high quantum yield, and good biocompatibility. RGD-conjugated quantum dots can specifically target human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and A375 melanoma cells, as well as nude mice loaded with A735 melanoma cells. High-performance RGD-conjugated dendrimers modified quantum dot-based nanoprobes have great potential in application such as tumor diagnosis and therapy.

  1. Fatty acid receptor GPR120: a novel marker for human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Kleemann, Johannes; Hrgovic, Igor; Ter-Nedden, Jan; Kleimann, Pia; Steinhorst, Katja; Härle, Katja; Müller, Jutta; Kaufmann, Roland; Meissner, Markus; Kippenberger, Stefan

    2018-03-21

    The correlation between ultraviolet radiation of the skin and melanoma incidence in humans is well established. Interestingly, epidemiologic data suggest also a correlation to an increased BMI pointing to metabolic trigger factors in melanoma pathogenesis. To substantiate this connection, we studied the expression of G-protein-coupled receptor 120 (GPR120), a receptor sensitive to unsaturated long-chain free fatty acids in melanoma tissues. One-hundred fourteen tissue sections histologically confirmed as nevi (n=32), primary melanoma (n=39), and melanoma metastasis (n=43) were immunohistochemically stained against GPR120. The staining was evaluated by three trained dermatopathologists and independently scored. Compared with nevi, primary melanoma and melanoma metastasis showed significantly higher levels of GPR120 staining. Only three out of 32 nevi showed strong GPR120 expression [median immunoreactivity-scoring system (IRS) score: 1, range: 0-10], whereas in primary melanomas 14 out of 39 were highly GPR120-positive (median IRS score: 7, range: 0-12) and in melanoma metastasis 27 out of 43 were highly GPR120-positive (median IRS score: 9, range: 0-12). GPR120 expression and tumor thickness (mm) show a statistically significant correlation in primary melanoma (P=0.011). Moreover, GPR120-positive staining was found throughout the epidermis and in sebaceous and sweat glands, which is yet not described. This study identified GPR120 as a novel marker for melanoma, indicating that melanoma cells are sensitive to free fatty acids. It is tempting to speculate that pharmacologically interfering with GPR120 signaling might improve melanoma therapy.

  2. Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) Hyperactivation and Enhanced NRAS Expression Drive Acquired Vemurafenib Resistance in V600E BRAF Melanoma Cells*

    PubMed Central

    Lidsky, Michael; Antoun, Gamil; Speicher, Paul; Adams, Bartley; Turley, Ryan; Augustine, Christi; Tyler, Douglas; Ali-Osman, Francis

    2014-01-01

    Although targeting the V600E activating mutation in the BRAF gene, the most common genetic abnormality in melanoma, has shown clinical efficacy in melanoma patients, response is, invariably, short lived. To better understand mechanisms underlying this acquisition of resistance to BRAF-targeted therapy in previously responsive melanomas, we induced vemurafenib resistance in two V600E BRAF+ve melanoma cell lines, A375 and DM443, by serial in vitro vemurafenib exposure. The resulting approximately 10-fold more vemurafenib-resistant cell lines, A375rVem and D443rVem, had higher growth rates and showed differential collateral resistance to cisplatin, melphalan, and temozolomide. The acquisition of vemurafenib resistance was associated with significantly increased NRAS levels in A375rVem and D443rVem, increased activation of the prosurvival protein, AKT, and the MAPKs, ERK, JNK, and P38, which correlated with decreased levels of the MAPK inhibitor protein, GSTP1. Despite the increased NRAS, whole exome sequencing showed no NRAS gene mutations. Inhibition of all three MAPKs and siRNA-mediated NRAS suppression both reversed vemurafenib resistance significantly in A375rVem and DM443rVem. Together, the results indicate a mechanism of acquired vemurafenib resistance in V600E BRAF+ve melanoma cells that involves increased activation of all three human MAPKs and the PI3K pathway, as well as increased NRAS expression, which, contrary to previous reports, was not associated with mutations in the NRAS gene. The data highlight the complexity of the acquired vemurafenib resistance phenotype and the challenge of optimizing BRAF-targeted therapy in this disease. They also suggest that targeting the MAPKs and/or NRAS may provide a strategy to mitigate such resistance in V600E BRAF+ve melanoma. PMID:25063807

  3. Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) hyperactivation and enhanced NRAS expression drive acquired vemurafenib resistance in V600E BRAF melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Lidsky, Michael; Antoun, Gamil; Speicher, Paul; Adams, Bartley; Turley, Ryan; Augustine, Christi; Tyler, Douglas; Ali-Osman, Francis

    2014-10-03

    Although targeting the V600E activating mutation in the BRAF gene, the most common genetic abnormality in melanoma, has shown clinical efficacy in melanoma patients, response is, invariably, short lived. To better understand mechanisms underlying this acquisition of resistance to BRAF-targeted therapy in previously responsive melanomas, we induced vemurafenib resistance in two V600E BRAF+ve melanoma cell lines, A375 and DM443, by serial in vitro vemurafenib exposure. The resulting approximately 10-fold more vemurafenib-resistant cell lines, A375rVem and D443rVem, had higher growth rates and showed differential collateral resistance to cisplatin, melphalan, and temozolomide. The acquisition of vemurafenib resistance was associated with significantly increased NRAS levels in A375rVem and D443rVem, increased activation of the prosurvival protein, AKT, and the MAPKs, ERK, JNK, and P38, which correlated with decreased levels of the MAPK inhibitor protein, GSTP1. Despite the increased NRAS, whole exome sequencing showed no NRAS gene mutations. Inhibition of all three MAPKs and siRNA-mediated NRAS suppression both reversed vemurafenib resistance significantly in A375rVem and DM443rVem. Together, the results indicate a mechanism of acquired vemurafenib resistance in V600E BRAF+ve melanoma cells that involves increased activation of all three human MAPKs and the PI3K pathway, as well as increased NRAS expression, which, contrary to previous reports, was not associated with mutations in the NRAS gene. The data highlight the complexity of the acquired vemurafenib resistance phenotype and the challenge of optimizing BRAF-targeted therapy in this disease. They also suggest that targeting the MAPKs and/or NRAS may provide a strategy to mitigate such resistance in V600E BRAF+ve melanoma. © 2014 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

  4. Thymoquinone suppresses metastasis of melanoma cells by inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ahmad, Israr; Muneer, Kashiff M.; Tamimi, Iman A.

    2013-07-01

    The inflammasome is a multi-protein complex which when activated regulates caspase-1 activation and IL-1β and IL-18 secretion. The NLRP3 (NACHT, LRR, and pyrin domain-containing protein 3) inflammasome is constitutively assembled and activated in human melanoma cells. We have examined the inhibitory effect of thymoquinone (2-isopropyl-5-methylbenzo-1,4-quinone), a major ingredient of black seed obtained from the plant Nigella sativa on metastatic human (A375) and mouse (B16F10) melanoma cell lines. We have assessed whether thymoquinone inhibits metastasis of melanoma cells by targeting NLRP3 subunit of inflammasomes. Using an in vitro cell migration assay, we found that thymoquinone inhibited the migration of both humanmore » and mouse melanoma cells. The inhibitory effect of thymoquinone on metastasis was also observed in vivo in B16F10 mouse melanoma model. The inhibition of migration of melanoma cells by thymoquinone was accompanied by a decrease in expression of NLRP3 inflammasome resulting in decrease in proteolytic cleavage of caspase-1. Inactivation of caspase-1 by thymoquinone resulted in inhibition of IL-1β and IL-18. Treatment of mouse melanoma cells with thymoquinone also inhibited NF-κB activity. Furthermore, inhibition of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by thymoquinone resulted in partial inactivation of NLRP3 inflammasome. Thus, thymoquinone exerts its inhibitory effect on migration of human and mouse melanoma cells by inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome. Thus, our results indicate that thymoquinone can be a potential immunotherapeutic agent not only as an adjuvant therapy for melanoma, but also, in the control and prevention of metastatic melanoma. - Highlights: • Thymoquinone causes inhibition of migration of melanoma cells. • Thymoquinone causes inhibition of metastasis in vivo. • Thymoquinone causes inhibition of migration by activation of NLRP3 inflammasome.« less

  5. Imaging human melanoma using a novel Tc-99m-labeled lactam bridge-cyclized alpha-MSH peptide.

    PubMed

    Liu, Liqin; Xu, Jingli; Yang, Jianquan; Feng, Changjian; Miao, Yubin

    2016-10-01

    In this study, the human melanoma targeting property of (99m)Tc(EDDA)-HYNIC-AocNle-CycMSHhex {hydrazinonicotinamide-8-aminooctanoic acid-Nle-c[Asp-His-DPhe-Arg-Trp-Lys]-CONH2} was determined in M21 human melanoma-xenografts to demonstrate its potential for human melanoma imaging. The IC50 value of HYNIC-AocNle-CycMSHhex was 0.48±0.01nM in M21 human melanoma cells (1281receptors/cell). The M21 human melanoma uptake of (99m)Tc(EDDA)-HYNIC-AocNle-CycMSHhex was 4.03±1.25, 3.26±1.23 and 3.36±1.48%ID/g at 0.5, 2 and 4h post-injection, respectively. Approximately 92% of injected dose cleared out the body via urinary system at 2h post-injection. (99m)Tc(EDDA)-HYNIC-AocNle-CycMSHhex showed high tumor/blood, tumor/muscle and tumor/skin uptake ratios after 2h post-injection. The M21 human melanoma-xenografted tumor lesions were clearly visualized by SPECT/CT using (99m)Tc(EDDA)-HYNIC-AocNle-CycMSHhex as an imaging probe at 2h post-injection. Overall, (99m)Tc(EDDA)-HYNIC-AocNle-CycMSHhex exhibited favorable human melanoma imaging property, highlighting its potential as an imaging probe for human metastatic melanoma detection. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Synthesis and evaluation of ¹²³/¹³¹I-Iochlonicotinamide as a novel SPECT probe for malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Chang, Chih-Chao; Chang, Chih-Hsien; Shen, Chih-Chieh; Chen, Chuan-Lin; Liu, Ren-Shyan; Lin, Ming-Hsien; Wang, Hsin-Ell

    2015-05-01

    Malignant melanoma expresses a highly aggressive metastasis. Early diagnosis of malignant melanoma is important for patient survival. Radiolabeled benzamides and nicotinamides have been reported to be attractive candidates for malignant melanoma diagnosis as they bind to melanin, a characteristic substance that displays in malignant melanoma, and show high tumor accumulation and retention. Herein, we designed and synthesized a novel (123/131)I-labeled nicotinamide derivative that specifically binds to melanin. (123/131)I-Iochlonicotinamide was prepared with good radiochemical yield (50-70%, decay corrected) and high specific radioactivity (50-80 GBq/μmol). (131)I-Iochlonicotinamide exhibited good in vitro stability (radiochemical purity >95% after a 24-h incubation) in human serum. High uptake of (123/131)I-Iochlonicotinamide in B16F0 melanoma cells compared to that in A375 amelanotic cells demonstrated its selective binding to melanin. Intravenous administration of (123/131)I-Iochlonicotinamide in a melanoma-bearing mouse model revealed high uptake in melanotic melanoma and high tumor-to-muscle ratio. MicroSPECT scan of (123/131)I-Iochlonicotinamide injected mice also displayed high contrast tumor imaging as compared with normal organs. The radiation-absorbed dose projection for the administration of (131)I-Iochlonicotinamide to human was based on the results of biodistribution study. The effective dose appears to be approximately 0.44 mSv/MBq(-1). The specific binding of (123/131)I-Iochlonicotinamide to melanin along with a prolonged tumor retention and acceptable projected human dosimetry suggest that it may be a promising theranostic agent for treating malignant melanoma. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. EPR studies of free radicals in A-2058 human melanoma cells treated by valproic acid and 5,7-dimethoxycoumarin.

    PubMed

    Zdybel, Magdalena; Chodurek, Ewa; Pilawa, Barbara

    2014-01-01

    Free radicals in A-2058 human melanoma cells were studied by the use of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. The aim of this work was to determine the changes in relative free radical concentrations in tumor A-2058 cells after treatment by valproic acid (VPA) and 5,7-dimethoxycoumarin (DMC). The influences of VPA and DMC on free radicals in A-2058 cells were compared with those for human melanoma malignum A-375 and G-361 cells, which were tested by us earlier. Human malignant melanoma A-2058 cells were exposed to interactions with VPA, DMC, and both VPA and DMC. The tumor cells A-2058 were purchased from LGC Standards (Lomianki, Poland), and they were grown in the standard conditions: at 37°C and in an atmosphere containing 95% air and 5% CO2, in the Minimum Essential Medium Eagle (MEM, Sigma-Aldrich). The A-2058 cells were incubated with VPA (1 mM) and DMC (10 μM) for 4 days. The first-derivative EPR spectra of the control A-2058 cells, and the cells treated with VPA, DMC, and both VPA and DMC, were measured by the electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer of Radiopan (Poznań, Poland) with microwaves from an X-band (9.3 GHz). The parameters of the EPR lines: amplitudes (A), integral intensities (I), line widths (ΔBpp), and g-factors, were analyzed. The changes of amplitudes and line widths with microwave power increasing from 2.2 to 70 mW were drawn evaluated, o-Semiquinone free radicals of melanin biopolymer are mainly responsible for the EPR lines of A-2058 melanoma malignum cells. The amounts of free radicals in A-2058 cells treated with VPA, and both VPA and DMC, were lower than in the untreated control cells. Application of the tested substances (VPA, and both VPA and DMC) as the antitumor compounds was discussed. DMC without VPA did not decrease free radicals concentration in A-2058 cells. The studies con-firmed that EPR spectroscopy may be used to examine interactions of free radicals with antitumor compounds.

  8. Integrin β1 activation induces an anti-melanoma host response

    PubMed Central

    Sole, Xavier; Salony; Chowdhury, Joeeta; Ross, Kenneth N.; Ramaswamy, Sridhar

    2017-01-01

    TGF-β is a cytokine thought to function as a tumor promoter in advanced malignancies. In this setting, TGF-β increases cancer cell proliferation, survival, and migration, and orchestrates complex, pro-tumorigenic changes in the tumor microenvironment. Here, we find that in melanoma, integrin β1-mediated TGF-β activation may also produce tumor suppression via an altered host response. In the A375 human melanoma cell nu/nu xenograft model, we demonstrate that cell surface integrin β1-activation increases TGF-β activity, resulting in stromal activation, neo-angiogenesis and, unexpectedly for this nude mouse model, increase in the number of intra-tumoral CD8+ T lymphocytes within the tumor microenvironment. This is associated with attenuation of tumor growth and long-term survival benefit. Correspondingly, in human melanomas, TGF-β1 correlates with integrin β1/TGF-β1 activation and the expression of markers for vasculature and stromal activation. Surprisingly, this integrin β1/TGF-β1 transcriptional footprint also correlates with the expression of markers for tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, multiple immune checkpoints and regulatory pathways, and, importantly, better long-term survival of patients. These correlations are unique to melanoma, in that we do not observe similar associations between β1 integrin/TGF-β1 activation and better long-term survival in other human tumor types. These results suggest that activation of TGF-β1 in melanoma may be associated with the generation of an anti-tumor host response that warrants further study. PMID:28448494

  9. Human melanoma immunotherapy using tumor antigen-specific T cells generated in humanized mice

    PubMed Central

    Hu, Zheng; Xia, Jinxing; Fan, Wei; Wargo, Jennifer; Yang, Yong-Guang

    2016-01-01

    A major factor hindering the exploration of adoptive immunotherapy in preclinical settings is the limited availability of tumor-reactive human T cells. Here we developed a humanized mouse model that permits large-scale production of human T cells expressing the engineered melanoma antigen MART-1-specific TCR. Humanized mice, made by transplantation of human fetal thymic tissue and CD34+ cells virally-transduced with HLA class I-restricted melanoma antigen (MART-1)-specific TCR gene, showed efficient development of MART-1-TCR+ human T cells with predominantly CD8+ cells. Importantly, MART-1-TCR+CD8+ T cells developing in these mice were capable of mounting antigen-specific responses in vivo, as evidenced by their proliferation, phenotypic conversion and IFN-γ production following MART-1 peptide immunization. Moreover, these MART-1-TCR+CD8+ T cells mediated efficient killing of melanoma cells in an HLA/antigen-dependent manner. Adoptive transfer of in vitro expanded MART-1-TCR+CD8+ T cells induced potent antitumor responses that were further enhanced by IL-15 treatment in melanoma-bearing recipients. Finally, a short incubation of MART-1-specific T cells with rapamycin acted synergistically with IL-15, leading to significantly improved tumor-free survival in recipients with metastatic melanoma. These data demonstrate the practicality of using humanized mice to produce potentially unlimited source of tumor-specific human T cells for experimental and preclinical exploration of cancer immunotherapy. This study also suggests that pretreatment of tumor-reactive T cells with rapamycin in combination with IL-15 administration may be a novel strategy to improve the efficacy of adoptive T cell therapy. PMID:26824989

  10. Antiproliferative Activity and Induction of Apoptosis in Human Melanoma Cells by Houttuynia cordata Thunb Extract.

    PubMed

    Yanarojana, Mongkol; Nararatwanchai, Thamthiwat; Thairat, Sarut; Tancharoen, Salunya

    2017-12-01

    To analyze the apoptotic effect of Houttuynia cordata Thunb (HCT) extract on human melanoma A375 cells and its underlying mechanisms. The effects of HCT on cell death were determined using the MTT assay. Hoechst 33342 staining was conducted to confirm the detection of cell apoptosis. Caspase-3 and caspase-8 mRNA and cleaved protein levels were investigated by RT-PCR and western blotting, respectively. The release of high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) were determined by ELISA. Caspase-3 and caspase-8 specific inhibitors suppressed HCT-induced cell death. HCT increased caspase-3 and caspase-8 mRNA, protein levels, and caspase activities in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. HCT induced MAPK phosphorylation in a time-dependent fashion. Pretreatment of cells with a selective inhibitor of p38 MAPK reduced apoptosis and reversed the levels of HMGB1 release in response to HCT treatment. HCT induces A375 programmed cell death by activating the caspase-dependent pathway and by p38 phosphorylation associated with HMGB1 reduction. Copyright© 2017, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.

  11. (-)-Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)-nanoethosomes as a transdermal delivery system for docetaxel to treat implanted human melanoma cell tumors in mice.

    PubMed

    Liao, Bingwu; Ying, Hao; Yu, Chenhuan; Fan, Zhaoyang; Zhang, Weihua; Shi, John; Ying, Huazhong; Ravichandran, Nagaiya; Xu, Yongquan; Yin, Junfeng; Jiang, Yongwen; Du, Qizhen

    2016-10-15

    (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate (EGCG), a versatile natural product in fresh tea leaves and green tea, has been investigated as a preventative treatment for cancers and cardiovascular disease. The objective of this study was to develop EGCG-nanoethosomes for transdermal delivery and to evaluate them for treating subcutaneously implanted human melanoma cell tumors. EGCG-nanoethosomes, composed of 0.2% EGCG, 2% soybean phosphatidylcholine, 30% ethanol, 1% Tween-80 and 0.1% sugar esters, were prepared and characterized using laser transmission electron microscopy. These nanoethosomes were smoother and more compact than basic-nanoethosomes with the same components except for EGCG. The effectiveness of transdermal delivery by EGCG-nanoethosomes was demonstrated in an in vitro permeability assay system using mouse skin. The inhibitory effect of docetaxel (DT) loaded in EGCG-nanoethosomes (DT-EGCG-nanoethosomes) was analyzed by monitoring growth of a subcutaneously implanted tumor from A-375 human melanoma cells in mice. Mice treated with DT-EGCG-nanoethosomes exhibited a significant therapeutic effect, with tumors shrinking, on average, by 31.5% of initial volumes after 14 d treatment. This indicated a potential for treating skin cancer. In a pharmacokinetic study, transdermal delivery by DT-EGCG-nanoethosomes enabled sufficient DT exposure to the tumor. Together, these findings indicated that EGCG-nanoethosomes have great potential as drug carriers for transdermal delivery. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Induction of oxidative stress, DNA damage, and apoptosis in a malignant human skin melanoma cell line after exposure to zinc oxide nanoparticles

    PubMed Central

    Alarifi, Saud; Ali, Daoud; Alkahtani, Saad; Verma, Ankit; Ahamed, Maqusood; Ahmed, Mukhtar; Alhadlaq, Hisham A

    2013-01-01

    The widespread use of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles worldwide exposes humans to their adverse effects, so it is important to understand their biological effects and any associated risks. This study was designed to investigate the cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, and apoptosis caused by ZnO nanoparticles in human skin melanoma (A375) cells. MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazoliumbromide] and lactate dehydrogenase-based cell viability assays showed a significant decrease in cell viability after exposure to ZnO nanoparticles, and phase contrast images revealed that cells treated with these nanoparticles had a lower density and a rounded morphology. ZnO nanoparticles were also found to induce oxidative stress, evidenced by generation of reactive oxygen species and depletion of the antioxidant, glutathione. Induction of apoptosis was confirmed by chromosomal condensation assay and caspase-3 activation. Further, more DNA damage was observed in cells exposed to the highest concentration of ZnO nanoparticles. These results demonstrate that ZnO nanoparticles have genotoxic potential in A375 cells, which may be mediated via oxidative stress. Our short-term exposure study showing induction of a genotoxic and apoptotic response to ZnO nanoparticles needs further investigation to determine whether there may be consequences of long-term exposure to ZnO nanoparticles. PMID:23493450

  13. Caspase dependent apoptotic inhibition of melanoma and lung cancer cells by tropical Rubus extracts.

    PubMed

    George, Blassan Plackal Adimuriyil; Abrahamse, Heidi; Hemmaragala, Nanjundaswamy M

    2016-05-01

    Rubus fairholmianus Gard. inhibits human melanoma (A375) and lung cancer (A549) cell growth by the caspase dependent apoptotic pathway. Herbal products have a long history of clinical use and acceptance. They are freely available natural compounds that can be safely used to prevent various ailments. The plants and plant derived products became the basis of traditional medicine system throughout the world for thousands of years. The effects of R. fairholmianus root acetone extract (RFRA) on the proliferation of A375 and A549 cells was examined in this study. RFRA led to a decrease in cell viability, proliferation and an increase in cytotoxicity in a dose dependent manner when compared with control and normal skin fibroblast cells (WS1). The morphology of treated cells supported apoptotic cell death. Annexin V/propidium iodide staining indicated that RFRA induced apoptosis in A375 and A549 cells and the percentages of early and late apoptotic populations significantly increased. Moreover, the apoptotic inducing ability of RFRA when analysing effector caspase 3/7 activity, indicated a marked increase in treated cells. In summary, we have shown the anticancer effects of RFRA in A375 and A549 cancer cells via induction of caspase dependent apoptosis in vitro. The extract is more effective against melanoma; which may suggest the usefulness of RFRA-based anticancer therapies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  14. Synthesis and evaluation of novel radioiodinated nicotinamides for malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Liu, Xiang; Pham, Tien Q; Berghofer, Paula; Chapman, Janette; Greguric, Ivan; Mitchell, Peter; Mattner, Filomena; Loc'h, Christian; Katsifis, Andrew

    2008-10-01

    A series of iodonicotinamides based on the melanin-binding iodobenzamide compound N-2-diethylaminoethyl-4-iodobenzamide was prepared and evaluated for the potential imaging and staging of disseminated metastatic melanoma. [(123)I]Iodonicotinamides were prepared by iododestannylation reactions using no-carrier-added iodine-123 and evaluated in vivo by biodistribution and competition studies and by single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging in black and albino nude mice bearing B16F0 murine melanotic and A375 human amelanotic melanoma tumours, respectively. The iodonicotinamides displayed low-affinity binding for sigma(1)-sigma(2) receptors (K(i)>300 nM). In biodistribution studies in mice, N-(2-(diethylamino)ethyl)-5-[(123)I]iodonicotinamide ([(123)I]1) exhibited the fastest and highest uptake of the nicotinamide series in the B16F0 tumour at 1 h ( approximately 8% ID/g), decreasing slowly over time. No uptake was observed in the A375 tumour. Clearance from the animals by urinary excretion was more rapid for N-alkyl-nicotinamides than for piperazinyl derivatives. At 1 h postinjection, the urinary excretion was 66% ID for [(123)I]1, while the gastrointestinal tract amounted to 17% ID. Haloperidol was unable to reduce the uptake of [(123)I]1 in pigmented mice, indicating that this uptake was likely due to an interaction with melanin. SPECT imaging of [(123)I]1 in black mice bearing the B16F0 melanoma indicated that the radioactivity was predominately located in the tumour and eyes. No specific localisation was observed in nude mice bearing A375 amelanotic tumours. These findings suggest that [(123)I]1, which displays high tumour uptake with rapid clearance from the body, could be a promising imaging agent for the detection of melanotic tumours.

  15. SKI knockdown inhibits human melanoma tumor growth in vivo.

    PubMed

    Chen, Dahu; Lin, Qiushi; Box, Neil; Roop, Dennis; Ishii, Shunsuke; Matsuzaki, Koichi; Fan, Tao; Hornyak, Thomas J; Reed, Jon A; Stavnezer, Ed; Timchenko, Nikolai A; Medrano, Estela E

    2009-12-01

    The SKI protein represses the TGF-beta tumor suppressor pathway by associating with the Smad transcription factors. SKI is upregulated in human malignant melanoma tumors in a disease-progression manner and its overexpression promotes proliferation and migration of melanoma cells in vitro. The mechanisms by which SKI antagonizes TGF-beta signaling in vivo have not been fully elucidated. Here we show that human melanoma cells in which endogenous SKI expression was knocked down by RNAi produced minimal orthotopic tumor xenograft nodules that displayed low mitotic rate and prominent apoptosis. These minute tumors exhibited critical signatures of active TGF-beta signaling including high levels of nuclear Smad3 and p21(Waf-1), which are not found in the parental melanomas. To understand how SKI promotes tumor growth we used gain- and loss-of-function approaches and found that simultaneously to blocking the TGF-beta-growth inhibitory pathway, SKI promotes the switch of Smad3 from tumor suppression to oncogenesis by favoring phosphorylations of the Smad3 linker region in melanoma cells but not in normal human melanocytes. In this context, SKI is required for preventing TGF-beta-mediated downregulation of the oncogenic protein c-MYC, and for inducing the plasminogen activator inhibitor-1, a mediator of tumor growth and angiogenesis. Together, the results indicate that SKI exploits multiple regulatory levels of the TGF-beta pathway and its deficiency restores TGF-beta tumor suppressor and apoptotic activities in spite of the likely presence of oncogenic mutations in melanoma tumors.

  16. 9-AAA inhibits growth and induces apoptosis in human melanoma A375 and rat prostate adenocarcinoma AT-2 and Mat-LyLu cell lines but does not affect the growth and viability of normal fibroblasts.

    PubMed

    Korohoda, Włodzimierz; Hapek, Anna; Pietrzak, Monika; Ryszawy, Damian; Madeja, Zbigniew

    2016-11-01

    The present study found that, similarly to 5-fluorouracil, low concentrations (1-10 µM) of 9-aminoacridine (9-AAA) inhibited the growth of the two rat prostate cancer AT-2 and Mat-LyLu cell lines and the human melanoma A375 cell line. However, at the same concentrations, 9-AAA had no effect on the growth and apoptosis of normal human skin fibroblasts (HSFs). The differences between the cellular responses of the AT-2 and Mat-LyLu cell lines, which differ in malignancy, were found to be relatively small compared with the differences between normal HSFs and the cancer cell lines. Visible effects on the cell growth and survival of tumor cell lines were observed after 24-48 h of treatment with 9-AAA, and increased over time. The inhibition of cancer cell growth was found to be due to the gradually increasing number of cells dying by apoptosis, which was observed using two methods, direct counting and FlowSight analysis. Simultaneously, cell motile activity decreased to the same degree in cancer and normal cells within the first 8 h of incubation in the presence of 9-AAA. The results presented in the current study suggest that short-lasting tests for potential anticancer substances can be insufficient; which may result in cell type-dependent differences in the responses of cells to tested compounds that act with a delay being overlooked. The observed differences in responses between normal human fibroblasts and cancer cells to 9-AAA show the requirement for additional studies to be performed simultaneously on differently reacting cancer and normal cells, to determine the molecular mechanisms responsible for these differences.

  17. CYR61 suppresses growth of human malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Chen, Jun; Liu, Yang; Sun, Qilin; Wang, Beiqing; Li, Ningli; Chen, Xiangdong

    2016-11-01

    Cysteine-rich protein 61 (CCN1/CYR61) is an important marker of proliferation and metastasis in malignant melanoma, making it a potential target for melanoma treatment. In this study, we compared the expression of CRY61 in Chinese patients with malignant melanoma with its expression in patients with other skin tumors or with no skin pathological conditions. We examined the effects of anti-human CYR61 monoclonal antibody on proliferation and evaluated the changes in CYR61 expression and cell proliferation in response to treatment with either epirubicin or interferon (IFN)-α. CYR61 was expressed at lower levels in patients with malignant melanoma than in patients with other skin tumors or with no pathology. Following the treatment of B16 cells with epirubicin and IFN-α, CYR61 levels increased, cell growth was inhibited, and proliferating cell nuclear antigen expression decreased. Thus, CYR61 could become a therapeutic target for malignant melanoma patients with high CYR61 expression.

  18. Apigenin Attenuates Melanoma Cell Migration by Inducing Anoikis through Integrin and Focal Adhesion Kinase Inhibition.

    PubMed

    Hasnat, Md Abul; Pervin, Mehnaz; Lim, Ji Hong; Lim, Beong Ou

    2015-11-27

    Apigenin, a nonmutagenic flavonoid, has been found to have antitumor properties and is therefore particularly relevant for the development of chemotherapeutic agents for cancers. In this study, time- and dose-dependent cell viability and cytotoxicity were assessed to determine the effects of apigenin on A2058 and A375 melanoma cells. Melanoma cells were pretreated with different concentrations of apigenin and analyzed for morphological changes, anoikis induction, cell migration, and levels of proteins associated with apoptosis. Apigenin reduced integrin protein levels and inhibited the phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2), which induce anoikis in human cutaneous melanoma cells. Apigenin exhibited dose-dependent inhibition of melanoma cell migration, unlike untreated controls. Furthermore, apigenin treatment increased apoptotic factors such as caspase-3 and cleaved poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase in a dose-dependent manner, demonstrating the metastasis of melanoma cells. Our results provide a new insight into the mechanisms by which apigenin prevents melanoma metastasis by sensitizing anoikis induced by the loss of integrin proteins in the FAK/ERK1/2 signaling pathway. These findings elucidate the related mechanisms and suggest the potential of apigenin in developing clinical treatment strategies against malignant melanoma.

  19. Hypoxia increases the heterogeneity of melanoma cell populations and affects the response to vemurafenib.

    PubMed

    Pucciarelli, Daniela; Lengger, Nina; Takáčová, Martina; Csaderova, Lucia; Bartosova, Maria; Breiteneder, Heimo; Pastorekova, Silvia; Hafner, Christine

    2016-04-01

    A hypoxic microenvironment is one of the predominant reasons for incomplete response to melanoma treatment. Vemurafenib, which targets the mutated BRAF-V600 kinase, improves melanoma patient survival, however, resistance invariably develops. The present study evaluated the effect of hypoxia on three BRAF-V600E mutant melanoma cell lines, M14, A375 and 518A2, treated with vemurafenib. Compared with the other two cell lines, hypoxic vemurafenib-treated A375 cells exhibited an enhanced cell proliferation rate and migratory capacity compared with normoxic vemurafenib-treated A375 cells. Immunoblotting analyses revealed that the expression levels of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)1α and carbonic anhydrase IX were reduced in vemurafenib‑treated M14 and 518A2 cells, however, not in A375 cells. The expression levels of the mitogen‑activated protein kinase, Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription, and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3‑kinase signaling pathway proteins revealed a cell‑type specific response to vemurafenib and hypoxia. Knockdown experiments of HIF1α performed in hypoxic A375 cells decreased the expression of phosphorylated (p‑)protein kinase B, which was restored following vemurafenib treatment, and increased the expression of p‑extracellular‑signal‑regulated kinases. Therefore, three melanoma cell lines responded to vemurafenib under hypoxia in a cell type‑specific manner, suggesting that a subset of cells provides a treatment-resistant pool, from which disease relapse may originate. These data confirmed that vemurafenib may be successful in treating the proliferating cells, whereas the non‑proliferating subpopulation must be addressed by a combination of vemurafenib with other treatment strategies.

  20. Primary Tr1 cells from metastatic melanoma eliminate tumor-promoting macrophages through granzyme B- and perforin-dependent mechanisms.

    PubMed

    Yan, Hongxia; Zhang, Ping; Kong, Xue; Hou, Xianglian; Zhao, Li; Li, Tianhang; Yuan, Xiaozhou; Fu, Hongjun

    2017-04-01

    In malignant melanoma, tumor-associated macrophages play multiple roles in promoting tumor growth, such as inducing the transformation of melanocytes under ultraviolet irradiation, increasing angiogenesis in melanomas, and suppressing antitumor immunity. Because granzyme B- and perforin-expressing Tr1 cells could specifically eliminate antigen-presenting cells of myeloid origin, we examined whether Tr1 cells in melanoma could eliminate tumor-promoting macrophages and how the interaction between Tr1 cells and macrophages could affect the growth of melanoma cells. Tr1 cells were characterized by high interleukin 10 secretion and low Foxp3 expression and were enriched in the CD4 + CD49b + LAG-3 + T-cell fraction. Macrophages derived from peripheral blood monocytes in the presence of modified melanoma-conditioned media demonstrated tumor-promoting capacity, exemplified by improving the proliferation of cocultured A375 malignant melanoma cells. But when primary Tr1 cells were present in the macrophage-A375 coculture, the growth of A375 cells was abrogated. The conventional CD25 + Treg cells, however, were unable to inhibit macrophage-mediated increase in tumor cell growth. Further analyses showed that Tr1 cells did not directly eliminate A375 cells, but mediated the killing of tumor-promoting macrophages through the secretion of granzyme B and perforin. The tumor-infiltrating interleukin 10 + Foxp3 - CD4 + T cells expressed very low levels of granzyme B and perforin, possibly suggested the downregulation of Tr1 cytotoxic capacity in melanoma tumors. Together, these data demonstrated an antitumor function of Tr1 cells through the elimination of tumor-promoting macrophages, which was not shared by conventional Tregs.

  1. SOX2 regulates self-renewal and tumorigenicity of human melanoma-initiating cells.

    PubMed

    Santini, R; Pietrobono, S; Pandolfi, S; Montagnani, V; D'Amico, M; Penachioni, J Y; Vinci, M C; Borgognoni, L; Stecca, B

    2014-09-18

    Melanoma is one of the most aggressive types of human cancer, characterized by enhanced heterogeneity and resistance to conventional therapy at advanced stages. We and others have previously shown that HEDGEHOG-GLI (HH-GLI) signaling is required for melanoma growth and for survival and expansion of melanoma-initiating cells (MICs). Recent reports indicate that HH-GLI signaling regulates a set of genes typically expressed in embryonic stem cells, including SOX2 (sex-determining region Y (SRY)-Box2). Here we address the function of SOX2 in human melanomas and MICs and its interaction with HH-GLI signaling. We find that SOX2 is highly expressed in melanoma stem cells. Knockdown of SOX2 sharply decreases self-renewal in melanoma spheres and in putative melanoma stem cells with high aldehyde dehydrogenase activity (ALDH(high)). Conversely, ectopic expression of SOX2 in melanoma cells enhances their self-renewal in vitro. SOX2 silencing also inhibits cell growth and induces apoptosis in melanoma cells. In addition, depletion of SOX2 progressively abrogates tumor growth and leads to a significant decrease in tumor-initiating capability of ALDH(high) MICs upon xenotransplantation, suggesting that SOX2 is required for tumor initiation and for continuous tumor growth. We show that SOX2 is regulated by HH signaling and that the transcription factors GLI1 and GLI2, the downstream effectors of HH-GLI signaling, bind to the proximal promoter region of SOX2 in primary melanoma cells. In functional studies, we find that SOX2 function is required for HH-induced melanoma cell growth and MIC self-renewal in vitro. Thus SOX2 is a critical factor for self-renewal and tumorigenicity of MICs and an important mediator of HH-GLI signaling in melanoma. These findings could provide the basis for novel therapeutic strategies based on the inhibition of SOX2 for the treatment of a subset of human melanomas.

  2. Oncolytic adenovirus expressing interleukin-18 improves antitumor activity of dacarbazine for malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Yang, Chunhua; Cao, Hang; Liu, Ning; Xu, Kai; Ding, Meng; Mao, Li-Jun

    2016-01-01

    Conditionally replicating adenoviruses have emerged as novel therapeutic agents for cancer. This study aimed to evaluate synergistic antitumor activity of replication-competent adenovirus armed with interleukin (IL)-18 (ZD55-IL-18) and dacarbazine (DTIC) against melanoma. Melanoma A375 cells or nude mouse tumor xenografts were treated with ZD55-IL-18 alone or together with DTIC. The results showed that ZD55-IL-18 competently replicated in A375 cells and expressed IL-18, and these were not affected by DTIC. ZD55-IL-18 enhanced the cytotoxicity of DTIC accompanied by increased apoptosis. Moreover, ZD55-IL-18 and DTIC synergistically inhibited the growth but promoted the apoptosis of A375 xenografts and inhibited vascular endothelial growth factor expression and lung metastasis in xenografts of nude mice. In conclusion, this is the first study to show synergistic anticancer activity of ZD55-IL-18 and DTIC for malignant melanoma. Our results provide evidence that chemo-gene-viro therapeutic approach has greater potential for malignant cancers than conventional chemotherapy or gene therapy.

  3. Oncolytic adenovirus expressing interleukin-18 improves antitumor activity of dacarbazine for malignant melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Chunhua; Cao, Hang; Liu, Ning; Xu, Kai; Ding, Meng; Mao, Li-jun

    2016-01-01

    Conditionally replicating adenoviruses have emerged as novel therapeutic agents for cancer. This study aimed to evaluate synergistic antitumor activity of replication-competent adenovirus armed with interleukin (IL)-18 (ZD55-IL-18) and dacarbazine (DTIC) against melanoma. Melanoma A375 cells or nude mouse tumor xenografts were treated with ZD55-IL-18 alone or together with DTIC. The results showed that ZD55-IL-18 competently replicated in A375 cells and expressed IL-18, and these were not affected by DTIC. ZD55-IL-18 enhanced the cytotoxicity of DTIC accompanied by increased apoptosis. Moreover, ZD55-IL-18 and DTIC synergistically inhibited the growth but promoted the apoptosis of A375 xenografts and inhibited vascular endothelial growth factor expression and lung metastasis in xenografts of nude mice. In conclusion, this is the first study to show synergistic anticancer activity of ZD55-IL-18 and DTIC for malignant melanoma. Our results provide evidence that chemo-gene-viro therapeutic approach has greater potential for malignant cancers than conventional chemotherapy or gene therapy. PMID:27895465

  4. Targeted delivery of CYP2E1 recombinant adenovirus to malignant melanoma by bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells as vehicles.

    PubMed

    Wang, Jishi; Ma, Dan; Li, Yan; Yang, Yuan; Hu, Xiaoyan; Zhang, Wei; Fang, Qin

    2014-03-01

    The aim of this study was to explore the effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) as intermediate carriers on targeting of P450 gene recombinant adenovirus to malignant melanoma in vitro and in vivo. BMSCs were transduced with pAd5-CMV-CYP2E1 recombinant adenovirus. BMSC migration was detected by Transwell plates in vitro and by superparamagnetic iron oxide particles in vivo. Growth-inhibitory effect and apoptosis were determined by MTT and immunity fluorescence staining. Anticancer effects were examined by a human melanoma nude mouse model in vivo. BMSCs moved toward A375 cells in Transwell plates. Numerous superparamagnetic MSCs labeled with iron oxide were identified in the peripheral areas of the tumor, but were detected in primary organs by Prussian blue staining. BMSC-CYP2E1 cells mediated a bystander killing effect on CYP2E1-negative A375 cells during coculture (IC50 values for A375 cells cocultured with BMSC-EGFP and BMSC-CYP2E1 were 4.08 and 2.68 mmol/l, respectively). Intravenously injecting CYP2E1 recombinant adenovirus-loaded BMSCs in mice with established human melanoma managed to target the tumor site, and BMSCs with forced expression of CYP2E1 inhibited the growth of malignant cells in vivo by activating 5-(3,3-dimethyl-1-triazeno)imidazole-4-carboxamide. BMSCs may serve as a platform of P450 gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy for the delivery of chemotherapeutic prodrugs to tumors.

  5. 21 CFR 173.375 - Cetylpyridinium chloride.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Cetylpyridinium chloride. 173.375 Section 173.375 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) FOOD FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION (CONTINUED) SECONDARY DIRECT FOOD ADDITIVES PERMITTED IN FOOD FOR HUMAN...

  6. Methotrexate inhibits the viability of human melanoma cell lines and enhances Fas/Fas-ligand expression, apoptosis and response to interferon-alpha: Rationale for its use in combination therapy

    PubMed Central

    Nihal, Minakshi; Wu, Jianqiang; Wood, Gary S.

    2015-01-01

    Melanoma, a highly aggressive form of cancer, is notoriously resistant to available therapies. Methotrexate (MTX), an antifolate, competitively inhibits DNA synthesis and is effective for several types of cancer. In cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), MTX increases Fas death receptor by decreasing Fas promoter methylation by blocking the synthesis of SAM, the principal methyl donor for DNMTs, resulting in enhanced Fas-mediated apoptosis. The objective of this study was to explore the effects of MTX in human melanoma. MTX variably inhibited the survival of melanoma cells and induced apoptosis as evident by annexin V positivity and senescence associated β-galactosidase activity induction. Furthermore, MTX caused increased transcript and protein levels of extrinsic apoptotic pathway factors Fas and Fas-ligand, albeit at different levels in different cell lines. Our pyrosequencing studies showed that this increased expression of Fas was associated with Fas promoter demethylation. Overall, the ability of MTX to up-regulate Fas/FasL and enhance melanoma apoptosis through extrinsic as well as intrinsic pathways might make it a useful component of novel combination therapies designed to affect multiple melanoma targets simultaneously. In support of this concept, combination therapy with MTX and interferon-alpha (IFNα) induced significantly greater apoptosis in the aggressive A375 cell line than either agent alone. PMID:24862567

  7. ABCB1 identifies a subpopulation of uveal melanoma cells with high metastatic propensity

    PubMed Central

    Landreville, Solange; Agapova, Olga A.; Kneass, Zachary T.; Salesse, Christian; Harbour, J. William

    2011-01-01

    SUMMARY Metastasis of tumor cells to distant organs is the leading cause of death in melanoma. Yet, the mechanisms of metastasis remain poorly understood. One key question is whether all cells in a primary tumor are equally likely to metastasize or whether subpopulations of cells preferentially give rise to metastases. Here, we identified a subpopulation of uveal melanoma cells expressing the multidrug resistance transporter ABCB1 that are highly metastatic compared to ABCB1− bulk tumor cells. ABCB1+ cells also exhibited enhanced clonogenicity, anchorage independent growth, tumorigenicity and mitochondrial activity compared to ABCB1− cells. A375 cutaneous melanoma cells contained a similar subpopulation of highly metastatic ABCB1+ cells. These findings suggest that some uveal melanoma cells have greater potential for metastasis than others, and that a better understanding of such cells may be necessary for more successful therapies for metastatic melanoma. PMID:21575142

  8. SOX2 and nestin expression in human melanoma: an immunohistochemical and experimental study

    PubMed Central

    Laga, Alvaro C.; Zhan, Qian; Weishaupt, Carsten; Ma, Jie; Frank, Markus H.; Murphy, George F.

    2012-01-01

    SOX2 is an embryonic neural crest stem-cell transcription factor recently shown to be expressed in human melanoma and to correlate with experimental tumor growth. SOX2 binds to an enhancer region of the gene that encodes for nestin, also a neural progenitor cell biomarker. To define further the potential relationship between SOX2 and nestin, we examined co-expression patterns in 135 melanomas and 37 melanocytic nevi. Immunohistochemical staining in 27 melanoma tissue sections showed an association between SOX2 positivity, spindle cell shape and a peripheral nestin distribution pattern. In contrast, SOX2-negative cells were predominantly epithelioid, and exhibited a cytoplasmic pattern for nestin. In tissue microarrays, co-expression correlated with tumor progression, with only 11% of nevi co-expressing SOX2 and nestin in contrast to 65% of metastatic melanomas, and preliminarily, with clinical outcome. Human melanoma lines that differentially expressed constitutive SOX2 revealed a positive correlation between SOX2 and nestin expression. Experimental melanomas grown from these respective cell lines in murine subcutis and dermis of xenografted human skin maintained the association between SOX2-positivity, spindle cell shape, and peripheral nestin distribution. Moreover, the cytoplasmic pattern of nestin distribution was observed in xenografts generated from SOX2-knockdown A2058 melanoma cells, in contrast to the periperhal nestin pattern seen in tumors grown from A2058 control cells transfected with non-target shRNA. In aggregate, these data further support a biologically significant linkage between SOX2 and nestin expression in human melanoma. PMID:21410764

  9. Human melanoma metastasis in NSG mice correlates with clinical outcome in patients

    PubMed Central

    Quintana, Elsa; Piskounova, Elena; Shackleton, Mark; Weinberg, Daniel; Eskiocak, Ugur; Fullen, Douglas R.; Johnson, Timothy M.; Morrison, Sean J.

    2015-01-01

    Studies of human cancer metastasis have been limited by a lack of experimental assays in which cancer cells from patients metastasize in vivo in a way that correlates with clinical outcome. This makes it impossible to study intrinsic differences in the metastatic properties of cancers from different patients. We recently developed an assay in which human melanomas readily engraft in NOD/SCID IL2Rγnull (NSG) mice (1, 2). Here we show that melanomas from 25 patients exhibited reproducible differences in the rate of spontaneous metastasis after transplantation into NSG mice and that these differences correlated with clinical outcome in the patients. Stage IIIB/C melanomas that formed distant metastases within 22 months in patients also formed tumors that metastasized widely in NSG mice, while stage IIIB/C melanomas that did not form distant metastases within 22–50 months in patients metastasized more slowly in NSG mice. These differences in the efficiency of metastasis correlated with the frequency of circulating melanoma cells in the blood of NSG mice, suggesting that the rate of entry into the blood is one factor that limits the rate of metastasis. NSG mice can therefore be used to study the metastasis of human melanomas in vivo, revealing intrinsic differences among stage III melanomas in their ability to circulate/survive in the blood and metastasize. PMID:23136044

  10. Hedgehog-GLI signaling drives self-renewal and tumorigenicity of human melanoma-initiating cells.

    PubMed

    Santini, Roberta; Vinci, Maria C; Pandolfi, Silvia; Penachioni, Junia Y; Montagnani, Valentina; Olivito, Biagio; Gattai, Riccardo; Pimpinelli, Nicola; Gerlini, Gianni; Borgognoni, Lorenzo; Stecca, Barbara

    2012-09-01

    The question of whether cancer stem/tumor-initiating cells (CSC/TIC) exist in human melanomas has arisen in the last few years. Here, we have used nonadherent spheres and the aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzymatic activity to enrich for CSC/TIC in a collection of human melanomas obtained from a broad spectrum of sites and stages. We find that melanomaspheres display extensive in vitro self-renewal ability and sustain tumor growth in vivo, generating human melanoma xenografts that recapitulate the phenotypic composition of the parental tumor. Melanomaspheres express high levels of Hedgehog (HH) pathway components and of embryonic pluripotent stem cell factors SOX2, NANOG, OCT4, and KLF4. We show that human melanomas contain a subset of cells expressing high ALDH activity (ALDH(high)), which is endowed with higher self-renewal and tumorigenic abilities than the ALDH(low) population. A good correlation between the number of ALDH(high) cells and sphere formation efficiency was observed. Notably, both pharmacological inhibition of HH signaling by the SMOOTHENED (SMO) antagonist cyclopamine and GLI antagonist GANT61 and stable expression of shRNA targeting either SMO or GLI1 result in a significant decrease in melanoma stem cell self-renewal in vitro and a reduction in the number of ALDH(high) melanoma stem cells. Finally, we show that interference with the HH-GLI pathway through lentiviral-mediated silencing of SMO and GLI1 drastically diminishes tumor initiation of ALDH(high) melanoma stem cells. In conclusion, our data indicate an essential role of the HH-GLI1 signaling in controlling self-renewal and tumor initiation of melanoma CSC/TIC. Targeting HH-GLI1 is thus predicted to reduce the melanoma stem cell compartment. Copyright © 2012 AlphaMed Press.

  11. MiR-375, a microRNA related to diabetes.

    PubMed

    Li, Xueling

    2014-01-01

    MiR-375 is an important small non-coding RNA that is specifically expressed in islet cells of the pancreas. miR-375 is required for normal pancreatic genesis and influences not only β-cell mass but also α-cell mass. miR-375 is also important to glucose-regulated insulin secretion through the regulation of the expression of Mtpn and Pdk1 genes. When human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) differentiate into endodermal lineages, miR-375 is highly expressed in the definitive endoderm, which suggests that miR-375 may have a distinct role in early development. miR-375 plays an important role in the complex regulatory network of pancreatic development, which could be regulated by pancreatic genes, such as NeuroD1, Ngn3, Pdx1 and Hnf6; additionally, miR-375 regulates genes related to pancreas development, cell growth and proliferation and insulin secretion genes to exert its function. Because of the special role of miR-375, it may be a potential target to treat diabetes. Antagonising miR-375 may enhance the effects of exendin-4 in patients, and controlling the expression of miR-375 could assist mature hESCs-derived β-cells. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Zebrafish Melanoma.

    PubMed

    Kaufman, Charles K

    2016-01-01

    Melanoma skin cancer is a potentially deadly disease in humans and has remained extremely difficult to treat once it has metastasized. In just the last 10 years, a number of models of melanoma have been developed in the zebrafish that are biologically faithful to the human disease and have already yielded important insights into the fundamental biology of melanoma and offered new potential avenues for treatment. With the diversity and breadth of the molecular genetic tools available in the zebrafish, these melanoma models will continue to be refined and expanded upon to keep pace with the rapidly evolving field of melanoma biology.

  13. Investigating the role of melanin in UVA/UVB- and hydrogen peroxide-induced cellular and mitochondrial ROS production and mitochondrial DNA damage in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Swalwell, Helen; Latimer, Jennifer; Haywood, Rachel M; Birch-Machin, Mark A

    2012-02-01

    Skin cancer incidence is dramatically increasing worldwide, with exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) a predominant factor. The UVA component initiates oxidative stress in human skin, although its exact role in the initiation of skin cancer, particularly malignant melanoma, remains unclear and is controversial because there is evidence for a melanin-dependent mechanism in UVA-linked melanoma studies. Nonpigmented (CHL-1, A375), moderately pigmented (FM55, SKmel23), and highly pigmented (FM94, hyperpigmented FM55) human melanoma cell lines have been used to investigate UVA-induced production of reactive oxygen species using FACS analysis, at both the cellular (dihydrorhodamine-123) and the mitochondrial (MitoSOX) level, where most cellular stress is generated. For the first time, downstream mtDNA damage (utilizing a quantitative long-PCR assay) has been investigated. Using UVA, UVB, and H(2)O(2) as cellular stressors, we have explored the dual roles of melanin as a photoprotector and photosensitizer. The presence of melanin has no influence over cellular oxidative stress generation, whereas, in contrast, melanin protects against mitochondrial superoxide generation and mtDNA damage (one-way ANOVA with post hoc Tukey's analysis, P<0.001). We show that if melanin binds directly to DNA, it acts as a direct photosensitizer of mtDNA damage during UVA irradiation (P<0.001), providing evidence for the dual roles of melanin. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Regulator of G protein signaling 4 inhibits human melanoma cells proliferation and invasion through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway

    PubMed Central

    Xue, Xiaotong; Wang, Lihua; Meng, Xianguang; Jiao, Jing; Dang, Ningning

    2017-01-01

    Melanoma is a tumor produced by skin melanocytes, which has a high metastatic rate and poor prognosis. So far, plenty of work has been done on melanoma, but mechanisms underlying melanoma development have not been fully elucidated. Here we identified regulator of G protein signaling 4(RGS4) as novel therapeutic target for malignant melanoma and its regulating effect on melanoma. We found that endogenous RGS4 expression was much lower in melanoma tissues and cells. In A375 cell line with low endogenous RGS4 expression, the function of RGS4 was detected by up-regulation its expression with pcDNA3.1-RGS4 and knockdown its expression with siRNA. Our results showed that RGS4 could significantly reduce the proliferation, migration and invasion of melanoma cells. RGS4 is an important regulator for the apoptosis of melanocyte, and the apoptosis rate is significantly decreased in low RGS4 enviroment. RGS4 induced non-activation of PI3K/AKT pathway, resulting in decreased expression of E2F1 and Cyclin D1, thus constraining cell proliferation and invasion. These results were further confirmed in M14 cell lines. Collectively, our findings show that RGS4 plays an important role in multiple cellular functions of melanoma development and is valuable to be a therapeutic target. PMID:29108247

  15. Lansoprazole induces sensitivity to suboptimal doses of paclitaxel in human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Azzarito, Tommaso; Venturi, Giulietta; Cesolini, Albino; Fais, Stefano

    2015-01-28

    Tumor acidity is now considered an important determinant of drug-resistance and tumor progression, and anti-acidic approaches, such as Proton Pump inhibitors (PPIs), have demonstrated promising antitumor and chemo-sensitizing efficacy. The main purpose of the present study was to evaluate the possible PPI-induced sensitization of human melanoma cells to Paclitaxel (PTX). Our results show that PTX and the PPI Lansoprazole (LAN) combination was extremely efficient against metastatic melanoma cells, as compared to the single treatments, both in vitro and in vivo. We also showed that acidity plays an important role on the anti-tumor activity of these drugs, being detrimental for PTX activity, while crucial for the synergistic effect of PTX following pretreatment with LAN, due to its nature of pro-drug needing protonation for a full activation. We obtained straightforward results in a human melanoma xenograft model combining well tolerated LAN doses with suboptimal and poorly toxic doses of PTX. With this study we provide a clear evidence that the PPI LAN may be included in new combined therapy of human melanoma together with low doses of PTX. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Rare Variant, Gene-Based Association Study of Hereditary Melanoma Using Whole-Exome Sequencing.

    PubMed

    Artomov, Mykyta; Stratigos, Alexander J; Kim, Ivana; Kumar, Raj; Lauss, Martin; Reddy, Bobby Y; Miao, Benchun; Daniela Robles-Espinoza, Carla; Sankar, Aravind; Njauw, Ching-Ni; Shannon, Kristen; Gragoudas, Evangelos S; Marie Lane, Anne; Iyer, Vivek; Newton-Bishop, Julia A; Timothy Bishop, D; Holland, Elizabeth A; Mann, Graham J; Singh, Tarjinder; Daly, Mark J; Tsao, Hensin

    2017-12-01

    Extraordinary progress has been made in our understanding of common variants in many diseases, including melanoma. Because the contribution of rare coding variants is not as well characterized, we performed an exome-wide, gene-based association study of familial cutaneous melanoma (CM) and ocular melanoma (OM). Using 11 990 jointly processed individual DNA samples, whole-exome sequencing was performed, followed by large-scale joint variant calling using GATK (Genome Analysis ToolKit). PLINK/SEQ was used for statistical analysis of genetic variation. Four models were used to estimate the association among different types of variants. In vitro functional validation was performed using three human melanoma cell lines in 2D and 3D proliferation assays. In vivo tumor growth was assessed using xenografts of human melanoma A375 melanoma cells in nude mice (eight mice per group). All statistical tests were two-sided. Strong signals were detected for CDKN2A (Pmin = 6.16 × 10-8) in the CM cohort (n = 273) and BAP1 (Pmin = 3.83 × 10-6) in the OM (n = 99) cohort. Eleven genes that exhibited borderline association (P < 10-4) were independently validated using The Cancer Genome Atlas melanoma cohort (379 CM, 47 OM) and a matched set of 3563 European controls with CDKN2A (P = .009), BAP1 (P = .03), and EBF3 (P = 4.75 × 10-4), a candidate risk locus, all showing evidence of replication. EBF3 was then evaluated using germline data from a set of 132 familial melanoma cases and 4769 controls of UK origin (joint P = 1.37 × 10-5). Somatically, loss of EBF3 expression correlated with progression, poorer outcome, and high MITF tumors. Functionally, induction of EBF3 in melanoma cells reduced cell growth in vitro, retarded tumor formation in vivo, and reduced MITF levels. The results of this large rare variant germline association study further define the mutational landscape of hereditary melanoma and implicate EBF3 as a possible CM predisposition gene.

  17. UVB induces atypical melanocytic lesions and melanoma in human skin.

    PubMed Central

    Atillasoy, E. S.; Seykora, J. T.; Soballe, P. W.; Elenitsas, R.; Nesbit, M.; Elder, D. E.; Montone, K. T.; Sauter, E.; Herlyn, M.

    1998-01-01

    A direct causal relationship between ultraviolet (UV) light in the B range and melanoma development has not been demonstrated in humans; this study aims to establish causality. A total of 158 RAG-1 mice, grafted with human newborn foreskin, were separated into four groups and observed for a median of 10 months: 1) no treatment, 2) a single treatment with 7,12-dimethyl(a)benzanthracene (DMBA), 3) UVB irradiation at 500 J/m2 alone, three times weekly, and 4) a combination of DMBA and UVB. Twenty-three percent of 40 normal human skin grafts treated with UVB only and 38% of 48 grafts treated with the combination of DMBA and UVB developed solar lentigines within 5 to 10 months of treatment. Melanocytic hyperplasia was found in 73% of all UVB-treated xenografts. Histological melanocytic changes resembling lentigo and lentigo maligna were seen in several skin grafts treated with both DMBA and UVB. In one graft of an animal treated with a combination of DMBA and UVB, a human malignant melanoma, nodular type, developed. This experimental system demonstrates that chronic UVB irradiation with or without an initiating carcinogen can induce human melanocytic lesions, including melanoma. Images Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 PMID:9588887

  18. Intercellular crosstalk in human malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Dvořánková, Barbora; Szabo, Pavol; Kodet, Ondřej; Strnad, Hynek; Kolář, Michal; Lacina, Lukáš; Krejčí, Eliška; Naňka, Ondřej; Šedo, Aleksi; Smetana, Karel

    2017-05-01

    Incidence of malignant melanoma is increasing globally. While the initial stages of tumors can be easily treated by a simple surgery, the therapy of advanced stages is rather limited. Melanoma cells spread rapidly through the body of a patient to form multiple metastases. Consequently, the survival rate is poor. Therefore, emphasis in melanoma research is given on early diagnosis and development of novel and more potent therapeutic options. The malignant melanoma is arising from melanocytes, cells protecting mitotically active keratinocytes against damage caused by UV light irradiation. The melanocytes originate in the neural crest and consequently migrate to the epidermis. The relationship between the melanoma cells, the melanocytes, and neural crest stem cells manifests when the melanoma cells are implanted to an early embryo: they use similar migratory routes as the normal neural crest cells. Moreover, malignant potential of these melanoma cells is overdriven in this experimental model, probably due to microenvironmental reprogramming. This observation demonstrates the crucial role of the microenvironment in melanoma biology. Indeed, malignant tumors in general represent complex ecosystems, where multiple cell types influence the growth of genetically mutated cancer cells. This concept is directly applicable to the malignant melanoma. Our review article focuses on possible strategies to modify the intercellular crosstalk in melanoma that can be employed for therapeutic purposes.

  19. Interleukin 8 mediates bcl-xL-induced enhancement of human melanoma cell dissemination and angiogenesis in a zebrafish xenograft model.

    PubMed

    Gabellini, Chiara; Gómez-Abenza, Elena; Ibáñez-Molero, Sofia; Tupone, Maria Grazia; Pérez-Oliva, Ana B; de Oliveira, Sofia; Del Bufalo, Donatella; Mulero, Victoriano

    2018-02-01

    The protein bcl-xL is able to enhance the secretion of the proinflammatory chemokine interleukin 8 (CXCL8) in human melanoma lines. In this study, we investigate whether the bcl-xL/CXCL8 axis is important for promoting melanoma angiogenesis and aggressiveness in vivo, using angiogenesis and xenotransplantation assays in zebrafish embryos. When injected into wild-type embryos, bcl-xL-overexpressing melanoma cells showed enhanced dissemination and angiogenic activity compared with control cells. Human CXCL8 protein elicited a strong proangiogenic activity in zebrafish embryos and zebrafish Cxcr2 receptor was identified as the mediator of CXCL8 proangiogenic activity using a morpholino-mediated gene knockdown. However, human CXCL8 failed to induce neutrophil recruitment in contrast to its zebrafish homolog. Interestingly, the greater aggressiveness of bcl-xL-overexpressing melanoma cells was mediated by an autocrine effect of CXCL8 on its CXCR2 receptor, as confirmed by an shRNA approach. Finally, correlation studies of gene expression and survival analyses using microarray and RNA-seq public databases of human melanoma biopsies revealed that bcl-xL expression significantly correlated with the expression of CXCL8 and other markers of melanoma progression. More importantly, a high level of co-expression of bcl-xL and CXCL8 was associated with poor prognosis in melanoma patients. In conclusion, these data demonstrate the existence of an autocrine CXCL8/CXCR2 signaling pathway in the bcl-xL-induced melanoma aggressiveness, encouraging the development of novel therapeutic approaches for high bcl-xL-expressing melanoma. © 2017 UICC.

  20. Effects of combined treatment with interferon and mezerein on melanogenesis and growth in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Fisher, P B; Prignoli, D R; Hermo, H; Weinstein, I B; Pestka, S

    1985-01-01

    We have analyzed the effects of various human interferons produced in bacteria and the antileukemic compound mezerein (MEZ) on growth and melanogenesis in human melanoma cells. In four human melanoma cell lines, recombinant human fibroblast interferon (IFN-beta) was more active than recombinant human leukocyte interferons (IFN-alpha A, IFN-alpha D, or IFN-alpha A/D (Bgl] in inhibiting cellular proliferation. When monolayer cultures were exposed to 1000 IU/ml IFN-beta for four days the degree of growth inhibition in the different melanoma cell lines varied between 94 and 26%. Similarly, four days growth in medium containing 10 ng/ml MEZ resulted in either no inhibition of growth or as much as 53% inhibition of growth, depending on the specific melanoma cell line tested. MEZ induced dendrite-like processes, cytoplasmic projections morphologically similar to those normally found in neurons and melanocytes, in all four melanoma cell lines, whereas none of the interferons tested had this effect. The combination of interferon and MEZ resulted in a dramatic inhibition in cellular proliferation in all four melanoma cell lines. When cell extracts were assayed for melanin content, a marker of melanoma cell differentiation, the combination of IFN-beta and MEZ resulted in higher levels of melanin than with either agent alone. Dendrite-like formation was also prominent in the cultures treated with this combination. These results indicate that the antiproliferative effect of interferon toward human melanoma dells can be enhanced by treatment with MEZ and that this effect is associated with an enhancement of terminal differentiation.

  1. Combined pitavastatin and dacarbazine treatment activates apoptosis and autophagy resulting in synergistic cytotoxicity in melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Al-Qatati, Abeer; Aliwaini, Saeb

    2017-12-01

    Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer and its incidence is increasing faster than any other type of cancer. Whilst dacarbazine (DTIC) is the standard chemotherapy for metastatic melanoma, it has limited success. Statins, including pitavastatin, have been demonstrated to have a range of anti-cancer effects in a number of human cancer cell lines. The present study therefore explored the anti-cancer activity of combined DTIC and pitavastatin in A375 and WM115 human melanoma cells. Cell survival assays demonstrated that combined DTIC and pitavastatin treatment resulted in synergistic cell death. Cell cycle analyses further revealed that this combined treatment resulted in a G1 cell cycle arrest, as well as a sub-G1 population, indicative of apoptosis. Activation of apoptosis was confirmed by Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate/propidium iodide double-staining and an increase in the levels of active caspase 3 and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that apoptosis occurs through the intrinsic pathway, evident from the release of cytochrome c. Finally, combined DTIC and pitavastatin treatment was demonstrated to also activate autophagy as part of a cell death mechanism. The present study provides novel evidence to suggest that the combined treatment of DTIC and pitavastatin may be effective in the treatment of melanoma.

  2. Combined pitavastatin and dacarbazine treatment activates apoptosis and autophagy resulting in synergistic cytotoxicity in melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Al-Qatati, Abeer; Aliwaini, Saeb

    2017-01-01

    Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer and its incidence is increasing faster than any other type of cancer. Whilst dacarbazine (DTIC) is the standard chemotherapy for metastatic melanoma, it has limited success. Statins, including pitavastatin, have been demonstrated to have a range of anti-cancer effects in a number of human cancer cell lines. The present study therefore explored the anti-cancer activity of combined DTIC and pitavastatin in A375 and WM115 human melanoma cells. Cell survival assays demonstrated that combined DTIC and pitavastatin treatment resulted in synergistic cell death. Cell cycle analyses further revealed that this combined treatment resulted in a G1 cell cycle arrest, as well as a sub-G1 population, indicative of apoptosis. Activation of apoptosis was confirmed by Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate/propidium iodide double-staining and an increase in the levels of active caspase 3 and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that apoptosis occurs through the intrinsic pathway, evident from the release of cytochrome c. Finally, combined DTIC and pitavastatin treatment was demonstrated to also activate autophagy as part of a cell death mechanism. The present study provides novel evidence to suggest that the combined treatment of DTIC and pitavastatin may be effective in the treatment of melanoma. PMID:29344241

  3. CD63 tetraspanin is a negative driver of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Lupia, Antonella; Peppicelli, Silvia; Witort, Ewa; Bianchini, Francesca; Carloni, Vinicio; Pimpinelli, Nicola; Urso, Carmelo; Borgognoni, Lorenzo; Capaccioli, Sergio; Calorini, Lido; Lulli, Matteo

    2014-12-01

    The CD63 tetraspanin is highly expressed in the early stages of melanoma and decreases in advanced lesions, suggesting it as a possible suppressor of tumor progression. We employed loss- and gain-of-gene-function approaches to investigate the role of CD63 in melanoma progression and acquisition of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) program. We used two human melanoma cell lines derived from primary tumors and one primary human melanoma cell line isolated from a cutaneous metastasis, differing by levels of CD63 expression. CD63-silenced melanoma cells showed enhanced motility and invasiveness with downregulation of E-cadherin and upregulation of N-cadherin and Snail. In parallel experiments, transient and stable ectopic expression of CD63 resulted in a robust reduction of cell motility, invasiveness, and protease activities, which was proportional to the increase in CD63 protein level. Transfected cells overexpressing the highest level of CD63 when transplanted into immunodeficient mice showed a reduced incidence and rate of tumor growth. Moreover, these cells showed a reduction of N-cadherin, Vimentin, Zeb1, and a-SMA, and a significant resistance to undergo an EMT program both in basal condition and in the following stimulation with TGFβ. Thus, our results establish a previously unreported mechanistic link between the tetraspanin CD63 and EMT abrogation in melanoma.

  4. Loss of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins as a determinant of polyamine analog-induced apoptosis in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Chen, Ying; Kramer, Debora L; Li, Fengzhi; Porter, Carl W

    2003-08-07

    We have previously shown that the clinically relevant polyamine analog N1,N11-diethylnorspermine (DENSPM) causes rapid apoptosis in human melanoma SK-MEL-28 cells via a series of events that include mitochondrial release of cytochrome c and activation of the caspase cascade. Upstream to these events, DENSPM downregulates polyamine biosynthesis and potently upregulates polyamine catabolism at the level of spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase (SSAT). In searching for downstream effectors that either contribute to or abrogate the apoptotic response, we observed that DENSPM treatment of SK-MEL-28 cells for 30 h led to cytosolic release of Smac/Diablo, a mitochondrial protein known to bind and inhibit the function of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs). Subsequently, we found that DENSPM markedly lowered survivin and ML-IAP protein (but not XIAP) levels by 18 h via an apparently Smac/Diablo-independent pathway. Proteasome inhibitors fully prevented survivin and ML-IAP protein loss as well as apoptosis, suggesting that the proteasome-mediated degradation of survivin and ML-IAP is causally linked to the cellular outcome. We also observed that structural analogs of DENSPM which differentially induced SSAT and apoptosis lowered survivin and ML-IAP levels in a manner that correlated with enzyme activity. The linkage between IAPs and SSAT was more directly established by the finding that selective prevention of SSAT induction by small interfering RNA prevented survivin and ML-IAP loss as well as apoptosis during DENSPM treatment. Among the melanoma cell lines (SK-MEL-28, MALME-3M, A375 and LOX), survivin degradation correlated temporally with the onset of DENSPM induced apoptosis or growth inhibition. By contrast, ML-IAP degradation occurred only during rapid apoptosis seen in SK-MEL-28 cells. These data suggest a sequence of events whereby DENSPM induction of SSAT leads to loss of IAP proteins and a more fulminate apoptotic response. The findings implicate survivin

  5. Lansoprazole and carbonic anhydrase IX inhibitors sinergize against human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Federici, Cristina; Lugini, Luana; Marino, Maria Lucia; Carta, Fabrizio; Iessi, Elisabetta; Azzarito, Tommaso; Supuran, Claudiu T; Fais, Stefano

    2016-01-01

    Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) reduce tumor acidity and therefore resistance of tumors to drugs. Carbonic Anhydrase IX (CA IX) inhibitors have proven to be effective against tumors, while tumor acidity might impair their full effectiveness. To analyze the effect of PPI/CA IX inhibitors combined treatment against human melanoma cells. The combination of Lansoprazole (LAN) and CA IX inhibitors (FC9-399A and S4) has been investigated in terms of cell proliferation inhibition and cell death in human melanoma cells. The combination of these inhibitors was more effective than the single treatments in both inhibiting cell proliferation and in inducing cell death in human melanoma cells. These results represent the first successful attempt in combining two different proton exchanger inhibitors. This is the first evidence on the effectiveness of a new approach against tumors based on the combination of PPI and CA IX inhibitors, thus providing an alternative strategy against tumors.

  6. Dissection of stromal and cancer cell-derived signals in melanoma xenografts before and after treatment with DMXAA

    PubMed Central

    Henare, K; Wang, L; Wang, L-Cs; Thomsen, L; Tijono, S; Chen, C-Jj; Winkler, S; Dunbar, P R; Print, C; Ching, L-M

    2012-01-01

    Background: The non-malignant cells of the tumour stroma have a critical role in tumour biology. Studies dissecting the interplay between cancer cells and stromal cells are required to further our understanding of tumour progression and methods of intervention. For proof-of-principle of a multi-modal approach to dissect the differential effects of treatment on cancer cells and stromal cells, we analysed the effects of the stromal-targeting agent 5,6-dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid on melanoma xenografts. Methods: Flow cytometry and multi-colour immunofluorescence staining was used to analyse leukocyte numbers in xenografts. Murine-specific and human-specific multiplex cytokine panels were used to quantitate cytokines produced by stromal and melanoma cells, respectively. Human and mouse Affymetrix microarrays were used to separately identify melanoma cell-specific and stromal cell-specific gene expression. Results: 5,6-Dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid activated pro-inflammatory signalling pathways and cytokine expression from both stromal and cancer cells, leading to neutrophil accumulation and haemorrhagic necrosis and a delay in tumour re-growth of 26 days in A375 melanoma xenografts. Conclusion: 5,6-Dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid and related analogues may potentially have utility in the treatment of melanoma. The experimental platform used allowed distinction between cancer cells and stromal cells and can be applied to investigate other tumour models and anti-cancer agents. PMID:22415295

  7. Fisetin, a dietary flavonoid, augments the anti-invasive and anti-metastatic potential of sorafenib in melanoma.

    PubMed

    Pal, Harish C; Diamond, Ariana C; Strickland, Leah R; Kappes, John C; Katiyar, Santosh K; Elmets, Craig A; Athar, Mohammad; Afaq, Farrukh

    2016-01-12

    Melanoma is the most aggressive and deadly form of cutaneous neoplasm due to its propensity to metastasize. Oncogenic BRAF drives sustained activation of the BRAF/MEK/ERK (MAPK) pathway and cooperates with PI3K/AKT/mTOR (PI3K) signaling to induce epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), leading to cell invasion and metastasis. Therefore, targeting these pathways is a promising preventive/therapeutic strategy. We have shown that fisetin, a flavonoid, reduces human melanoma cell invasion by inhibiting EMT. In addition, fisetin inhibited melanoma cell proliferation and tumor growth by downregulating the PI3K pathway. In this investigation, we aimed to determine whether fisetin can potentiate the anti-invasive and anti-metastatic effects of sorafenib in BRAF-mutated melanoma. We found that combination treatment (fisetin + sorafenib) more effectively reduced the migration and invasion of BRAF-mutated melanoma cells both in vitro and in raft cultures compared to individual agents. Combination treatment also effectively inhibited EMT as observed by a decrease in N-cadherin, vimentin and fibronectin and an increase in E-cadherin both in vitro and in xenograft tumors. Furthermore, combination therapy effectively inhibited Snail1, Twist1, Slug and ZEB1 protein expression compared to monotherapy. The expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in xenograft tumors was further reduced in combination treatment compared to individual agents. Bioluminescent imaging of athymic mice, intravenously injected with stably transfected CMV-luciferase-ires-puromycin.T2A.EGFP-tagged A375 melanoma cells, demonstrated fewer lung metastases following combination treatment versus monotherapy. Our findings demonstrate that fisetin potentiates the anti-invasive and anti-metastatic effects of sorafenib. Our data suggest that fisetin may be a worthy adjuvant chemotherapy for the management of melanoma.

  8. Fisetin, a dietary flavonoid, augments the anti-invasive and anti-metastatic potential of sorafenib in melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Pal, Harish C.; Diamond, Ariana C.; Strickland, Leah R.; Kappes, John C.; Katiyar, Santosh K.; Elmets, Craig A.; Athar, Mohammad; Afaq, Farrukh

    2016-01-01

    Melanoma is the most aggressive and deadly form of cutaneous neoplasm due to its propensity to metastasize. Oncogenic BRAF drives sustained activation of the BRAF/MEK/ERK (MAPK) pathway and cooperates with PI3K/AKT/mTOR (PI3K) signaling to induce epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), leading to cell invasion and metastasis. Therefore, targeting these pathways is a promising preventive/therapeutic strategy. We have shown that fisetin, a flavonoid, reduces human melanoma cell invasion by inhibiting EMT. In addition, fisetin inhibited melanoma cell proliferation and tumor growth by downregulating the PI3K pathway. In this investigation, we aimed to determine whether fisetin can potentiate the anti-invasive and anti-metastatic effects of sorafenib in BRAF-mutated melanoma. We found that combination treatment (fisetin + sorafenib) more effectively reduced the migration and invasion of BRAF-mutated melanoma cells both in vitro and in raft cultures compared to individual agents. Combination treatment also effectively inhibited EMT as observed by a decrease in N-cadherin, vimentin and fibronectin and an increase in E-cadherin both in vitro and in xenograft tumors. Furthermore, combination therapy effectively inhibited Snail1, Twist1, Slug and ZEB1 protein expression compared to monotherapy. The expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in xenograft tumors was further reduced in combination treatment compared to individual agents. Bioluminescent imaging of athymic mice, intravenously injected with stably transfected CMV-luciferase-ires-puromycin. T2A.EGFP-tagged A375 melanoma cells, demonstrated fewer lung metastases following combination treatment versus monotherapy. Our findings demonstrate that fisetin potentiates the anti-invasive and anti-metastatic effects of sorafenib. Our data suggest that fisetin may be a worthy adjuvant chemotherapy for the management of melanoma. PMID:26517521

  9. Pilot Study of 64Cu(I) for PET Imaging of Melanoma

    DOE PAGES

    Jiang, Lei; Tu, Yingfeng; Hu, Xiang; ...

    2017-05-31

    Currently, 64Cu(II) labeled tracers including 64CuCl 2 have been widely applied in the research of molecular imaging and therapy. Human copper transporter 1 (hCTR1) is the major high affinity copper influx transporter in mammalian cells, and specially responsible for the transportation of Cu(I) not Cu(II). Thus, we investigated the feasible application of 64Cu(I) for PET imaging. 64Cu(II) was reduced to 64Cu(I) with the existence of sodium L-ascorbate, DL-Dithiothreitol or cysteine. Cell uptake and efflux assay was investigated using B16F10 and A375 cell lines, respectively. Small animal PET and biodistribution studies were performed in both B16F10 and A375 tumor-bearing mice. Comparedmore » with 64Cu(II), 64Cu(I) exhibited higher cellular uptake by melanoma, which testified CTR1 specially influx of Cu(I). But, due to oxidation reaction in vivo, no significant difference between 64Cu(I) and 64Cu(II) was observed through PET images and biodistribution. In addition, radiation absorbed doses for major tissues of human were calculated based on the mouse biodistribution. Radiodosimetry calculations for 64/67Cu(I) and 64/67Cu(II) were similar, which suggested that although melanoma were with high radiation absorbed doses, high radioactivity accumulation by liver and kidney should be noticed for the further application. Thus, 64Cu(I) should be further studied to evaluate it as a PET imaging radiotracer.« less

  10. Pilot Study of 64Cu(I) for PET Imaging of Melanoma

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jiang, Lei; Tu, Yingfeng; Hu, Xiang

    Currently, 64Cu(II) labeled tracers including 64CuCl 2 have been widely applied in the research of molecular imaging and therapy. Human copper transporter 1 (hCTR1) is the major high affinity copper influx transporter in mammalian cells, and specially responsible for the transportation of Cu(I) not Cu(II). Thus, we investigated the feasible application of 64Cu(I) for PET imaging. 64Cu(II) was reduced to 64Cu(I) with the existence of sodium L-ascorbate, DL-Dithiothreitol or cysteine. Cell uptake and efflux assay was investigated using B16F10 and A375 cell lines, respectively. Small animal PET and biodistribution studies were performed in both B16F10 and A375 tumor-bearing mice. Comparedmore » with 64Cu(II), 64Cu(I) exhibited higher cellular uptake by melanoma, which testified CTR1 specially influx of Cu(I). But, due to oxidation reaction in vivo, no significant difference between 64Cu(I) and 64Cu(II) was observed through PET images and biodistribution. In addition, radiation absorbed doses for major tissues of human were calculated based on the mouse biodistribution. Radiodosimetry calculations for 64/67Cu(I) and 64/67Cu(II) were similar, which suggested that although melanoma were with high radiation absorbed doses, high radioactivity accumulation by liver and kidney should be noticed for the further application. Thus, 64Cu(I) should be further studied to evaluate it as a PET imaging radiotracer.« less

  11. Efficacy and safety of retreatment with nivolumab in metastatic melanoma patients previously treated with nivolumab.

    PubMed

    Nomura, Motoo; Otsuka, Atsushi; Kondo, Tomohiro; Nagai, Hiroki; Nonomura, Yumi; Kaku, Yo; Matsumoto, Shigemi; Muto, Manabu

    2017-11-01

    Nivolumab is a monoclonal antibody directed against programmed death-1 that has been shown to improve survival in patients with metastatic melanoma. However, the efficacy of nivolumab and other agents in melanoma remains limited. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of retreatment with nivolumab in metastatic melanoma patients who previously progressed on nivolumab. A retrospective review was performed on eight consecutive metastatic melanoma patients retreated with nivolumab who progressed on previous nivolumab. These patients received nivolumab 2 mg/kg every 3 weeks. Best responses to each treatment were assessed using RECIST 1.1. Of eight metastatic melanoma patients, three patients received chemotherapy before first nivolumab. The median first nivolumab treatment period was 4.1 months. During first nivolumab, 3 (37.5%) patients achieved a partial response and 3 (37.5%) patients achieved stable disease as their best response. First nivolumab was discontinued due to disease progression in seven patients and grade 3 colitis in 1 patient. Patients were subsequently treated with ipilimumab (n = 6), vemurafenib (n = 1), or no other medical treatment (n = 1). The median treatment period between first and second nivolumab was 3.0 months. Four patients received radiation therapy between first and second nivolumab. The median second nivolumab treatment period was 4.3 months. Among the eight patients who received second nivolumab, 2 (25%) patients achieved a partial response and 3 (37.5%) patients achieved stable disease as their best response. Second nivolumab was discontinued due to disease progression in seven patients. One patient continues to receive second nivolumab. Among the four patients treated with ipilimumab and radiotherapy between first and second nivolumab, the response rate was 50% and the disease control rate was 75%. This study showed that retreatment with nivolumab is an option for select metastatic melanoma

  12. CD147-targeting siRNA inhibits cell-matrix adhesion of human malignant melanoma cells by phosphorylating focal adhesion kinase.

    PubMed

    Nishibaba, Rie; Higashi, Yuko; Su, Juan; Furukawa, Tatsuhiko; Kawai, Kazuhiro; Kanekura, Takuro

    2012-01-01

    CD147/basigin, highly expressed on the surface of malignant tumor cells including malignant melanoma (MM) cells, plays a critical role in the invasiveness and metastasis of MM. Metastasis is an orchestrated process comprised of multiple steps including adhesion and invasion. Integrin, a major adhesion molecule, co-localizes with CD147/basigin on the cell surface. Using the human MM cell line A375 that highly expresses CD147/basigin, we investigated whether CD147/basigin is involved in adhesion in association with integrin. CD147/basigin was knocked-down using siRNA targeting CD147 to elucidate the role of CD147/basigin. Cell adhesion was evaluated by adhesion assay on matrix-coated plates. The localization of integrin was inspected under a confocal microscope and the expression and phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK), a downstream kinase of integrin, were examined by western blot analysis. Silencing of CD147/basigin in A375 cells by siRNA induced the phosphorylation of FAK at Y397. Integrin identified on the surface of parental cells was distributed in a speckled fashion in the cytoplasm of CD147 knockdown cells, resulting in morphological changes from a round to a polygonal shape with pseudopodial protrusions. Silencing of CD147/basigin in A375 cells clearly weakened their adhesiveness to collagen I and IV. Our results suggest that CD147/basigin regulates the adhesion of MM cells to extracellular matrices and of integrin β1 signaling via the phosphorylation of FAK. © 2011 Japanese Dermatological Association.

  13. Honokiol bis-dichloroacetate (Honokiol DCA) demonstrates activity in vemurafenib-resistant melanoma in vivo.

    PubMed

    Bonner, Michael Y; Karlsson, Isabella; Rodolfo, Monica; Arnold, Rebecca S; Vergani, Elisabetta; Arbiser, Jack L

    2016-03-15

    The majority of human melanomas bears BRAF mutations and thus is treated with inhibitors of BRAF, such as vemurafenib. While patients with BRAF mutations often demonstrate an initial dramatic response to vemurafenib, relapse is extremely common. Thus, novel agents are needed for the treatment of these aggressive melanomas. Honokiol is a small molecule compound derived from Magnolia grandiflora that has activity against solid tumors and hematopoietic neoplasms. In order to increase the lipophilicity of honokiol, we have synthesized honokiol DCA, the dichloroacetate ester of honokiol. In addition, we synthesized a novel fluorinated honokiol analog, bis-trifluoromethyl-bis-(4-hydroxy-3-allylphenyl) methane (hexafluoro). Both compounds exhibited activity against A375 melanoma in vivo, but honokiol DCA was more active. Gene arrays comparing treated with vehicle control tumors demonstrated induction of the respiratory enzyme succinate dehydrogenase B (SDHB) by treatment, suggesting that our honokiol analogs induce respiration in vivo. We then examined its effect against a pair of melanomas, LM36 and LM36R, in which LM36R differs from LM36 in that LM36R has acquired vemurafenib resistance. Honokiol DCA demonstrated in vivo activity against LM36R (vemurafenib resistant) but not against parental LM36. Honokiol DCA and hexafluoro inhibited the phosphorylation of DRP1, thus stimulating a phenotype suggestive of respiration through mitochondrial normalization. Honokiol DCA may act in vemurafenib resistant melanomas to increase both respiration and reactive oxygen generation, leading to activity against aggressive melanoma in vivo.

  14. Obesity-related genetic variants, human pigmentation, and risk of melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Li, Xin; Liang, Liming; Zhang, Mingfeng; Song, Fengju; Nan, Hongmei; Wang, Li-E; Wei, Qingyi; Lee, Jeffrey E.; Amos, Christopher I.; Qureshi, Abrar A.; Han, Jiali

    2013-01-01

    Previous biological studies showed evidence of a genetic link between obesity and pigmentation in both animal models and humans. Our study investigated the individual and joint associations between obesity-related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and both human pigmentation and risk of melanoma. Eight obesity-related SNPs in the FTO, MAP2K5, NEGR1, FLJ35779, ETV5, CADM2, and NUDT3 genes were nominally significantly associated with hair color among 5,876 individuals of European ancestry. The genetic score combining 35 independent obesity-risk loci was significantly associated with darker hair color (beta-coefficient per ten alleles=0.12, P-value=4 10−5). However, single SNPs or genetic scores showed non-significant association with tanning ability. We further examined the SNPs at the FTO locus for their associations with pigmentation and risk of melanoma. Among the 783 SNPs in the FTO gene with imputation R-square quality metric >0.8 using the 1000 genome data set, ten and three independent SNPs were significantly associated with hair color and tanning ability respectively. Moreover, five independent FTO SNPs showed nominally significant association with risk of melanoma in 1,804 cases and 1,026 controls. But none of them was associated with obesity or in linkage disequilibrium with obesity-related variants. FTO locus may confer variation in human pigmentation and risk of melanoma, which may be independent of its effect on obesity. PMID:23539184

  15. ANTIPROLIFERATIVE EFFECT OF INOSITOL HEXAPHOSPHATE ON HUMAN SKIN MELANOMA CELLS IN VITRO.

    PubMed

    Wawszczyk, Joanna; Kapral, Małgorzata; Lodowska, Jolanta; Jesse, Katarzyna; Hollek, Andrzej; Węglarz, Ludmiła

    2015-01-01

    Human malignant melanoma is a highly metastatic tumor with poor prognosis. The majority of metastatic melanomas are resistant to diverse chemotherapeutic agents. Consequently, the search for novel antimelanoma agents continues. In recent years, the interest in plants and their biologically active constituents as a source of novel potential drugs significantly increased. Inositol hexaphosphate (IP6) is a naturally occurring compound that has been shown to inhibit the growth of a wide variety of tumor cells in multiple experimental model systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antiproliferative and cytotoxic influence of IP6 on melanotic melanoma cells in vitro. The A2058 cells used as a model of human skin melanoma malignum were exposed to different concentrations of IP6 (0.1-5 mM) for a various period of time and their growth was determined by sulforhodamine B assay after 24, 48 and 72 h. The cytotoxicity of IP6 was measured at 24 and 72 h by XTT assay. IP6 has been found to cause dose-dependent growth suppression of A2058 melanoma cells. At low concentrations (0.1 and 0.5 mM) it did not exert any influence on the cell proliferation as compared to control cultures. Higher concentrations of IP6 (from 1 to 5 mM) had a statistically significant, suppressive effect on cell proliferation after 24 h incubation. When the experimental time period was increased up to 72 h, statistically significant inhibition of cell proliferation was monitored at all IP6 concentrations used. Data obtained from XTT assay indicated that IP6 had dose- and time-dependent cytotoxic effect on melanoma cells. The results demonstrate the antiproliferative and cytotoxic properties of IP6 in a wide range of concentrations on human A2058 melanoma cells. Hence, it can be suggested that IP6 could have a promising therapeutic significance in treating cancer.

  16. MiR-26b inhibits melanoma cell proliferation and enhances apoptosis by suppressing TRAF5-mediated MAPK activation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Li, Meng; Long, Chaoqin; Yang, Guilan

    2016-03-11

    Alterations in microRNA-26b (miR-26b) expression have been shown to participate in various malignant tumor developments. However, the possible function of miR-26b in human melanoma cells remains unclarified. In this study, quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to explore the expression profiles of miR-26b in melanoma cells. The effect of miR-26b on cell viability was determined by using MTT assays and colony formation assay. The apoptosis levels were evaluated by using Annexin V/fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) apoptosis detection kit and the apoptosis cells were confirmed by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). Luciferase reporter plasmids were constructed to confirm direct targeting. Our study foundmore » that the expression of miR-26b was downregulated in human melanoma specimens. Overexpression of miR-26b significantly increased the anti-proliferative effects and apoptosis in A375 and B16F10 melanoma cells. In addition, luciferase gene reporter assays confirmed that TRAF5 was a direct target gene of miR-26b and the anti-tumor effect of miR-26b in melanoma cells was significantly counteracted by treatment with TRAF5 overexpression. Furthermore, the molecular mechanisms underlying the tumor suppressor of miR-26b in malignant melanomas may be due to the dephosphorylation of MAPK pathway caused by the decrease in TRAF5 expression when miR-26b is up-regulated in melanoma cells. These findings indicate that miR-26b might influence TRAF5-MAPK signaling pathways to facilitate the malignant progression of melanoma cells. - Highlights: • miR-26b is downregulated in human melanomas. • miR-26b suppressed melanoma cell proliferation and enhanced cell apoptosis. • TRAF5 is a direct target of miR-26b and inversely correlates with miR-26b expression. • miR-26b modulated MAPK signaling pathway by targeting TRAF5.« less

  17. Aberrant Cx43 Expression and Mislocalization in Metastatic Human Melanomas.

    PubMed

    Alaga, Katanya C; Crawford, Melissa; Dagnino, Lina; Laird, Dale W

    2017-01-01

    At present, it is unclear if melanocytes contain Cx43 gap junctions and whether Cx43 expression is regulated in melanoma onset and progression. To this end, we cultured pure populations of mouse melanocytes and found that they had no detectable Cx43 and exhibited an inability for dye transfer indicating they were devoid of functional gap junctions. Given the evidence that melanomas acquire the expression of other connexin isoforms during tumor progression, we assessed if Cx43 was also expressed and assembled into gap junctions at any stage of human melanoma onset and progression to distant metastases. Nearly all primary melanomas within the epidermis lacked Cx43. In contrast, nodal metastases expressed low levels of Cx43 which was markedly higher in distant metastases that had invaded vital organs. Importantly, in all stages of melanoma progression, Cx43 could be detected in intracellular compartments but was rarely assembled into gap junctions indicative of functional gap junction channels. Overall, these studies suggest that melanocytes do not form Cx43 homocellular gap junctions and even though Cx43 levels increase during melanoma progression, this connexin rarely assembles into gap junction structures.

  18. Aberrant Cx43 Expression and Mislocalization in Metastatic Human Melanomas

    PubMed Central

    Alaga, Katanya C.; Crawford, Melissa; Dagnino, Lina; Laird, Dale W.

    2017-01-01

    At present, it is unclear if melanocytes contain Cx43 gap junctions and whether Cx43 expression is regulated in melanoma onset and progression. To this end, we cultured pure populations of mouse melanocytes and found that they had no detectable Cx43 and exhibited an inability for dye transfer indicating they were devoid of functional gap junctions. Given the evidence that melanomas acquire the expression of other connexin isoforms during tumor progression, we assessed if Cx43 was also expressed and assembled into gap junctions at any stage of human melanoma onset and progression to distant metastases. Nearly all primary melanomas within the epidermis lacked Cx43. In contrast, nodal metastases expressed low levels of Cx43 which was markedly higher in distant metastases that had invaded vital organs. Importantly, in all stages of melanoma progression, Cx43 could be detected in intracellular compartments but was rarely assembled into gap junctions indicative of functional gap junction channels. Overall, these studies suggest that melanocytes do not form Cx43 homocellular gap junctions and even though Cx43 levels increase during melanoma progression, this connexin rarely assembles into gap junction structures. PMID:28607585

  19. Rare Variant, Gene-Based Association Study of Hereditary Melanoma Using Whole-Exome Sequencing

    PubMed Central

    Artomov, Mykyta; Stratigos, Alexander J; Kim, Ivana; Kumar, Raj; Lauss, Martin; Reddy, Bobby Y; Miao, Benchun; Daniela Robles-Espinoza, Carla; Sankar, Aravind; Njauw, Ching-Ni; Shannon, Kristen; Gragoudas, Evangelos S; Marie Lane, Anne; Iyer, Vivek; Newton-Bishop, Julia A; Timothy Bishop, D; Holland, Elizabeth A; Mann, Graham J; Singh, Tarjinder; Daly, Mark J; Tsao, Hensin

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Background Extraordinary progress has been made in our understanding of common variants in many diseases, including melanoma. Because the contribution of rare coding variants is not as well characterized, we performed an exome-wide, gene-based association study of familial cutaneous melanoma (CM) and ocular melanoma (OM). Methods Using 11 990 jointly processed individual DNA samples, whole-exome sequencing was performed, followed by large-scale joint variant calling using GATK (Genome Analysis ToolKit). PLINK/SEQ was used for statistical analysis of genetic variation. Four models were used to estimate the association among different types of variants. In vitro functional validation was performed using three human melanoma cell lines in 2D and 3D proliferation assays. In vivo tumor growth was assessed using xenografts of human melanoma A375 melanoma cells in nude mice (eight mice per group). All statistical tests were two-sided. Results Strong signals were detected for CDKN2A (Pmin = 6.16 × 10-8) in the CM cohort (n = 273) and BAP1 (Pmin = 3.83 × 10‐6) in the OM (n = 99) cohort. Eleven genes that exhibited borderline association (P < 10‐4) were independently validated using The Cancer Genome Atlas melanoma cohort (379 CM, 47 OM) and a matched set of 3563 European controls with CDKN2A (P = .009), BAP1 (P = .03), and EBF3 (P = 4.75 × 10‐4), a candidate risk locus, all showing evidence of replication. EBF3 was then evaluated using germline data from a set of 132 familial melanoma cases and 4769 controls of UK origin (joint P = 1.37 × 10‐5). Somatically, loss of EBF3 expression correlated with progression, poorer outcome, and high MITF tumors. Functionally, induction of EBF3 in melanoma cells reduced cell growth in vitro, retarded tumor formation in vivo, and reduced MITF levels. Conclusions The results of this large rare variant germline association study further define the mutational landscape of hereditary melanoma and

  20. Synthesis and characterization of a novel radioiodinated phenylacetamide and its homolog as theranostic agents for malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Chang, Chih-Chao; Chang, Chih-Hsien; Shen, Chih-Chieh; Chen, Chuan-Lin; Liu, Ren-Shyan; Lin, Ming-Hsien; Wang, Hsin-Ell

    2016-01-01

    Melanin is an attractive target for the diagnosis and treatment of malignant melanoma. This study reports the preparation and biological characterizations of N-(2-(diethylamino)ethyl)-2-(3-(123/131)I-iodo-4- hydroxyphenyl)acetamide and N-(2-(diethylamino)ethyl)-3-(3-(123/131)I-iodo-4-hydroxyphenyl)propanamide (123/131)I-IHPA and 123/131I-IHPP) as novel melanin-specific theranostic agents. These two tracers were hydrophilic, exhibited good serum stability and high binding affinity to melanin. In vitro and in vivo studies revealed rapid, high and tenacious uptakes of both 131I-IHPA and 131I-IHPP in melanotic B16F0 cell line and in C57BL/6 mice bearing B16F0 melanoma, but not in amelanonic A375 cell line and tumors. Small-animal SPECT imaging also clearly delineate B16F0 melanoma since 1 h postinjection of 123I-IHPA and 123I-IHPP in tumor-bearing mice. Owing to the favorable biodistribution of 131I-IHPA and 131I-IHPP after intravenous administration, the estimated absorption dose was low in most normal organs and relatively high in melanotic tumor. The melanin-specific binding ability, sustained tumor retention, fast normal tissues clearance and acceptable projected human dosimetry supported that these two tracers are promising theranostic agents for melanin-positive melanoma.

  1. The Marine Fungal Metabolite, Dicitrinone B, Induces A375 Cell Apoptosis through the ROS-Related Caspase Pathway

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Li; Gong, Mei-Wei; Peng, Zhen-Fei; Zhou, Tong; Ying, Min-Gang; Zheng, Qiu-Hong; Liu, Qin-Ying; Zhang, Qi-Qing

    2014-01-01

    Dicitrinone B, a rare carbon-bridged citrinin dimer, was isolated from the marine-derived fungus, Penicillium citrinum. It was reported to have antitumor effects on tumor cells previously; however, the details of the mechanism remain unclear. In this study, we found that dicitrinone B inhibited the proliferation of multiple tumor types. Among them, the human malignant melanoma cell, A375, was confirmed to be the most sensitive. Morphologic evaluation, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis rate analysis results showed that dicitrinone B significantly induced A375 cell apoptosis. Subsequent observation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) reduction revealed that the apoptosis induced by dicitrinone B may be triggered by over-producing ROS. Further studies indicated that the apoptosis was associated with both intrinsic and extrinsic apoptosis pathways under the regulation of Bcl-2 family proteins. Caspase-9, caspase-8 and caspase-3 were activated during the process, leading to PARP cleavage. The pan-caspase inhibitor, Z-VAD-FMK, could reverse dicitrinone B-induced apoptosis, suggesting that it is a caspase-dependent pathway. Our data for the first time showed that dicitrinone B inhibits the proliferation of tumor cells by inducing cell apoptosis. Moreover, compared with the first-line chemotherapy drug, 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu), dicitrinone B showed much more potent anticancer efficacy, suggesting that it might serve as a potential antitumor agent. PMID:24699111

  2. Overexpression of the anti-apoptotic protein BAG3 in human choroidal melanoma: A case report.

    PubMed

    Yunoki, Tatsuya; Tabuchi, Yoshiaki; Kondo, Takashi; Ishii, Yoko; Hayashi, Atsushi

    2017-06-01

    Bcl-2-associated athanogene 3 (BAG3), a co-chaperone of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), exerts anti-apoptotic effects in various malignant tumors. However, relationships between choroidal melanoma and BAG3 are poorly studied. This study investigated the expression of BAG3 in a case of human choroidal melanoma. Funduscopy, computed tomography, and single-photon emission computed tomography with the intravenous injection of N-isopropyl-p-[ 123 I] iodoamphetamine strongly indicated choroidal melanoma in a 68-year-old woman. Accordingly, we carried out an enucleation and pathological diagnosis. Proteins and total RNA were extracted from normal retinochoroidal and tumor tissues. Proteins were also extracted from ocular nevus tissues of other patients. We examined the expression of BAG3 protein and mRNA using Western blotting and the real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, respectively. Immunohistochemical stains were positive for melan-A, HMB-45, and S-100. Histopathology confirmed a choroidal melanoma. The expression of BAG3 protein and mRNA in the choroidal melanoma tissue was upregulated with respect to both normal retinochoroidal tissue and ocular nevus tissues from other patients. Because BAG3 may inhibit apoptosis of choroidal melanoma and facilitate its survival, overexpression of this gene product may be a prognostic marker and therapeutic target.

  3. Odontogenic ameloblast-associated protein (ODAM) inhibits growth and migration of human melanoma cells and elicits PTEN elevation and inactivation of PI3K/AKT signaling

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background The Odontogenic Ameloblast-associated Protein (ODAM) is expressed in a wide range of normal epithelial, and neoplastic tissues, and we have posited that ODAM serves as a novel prognostic biomarker for breast cancer and melanoma. Transfection of ODAM into breast cancer cells yields suppression of cellular growth, motility, and in vivo tumorigenicity. Herein we have extended these studies to the effects of ODAM on cultured melanoma cell lines. Methods The A375 and C8161 melanoma cell lines were stably transfected with ODAM and assayed for properties associated with tumorigenicity including cell growth, motility, and extracellular matrix adhesion. In addition, ODAM–transfected cells were assayed for signal transduction via AKT which promotes cell proliferation and survival in many neoplasms. Results ODAM expression in A375 and C8161 cells strongly inhibited cell growth and motility in vitro, increased cell adhesion to extracellular matrix, and yielded significant cytoskeletal/morphologic rearrangement. Furthermore, AKT activity was downregulated by ODAM expression while an increase was noted in expression of the PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homolog on chromosome 10) tumor suppressor gene, an antagonist of AKT activation. Increased PTEN in ODAM-expressing cells was associated with increases in PTEN mRNA levels and de novo protein synthesis. Silencing of PTEN expression yielded recovery of AKT activity in ODAM-expressing melanoma cells. Similar PTEN elevation and inhibition of AKT by ODAM was observed in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells while ODAM expression had no effect in PTEN-deficient BT-549 breast cancer cells. Conclusions The apparent anti-neoplastic effects of ODAM in cultured melanoma and breast cancer cells are associated with increased PTEN expression, and suppression of AKT activity. This association should serve to clarify the clinical import of ODAM expression and any role it may serve as an indicator of tumor behavior. PMID:23648148

  4. Serum sialyltransferase and liver catalase activity in cachectic nude mice bearing a human malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Kondo, Y; Sato, K; Ueyama, Y; Ohsawa, N

    1981-07-01

    Cachexia is rare in nude mice bearing human malignant tumors even when the transplanted tumors become as large as the body size of the host. In our series on heterotransplantation of a variety of human malignant tumors into nude mice, a malignant melanoma (SEKI) was found to induce severe body weight loss in the host at the early stage of transplantation. There was no electrolyte disturbance, hyper- or hypoadrenocorticism, hyperthyroidism, or destruction of cells of vital organs to account for the weight loss. Moreover, no evidence was obtained for concomitant infection with bacteria, Mycoplasma or fungi. These cachectic mice revealed remarkably increased levels of serum sialyltransferase and decreased liver catalase activity. The removal of tumor tissues from these mice resulted in prompt recovery of body weight, serum sialyltransferase, and liver catalase activity within 1 to 2 weeks. On the basis of the results obtained, the SEKI melanoma was thought to have produced a pathophysiological state in host nude mice which was very similar to that of cachexia in cancer patients. Nude mice bearing transplants of SEKI melanoma may provide a useful system for the study of cancer cachexia in humans.

  5. The 14-3-3σ gene promoter is methylated in both human melanocytes and melanoma

    PubMed Central

    2009-01-01

    Background Recent evidence demonstrates that 14-3-3σ acts as a tumor suppressor gene inactivated by methylation of its 5' CpG islands in epithelial tumor cells, while remaining un-methylated in normal human epithelia. The methylation analysis of 14-3-3σ has been largely overlooked in melanoma. Methods The methylation status of 14-3-3σ CpG island in melanocytes and melanoma cells was analyzed by methylation-specific sequencing (MSS) and quantitative methylation-specific PCR (Q-MSP). 14-3-3σ mRNA and protein expression in cell lines was detected by real-time RT-PCR and western blot. Melanoma cells were also treated by 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (DAC), a demethylating agent, and/or histone deacetylase inhibitor, Trichostatin A (TSA), to evaluate their effects on 14-3-3σ gene expression. Results 14-3-3σ is hypermethylated in both human melanocytes and most melanoma cells in a lineage-specific manner, resulting in the silencing of 14-3-3σ gene expression and the active induction of 14-3-3σ mRNA and protein expression following treatment with DAC. We also observed a synergistic effect upon gene expression when DAC was combined with TSA. The promoter methylation status of 14-3-3σ was analyzed utilizing Q-MSP in 20 melanoma tissue samples and 10 cell lines derived from these samples, showing that the majority of melanoma samples maintain their hypermethylation status of the 14-3-3σ gene. Conclusion 14-3-3σ is hypermethylated in human melanoma in a cell-linage specific manner. Spontaneous demethylation and re-expression of 14-3-3σ is a rare event in melanoma, indicating 14-3-3σ might have a tentative role in the pathogenesis of melanoma. PMID:19473536

  6. Vaccination with Irradiated Autologous Melanoma Cells Engineered to Secrete Human Granulocyte--Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor Generates Potent Antitumor Immunity in Patients with Metastatic Melanoma

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Soiffer, Robert; Lynch, Thomas; Mihm, Martin; Jung, Ken; Rhuda, Catherine; Schmollinger, Jan C.; Hodi, F. Stephen; Liebster, Laura; Lam, Prudence; Mentzer, Steven; Singer, Samuel; Tanabe, Kenneth K.; Benedict Cosimi, A.; Duda, Rosemary; Sober, Arthur; Bhan, Atul; Daley, John; Neuberg, Donna; Parry, Gordon; Rokovich, Joseph; Richards, Laurie; Drayer, Jan; Berns, Anton; Clift, Shirley; Cohen, Lawrence K.; Mulligan, Richard C.; Dranoff, Glenn

    1998-10-01

    We conducted a Phase I clinical trial investigating the biologic activity of vaccination with irradiated autologous melanoma cells engineered to secrete human granulocyte--macrophage colony-stimulating factor in patients with metastatic melanoma. Immunization sites were intensely infiltrated with T lymphocytes, dendritic cells, macrophages, and eosinophils in all 21 evaluable patients. Although metastatic lesions resected before vaccination were minimally infiltrated with cells of the immune system in all patients, metastatic lesions resected after vaccination were densely infiltrated with T lymphocytes and plasma cells and showed extensive tumor destruction (at least 80%), fibrosis, and edema in 11 of 16 patients examined. Antimelanoma cytotoxic T cell and antibody responses were associated with tumor destruction. These results demonstrate that vaccination with irradiated autologous melanoma cells engineered to secrete granulocyte--macrophage colony-stimulating factor stimulates potent antitumor immunity in humans with metastatic melanoma.

  7. Preclinical evaluation of melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1-R) specific 68Ga- and 44Sc-labeled DOTA-NAPamide in melanoma imaging.

    PubMed

    Nagy, Gábor; Dénes, Noémi; Kis, Adrienn; Szabó, Judit P; Berényi, Ervin; Garai, Ildikó; Bai, Péter; Hajdu, István; Szikra, Dezső; Trencsényi, György

    2017-08-30

    Alpha melanocyte stimulating hormone (α-MSH) enhances melanogenesis in melanoma malignum by binding to melanocortin-1 receptors (MC1-R). Earlier studies demonstrated that alpha-MSH analog NAPamide molecule specifically binds to MC1-R receptor. Radiolabeled NAPamide is a promising radiotracer for the non-invasive detection of melanin producing melanoma tumors by Positron Emission Tomography (PET). In this present study the MC1-R selectivity of the newly developed Sc-44-labeled DOTA-NAPamide was investigated in vitro and in vivo using melanoma tumors. DOTA-NAPamide was labeled with Ga-68 and Sc-44 radionuclides. The MC1-R specificity of Ga-68- and Sc-44-labeled DOTA-NAPamide was investigated in vitro and in vivo using MC1-R positive (B16-F10) and negative (A375) melanoma cell lines. For in vivo imaging studies B16-F10 and A375 tumor-bearing mice were injected with 44 Sc/ 68 Ga-DOTA-NAPamide (in blocking studies with α-MSH) and whole body PET/MRI scans were acquired. Radiotracer uptake was expressed in terms of standardized uptake values (SUVs). 44 Sc/ 68 Ga-labeled DOTA-NAPamide were produced with high specific activity (approx. 19 GBq/μmol) and with excellent radiochemical purity (99%<). MC1-R positive B16-F10 cells showed significantly (p≤0.01) higher in vitro radiotracer accumulation than that of receptor negative A375 melanoma cells. In animal experiments, also significantly (p≤0.01) higher Ga-68-DOTA-NAPamide (SUVmean: 0.38±0.02), and Sc-44-DOTA-NAPamide (SUVmean: 0.52±0.13) uptake was observed in subcutaneously growing B16-F10 tumors, than in receptor negative A375 tumors, where the SUVmean values of Ga-68-DOTA-NAPamide and Sc-44-DOTA-NAPamide were 0.04±0.01 and 0.07±0.01, respectively. Tumor-to-muscle (T/M SUVmean) ratios were approximately 15-fold higher in B16-F10 tumor-bearing mice, than that of A375 tumors, and this difference was also significant (p≤0.01) using both radiotracers after 60 min incubation time. Our newly synthesized 44 Sc

  8. Review of human hair optical properties in possible relation to melanoma development.

    PubMed

    Huang, Xiyong; Protheroe, Michael D; Al-Jumaily, Ahmed M; Paul, Sharad P; Chalmers, Andrew N

    2018-05-01

    Immigration and epidemiological studies provide evidence indicating the correlation of high ultraviolet exposure during childhood and increased risks of melanoma in later life. While the explanation of this phenomenon has not been found in the skin, a class of hair has been hypothesized to be involved in this process by transmitting sufficient ultraviolet rays along the hair shaft to possibly cause damage to the stem cells in the hair follicle, ultimately resulting in melanoma in later life. First, the anatomy of hair and its possible contribution to melanoma development, and the tissue optical properties are briefly introduced to provide the necessary background. This paper emphasizes on the review of the experimental studies of the optical properties of human hair, which include the sample preparation, measurement techniques, results, and statistical analysis. The Monte Carlo photon simulation of human hair is next outlined. Finally, current knowledge of the optical studies of hair is discussed in the light of their possible contribution to melanoma development; the necessary future work needed to support this hypothesis is suggested. (2018) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

  9. A Subset of Host B-Lymphocytes Control Melanoma Metastasis Through a MCAM/MUC18-dependent Interaction: Evidence from Mice and Humans

    PubMed Central

    Staquicini, Fernanda I.; Tandle, Anita; Libutti, Steven K.; Sun, Jessica; Zigler, Maya; Bar-Eli, Menashe; Aliperti, Fabiana; Pérez, Elizabeth C.; Gershenwald, Jeffrey E.; Mariano, Mario; Pasqualini, Renata; Arap, Wadih; Lopes, José D.

    2008-01-01

    Host immunity affects tumor metastasis but the corresponding cellular and molecular mechanisms are not entirely clear. Here we show that a subset of B-lymphocytes (termed B-1 population) -- but not other lymphocytes -- have pro-metastatic effects on melanoma cells in vivo through a direct heterotypic cell-cell interaction. In the classic B16 mouse melanoma model, one mechanism underlying this phenomenon is a specific upregulation and subsequent homophilic interaction mediated by the cell surface glycoprotein MUC18 (also known as melanoma cell adhesion molecule; MCAM). Presence of B-1 lymphocytes in a panel of tumor samples from melanoma patients directly correlates with MUC18 expression in melanoma cells, indicating that the same protein interaction exists in humans. These results suggest a new but as yet unrecognized functional role for host B-1 lymphocytes in tumor metastasis and establish a biochemical basis for such observations. Our findings support the counterintuitive central hypothesis in which a primitive layer of the immune system actually contributes to tumor progression and metastasis in a mouse model and in melanoma patients. Given that monoclonal antibodies against MUC18 are in pre-clinical development but the reason for their anti-tumor activity is not well understood, these translational results are relevant in the setting of human melanoma, and perhaps of other cancers. PMID:18922915

  10. Simulation study of melanoma detection in human skin tissues by laser-generated surface acoustic waves.

    PubMed

    Chen, Kun; Fu, Xing; Dorantes-Gonzalez, Dante J; Lu, Zimo; Li, Tingting; Li, Yanning; Wu, Sen; Hu, Xiaotang

    2014-01-01

    Air pollution has been correlated to an increasing number of cases of human skin diseases in recent years. However, the investigation of human skin tissues has received only limited attention, to the point that there are not yet satisfactory modern detection technologies to accurately, noninvasively, and rapidly diagnose human skin at epidermis and dermis levels. In order to detect and analyze severe skin diseases such as melanoma, a finite element method (FEM) simulation study of the application of the laser-generated surface acoustic wave (LSAW) technique is developed. A three-layer human skin model is built, where LSAW’s are generated and propagated, and their effects in the skin medium with melanoma are analyzed. Frequency domain analysis is used as a main tool to investigate such issues as minimum detectable size of melanoma, filtering spectra from noise and from computational irregularities, as well as on how the FEM model meshing size and computational capabilities influence the accuracy of the results. Based on the aforementioned aspects, the analysis of the signals under the scrutiny of the phase velocity dispersion curve is verified to be a reliable, a sensitive, and a promising approach for detecting and characterizing melanoma in human skin.

  11. Simulation study of melanoma detection in human skin tissues by laser-generated surface acoustic waves

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Kun; Fu, Xing; Dorantes-Gonzalez, Dante J.; Lu, Zimo; Li, Tingting; Li, Yanning; Wu, Sen; Hu, Xiaotang

    2014-07-01

    Air pollution has been correlated to an increasing number of cases of human skin diseases in recent years. However, the investigation of human skin tissues has received only limited attention, to the point that there are not yet satisfactory modern detection technologies to accurately, noninvasively, and rapidly diagnose human skin at epidermis and dermis levels. In order to detect and analyze severe skin diseases such as melanoma, a finite element method (FEM) simulation study of the application of the laser-generated surface acoustic wave (LSAW) technique is developed. A three-layer human skin model is built, where LSAW's are generated and propagated, and their effects in the skin medium with melanoma are analyzed. Frequency domain analysis is used as a main tool to investigate such issues as minimum detectable size of melanoma, filtering spectra from noise and from computational irregularities, as well as on how the FEM model meshing size and computational capabilities influence the accuracy of the results. Based on the aforementioned aspects, the analysis of the signals under the scrutiny of the phase velocity dispersion curve is verified to be a reliable, a sensitive, and a promising approach for detecting and characterizing melanoma in human skin.

  12. Strengths and Weaknesses of Pre-Clinical Models for Human Melanoma Treatment: Dawn of Dogs’ Revolution for Immunotherapy

    PubMed Central

    Barutello, Giuseppina; Rolih, Valeria; Arigoni, Maddalena; Tarone, Lidia; Conti, Laura

    2018-01-01

    Despite several therapeutic advances, malignant melanoma still remains a fatal disease for which novel and long-term curative treatments are needed. The successful development of innovative therapies strongly depends on the availability of appropriate pre-clinical models. For this purpose, several mouse models holding the promise to provide insight into molecular biology and clinical behavior of melanoma have been generated. The most relevant ones and their contribution for the advancement of therapeutic approaches for the treatment of human melanoma patients will be here summarized. However, as models, mice do not recapitulate all the features of human melanoma, thus their strengths and weaknesses need to be carefully identified and considered for the translation of the results into the human clinics. In this panorama, the concept of comparative oncology acquires a priceless value. The revolutionary importance of spontaneous canine melanoma as a translational model for the pre-clinical investigation of melanoma progression and treatment will be here discussed, with a special consideration to the development of innovative immunotherapeutic approaches. PMID:29534457

  13. Tumor initiation in human malignant melanoma and potential cancer therapies.

    PubMed

    Ma, Jie; Frank, Markus H

    2010-02-01

    Cancer stem cells (CSCs), also known as tumor-initiating cells, have been identified in several human malignancies, including human malignant melanoma. The frequency of malignant melanoma-initiating cells (MMICs), which are identified by their expression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) family member ABCB5, correlates with disease progression in human patients. Furthermore, targeted MMIC ablation through ABCB5 inhibits tumor initiation and growth in preclinical xenotransplantation models, pointing to potential therapeutic promise of the CSC concept. Recent advances also show that CSCs can exert pro-angiogenic roles in tumor growth and serve immunomodulatory functions related to the evasion of host anti-tumor immunity. Thus, MMICs might initiate and sustain tumorigenic growth not only as a result of CSC-intrinsic self-renewal, differentiation and proliferative capacity, but also based on pro-tumorigenic interactions with the host environment.

  14. Tumor Initiation in Human Malignant Melanoma and Potential Cancer Therapies

    PubMed Central

    Ma, Jie; Frank, Markus H.

    2010-01-01

    Cancer stem cells (CSCs), also known as tumor-initiating cells, have been identified in several human malignancies, including human malignant melanoma. The frequency of malignant melanoma-initiating cells (MMICs), which are identified by their expression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) family member ABCB5, correlates with disease progression in human patients. Furthermore, targeted MMIC ablation through ABCB5 inhibits tumor initiation and growth in preclinical xenotransplantation models, pointing to potential therapeutic promise of the CSC concept. Recent advances also show that CSCs can exert pro-angiogenic roles in tumor growth and serve immunomodulatory functions related to the evasion of host anti-tumor immunity. Thus, MMICs might initiate and sustain tumorigenic growth not only as a result of CSC-intrinsic self-renewal, differentiation and proliferative capacity, but also based on pro-tumorigenic interactions with the host environment. PMID:20184545

  15. Expression and structural features of endoglin (CD105), a transforming growth factor beta1 and beta3 binding protein, in human melanoma.

    PubMed Central

    Altomonte, M.; Montagner, R.; Fonsatti, E.; Colizzi, F.; Cattarossi, I.; Brasoveanu, L. I.; Nicotra, M. R.; Cattelan, A.; Natali, P. G.; Maio, M.

    1996-01-01

    Human endoglin (CD105) is a member of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) receptor family that binds TGF-beta1 and -beta3, but not TGF-beta2, on human endothelial cells. Immunohistochemical analyses demonstrated that CD105 is expressed on normal and neoplastic cells of the melanocytic lineage. The anti-CD105 MAb, MAEND3, stained 50, 25 and 34% of intradermal naevi, primary and metastatic melanomas investigated, respectively, and nine out of 12 melanoma cell lines. Sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) analysis revealed that CD105 expressed by melanoma cells consists of a homodimeric protein with an apparent molecular weight of 180 and 95 kDa under non-reducing and reducing conditions. Cross-linking of 125I-labelled TGF-beta1 to melanoma cells, Mel 97, by disuccinimidyl suberate (DSS) demonstrated that CD105 expressed on pigmented cells binds TGF-beta1; the pattern of binding of TGF-beta1 to melanoma cells was found to be similar to that of human umbilical vein endothelial cells. The addition of exogenous, bioactive TGF-beta1 significantly (P<0.05) inhibited the growth of CD105-positive melanoma cells, Mel 97, but did not affect that of CD105-negative melanoma cells, F0-1. These data, altogether, demonstrate that CD105 is expressed on pigmented cells and might play a functionally relevant role in the biology of human melanoma cells by regulating their sensitivity to TGF-betas. Images Figure 1 Figure 3 Figure 4 PMID:8932339

  16. pH-dependent antitumor activity of proton pump inhibitors against human melanoma is mediated by inhibition of tumor acidity.

    PubMed

    De Milito, Angelo; Canese, Rossella; Marino, Maria Lucia; Borghi, Martina; Iero, Manuela; Villa, Antonello; Venturi, Giulietta; Lozupone, Francesco; Iessi, Elisabetta; Logozzi, Mariantonia; Della Mina, Pamela; Santinami, Mario; Rodolfo, Monica; Podo, Franca; Rivoltini, Licia; Fais, Stefano

    2010-07-01

    Metastatic melanoma is associated with poor prognosis and still limited therapeutic options. An innovative treatment approach for this disease is represented by targeting acidosis, a feature characterizing tumor microenvironment and playing an important role in cancer malignancy. Proton pump inhibitors (PPI), such as esomeprazole (ESOM) are prodrugs functionally activated by acidic environment, fostering pH neutralization by inhibiting proton extrusion. We used human melanoma cell lines and xeno-transplated SCID mice to provide preclinical evidence of ESOM antineoplastic activity. Human melanoma cell lines, characterized by different mutation and signaling profiles, were treated with ESOM in different pH conditions and evaluated for proliferation, viability and cell death. SCID mice engrafted with human melanoma were used to study ESOM administration effects on tumor growth and tumor pH by magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). ESOM inhibited proliferation of melanoma cells in vitro and induced a cytotoxicity strongly boosted by low pH culture conditions. ESOM-induced tumor cell death occurred via rapid intracellular acidification and activation of several caspases. Inhibition of caspases activity by pan-caspase inhibitor z-vad-fmk completely abrogated the ESOM-induced cell death. ESOM administration (2.5 mg kg(-1)) to SCID mice engrafted with human melanoma reduced tumor growth, consistent with decrease of proliferating cells and clear reduction of pH gradients in tumor tissue. Moreover, systemic ESOM administration dramatically increased survival of human melanoma-bearing animals, in absence of any relevant toxicity. These data show preclinical evidence supporting the use of PPI as novel therapeutic strategy for melanoma, providing the proof of concept that PPI target human melanoma modifying tumor pH gradients.

  17. Monoclonal antibody (AFH1) immunoreactive on morphologically abnormal basal melanocytes within dysplastic nevi, nevocellular nevus nests, and melanoma.

    PubMed

    Aronson, P J; Ito, K; Fukaya, T; Hashimoto, K; Mehregan, A H

    1988-04-01

    The mouse monoclonal antibody AFH1 was produced using formalin-fixed, sham paraffin-embedded human melanoma cell culture line A375 as immunogen. Reactivity of this antibody was assessed by immunohistochemical techniques against formalin- or acid alcohol-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue as well as formalin- or acid alcohol-fixed unembedded lesions. Ninety-seven nevomelanocytic lesions, neurofibromas, epithelial lesions, and a plasmacellular infiltrate were evaluated. AFH1 was immunoreactive on 54 of 55 nevocytic lesions (98.2%), 15 of 16 primary melanomas (93.7%), a lentigo maligna, and nests in 21 of 21 dysplastic nevi (100%). Of 100 consecutive basal melanocytes of intraepidermal melanoma cells counted in each lesion, mean AFH1 immunoreactivity for nonnested basal melanocytes in nevocellular nevi was 3.8%; for dysplastic nevi, 13.8%; and for intraepidermal melanoma cells, 78.0%. When nonnested basal melanocytes were subdivided into cytologically normal and abnormal cell groups, AFH1 immunoreactivity was 9.4% and 72.6%, respectively. AFH1 recognition of the lentiginous portion of dysplastic nevi corresponds statistically to the appearance of abnormal melanocyte cytology, nest formation, or both. Using 50% immunoreactive nonnested melanocytes as the criterion, AFH1 seems to distinguish primary melanoma from dysplastic nevi with a sensitivity of 93.8% and a specificity of 95.8%.

  18. Human metastatic melanoma cell lines express high levels of growth hormone receptor and respond to GH treatment

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sustarsic, Elahu G.; Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, OH; Junnila, Riia K.

    2013-11-08

    Highlights: •Most cancer types of the NCI60 have sub-sets of cell lines with high GHR expression. •GHR is highly expressed in melanoma cell lines. •GHR is elevated in advanced stage IV metastatic tumors vs. stage III. •GH treatment of metastatic melanoma cell lines alters growth and cell signaling. -- Abstract: Accumulating evidence implicates the growth hormone receptor (GHR) in carcinogenesis. While multiple studies show evidence for expression of growth hormone (GH) and GHR mRNA in human cancer tissue, there is a lack of quantification and only a few cancer types have been investigated. The National Cancer Institute’s NCI60 panel includesmore » 60 cancer cell lines from nine types of human cancer: breast, CNS, colon, leukemia, melanoma, non-small cell lung, ovarian, prostate and renal. We utilized this panel to quantify expression of GHR, GH, prolactin receptor (PRLR) and prolactin (PRL) mRNA with real-time RT qPCR. Both GHR and PRLR show a broad range of expression within and among most cancer types. Strikingly, GHR expression is nearly 50-fold higher in melanoma than in the panel as a whole. Analysis of human metastatic melanoma biopsies confirmed GHR gene expression in melanoma tissue. In these human biopsies, the level of GHR mRNA is elevated in advanced stage IV tumor samples compared to stage III. Due to the novel finding of high GHR in melanoma, we examined the effect of GH treatment on three NCI60 melanoma lines (MDA-MB-435, UACC-62 and SK-MEL-5). GH increased proliferation in two out of three cell lines tested. Further analysis revealed GH-induced activation of STAT5 and mTOR in a cell line dependent manner. In conclusion, we have identified cell lines and cancer types that are ideal to study the role of GH and PRL in cancer, yet have been largely overlooked. Furthermore, we found that human metastatic melanoma tumors express GHR and cell lines possess active GHRs that can modulate multiple signaling pathways and alter cell proliferation

  19. Melanocytoma-like melanoma may be the missing link between benign and malignant uveal melanocytic lesions in humans and dogs: a comparative study.

    PubMed

    Zoroquiain, Pablo; Mayo-Goldberg, Erin; Alghamdi, Sarah; Alhumaid, Sulaiman; Perlmann, Eduardo; Barros, Paulo; Mayo, Nancy; Burnier, Miguel N

    2016-12-01

    The cutoff presented in the current classification of canine melanocytic lesions by Wilcock and Pfeiffer is based on the clinical outcome rather than morphological concepts. Classification of tumors based on morphology or molecular signatures is the key to identifying new therapies or prognostic factors. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze morphological findings in canine melanocytic lesions based on classic malignant morphologic principles of neoplasia and to compare these features with human uveal melanoma (HUM) samples. In total, 64 canine and 111 human morphologically malignant melanocytic lesions were classified into two groups (melanocytoma-like or classic melanoma) based on the presence or absence of M cells, respectively. Histopathological characteristics were compared between the two groups using the χ-test, t-test, and multivariate discriminant analysis. Among the 64 canine tumors, 28 (43.7%) were classic and 36 (56.3%) were melanocytoma-like melanomas. Smaller tumor size, a higher degree of pigmentation, and lower mitotic activity distinguished melanocytoma-like from classic tumors with an accuracy of 100% for melanocytoma-like lesions. From the human series, only one case showed melanocytoma-like features and had a low risk for metastasis characteristics. Canine uveal melanoma showed a morphological spectrum with features similar to the HUM counterpart (classic melanoma) and overlapped features between uveal melanoma and melanocytoma (melanocytoma-like melanoma). Recognition that the subgroup of melanocytoma-like melanoma may represent the missing link between benign and malignant lesions could help explain the progression of uveal melanoma in dogs; these findings can potentially be translated to HUM.

  20. Preparation and characterization of a novel Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA conjugate for melanin-targeted imaging of malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Chang, Chih-Chao; Chang, Chih-Hsien; Lo, Yi-Hsuan; Lin, Ming-Hsien; Shen, Chih-Chieh; Liu, Ren-Shyan; Wang, Hsin-Ell; Chen, Chuan-Lin

    2016-08-15

    Melanin is an attractive target for the diagnosis and treatment of malignant melanoma. Previous studies have demonstrated the specific binding ability of benzamide moiety to melanin. In this study, we developed a novel (18)F-labeled NOTA-benzamide conjugate, Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA, which can be synthesized in 30min with a radiochemical yield of 20-35% and a radiochemical purity of >95%. Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA is highly hydrophilic (logP=-1.96) and shows good in vitro stability. Intravenous administration of Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA in two melanoma-bearing mouse models revealed highly specific uptake in B16F0 melanotic melanoma (6.67±0.91 and 1.50±0.26%ID/g at 15 and 120min p.i., respectively), but not in A375 amelanotic melanoma (0.87±0.21 and 0.24±0.09%ID/g at 15 and 120min p.i., respectively). The clearance from most normal tissues was fast. A microPET scan of Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA-injected mice also displayed high-contrast tumor images as compared with normal organs. Owing to the favorable in vivo distribution of Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA after intravenous administration, the estimated absorption dose was low in all normal organs and tissues. The melanin-specific binding ability, sustained tumor retention, fast normal tissues clearance and thelow projected human dosimetry supported that Al(18)F-NOTA-BZA is a very promising melanin-specific PET probe for melanin-positive melanoma. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Evaluation of two (125)I-radiolabeled acridine derivatives for Auger-electron radionuclide therapy of melanoma.

    PubMed

    Gardette, Maryline; Viallard, Claire; Paillas, Salomé; Guerquin-Kern, Jean-Luc; Papon, Janine; Moins, Nicole; Labarre, Pierre; Desbois, Nicolas; Wong-Wah-Chung, Pascal; Palle, Sabine; Wu, Ting-Di; Pouget, Jean-Pierre; Miot-Noirault, Elisabeth; Chezal, Jean-Michel; Degoul, Francoise

    2014-08-01

    We previously selected two melanin-targeting radioligands [(125)I]ICF01035 and [(125)I]ICF01040 for melanoma-targeted (125)I radionuclide therapy according to their pharmacological profile in mice bearing B16F0 tumors. Here we demonstrate in vitro that these compounds present different radiotoxicities in relation to melanin and acidic vesicle contents in B16F0, B16F0 PTU and A375 cell lines. ICF01035 is effectively observed in nuclei of achromic (A375) melanoma or in melanosomes of melanized melanoma (B16F0), while ICF01040 stays in cytoplasmic vesicles in both cells. [(125)I]ICF01035 induced a similar survival fraction (A50) in all cell lines and led to a significant decrease in S-phase cells in amelanotic cell lines. [(125)I]ICF01040 induced a higher A50 in B16 cell lines compared to [(125)I]ICF01035 ones. [(125)I]ICF01040 induced a G2/M blockade in both A375 and B16F0 PTU, associated with its presence in cytoplasmic acidic vesicles. These results suggest that the radiotoxicity of [(125)I]ICF01035 and [(125)I]ICF01040 are not exclusively reliant on DNA alterations compatible with γ rays but likely result from local dose deposition (Auger electrons) leading to toxic compound leaks from acidic vesicles. In vivo, [(125)I]ICF01035 significantly reduced the number of B16F0 lung colonies, enabling a significant increase in survival of the treated mice. Targeting melanosomes or acidic vesicles is thus an option for future melanoma therapy.

  2. In Vitro Efficacy and Mechanistic Role of Indocyanine Green as a Photodynamic Therapy Agent for Human Melanoma

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mamoon, A.; Gamal-Eldeen, A; Ruppel, M

    2009-01-01

    Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising treatment for superficial cancer. However, poor therapeutic results have been reported for melanoma, due to the high melanin content. Indocyanine green (ICG) has near infrared absorption (700-800nm) and melanins do not absorb strongly in this area. This study explores the efficiency of ICG as a PDT agent for human melanoma, and its mechanistic role in the cell death pathway.

  3. The activation of human endogenous retrovirus K (HERV-K) is implicated in melanoma cell malignant transformation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Serafino, A.; Balestrieri, E.; Pierimarchi, P.

    2009-03-10

    Melanoma development is a multi-step process arising from a series of genetic and epigenetic events. Although the sequential stages involved in progression from melanocytes to malignant melanoma are clearly defined, our current understanding of the mechanisms leading to melanoma onset is still incomplete. Growing evidence show that the activation of endogenous retroviral sequences might be involved in transformation of melanocytes as well as in the increased ability of melanoma cells to escape immune surveillance. Here we show that human melanoma cells in vitro undergo a transition from adherent to a more malignant, non-adherent phenotype when exposed to stress conditions. Melanoma-derivedmore » non-adherent cells are characterized by an increased proliferative potential and a decreased expression of both HLA class I molecules and Melan-A/MART-1 antigen, similarly to highly malignant cells. These phenotypic and functional modifications are accompanied by the activation of human endogenous retrovirus K expression (HERV-K) and massive production of viral-like particles. Down-regulation of HERV-K expression by RNA interference prevents the transition from the adherent to the non-adherent growth phenotype in low serum. These results implicate HERV-K in at least some critical steps of melanoma progression.« less

  4. Ribonucleotide reductase in melanoma tissue. EPR detection in human amelanotic melanoma and quenching of the tyrosine radical by 4-hydroxyanisole.

    PubMed

    Lassmanm, G; Liermann, B; Arnold, W; Schwabe, K

    1991-01-01

    The characteristic EPR doublet of tyrosine radicals of the growth-regulating enzyme ribonucleotide reductase was detected in human melanoma tissue grown in nude mice. This was possible through the use of an amelanotic melanoma that does not exhibit disturbing EPR signals from melanin. The content of tyrosine radicals is higher in young tumor tissues than in older ones. The clinically applied antimelanotic drug, 4-hydroxyanisole, inhibits ribonucleotide reductase in Ehrlich ascites tumor cells as demonstrated by a pronounced quenching of tyrosine radicals (IC50 = 5 microM). In amelanotic melanoma tissue tyrosine radicals of the enzyme are also quenched by 4-hydroxyanisole in concentrations down to 50 microM. Thus, the inactivation of ribonucleotide reductase, which provides deoxyribonucleotides for DNA synthesis, may be a hitherto unexpected mechanism for the antitumor action of 4-hydroxyanisole.

  5. Zinc Oxide Nanoparticle-Poly I:C RNA Complexes: Implication as Therapeutics against Experimental Melanoma.

    PubMed

    Ramani, Meghana; Mudge, Miranda C; Morris, R Tyler; Zhang, Yuntao; Warcholek, Stanislaw A; Hurst, Miranda N; Riviere, Jim E; DeLong, Robert K

    2017-03-06

    There is current interest in harnessing the combined anticancer and immunological effect of nanoparticles (NPs) and RNA. Here, we evaluate the bioactivity of poly I:C (pIC) RNA, bound to anticancer zinc oxide NP (ZnO-NP) against melanoma. Direct RNA association to unfunctionalized ZnO-NP is shown by observing change in size, zeta potential, and absorption/fluorescence spectra upon complexation. RNA corona was visualized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for the first time. Binding constant (K b = 1.6-2.8 g -1 L) was determined by modified Stern-Volmer, absorption, and biological surface activity index analysis. The pIC-ZnO-NP complex increased cell death for both human (A375) and mouse (B16F10) cell lines and suppressed tumor cell growth in BALB/C-B16F10 mouse melanoma model. Ex vivo tumor analysis indicated significant molecular activity such as changes in the level of phosphoproteins JNK, Akt, and inflammation markers IL-6 and IFN-γ. High throughput proteomics analysis revealed zinc oxide and poly I:C-specific and combinational patterns that suggested possible utility as an anticancer and immunotherapeutic strategy against melanoma.

  6. The human homologue of Dictyostelium discoideum phg1A is expressed by human metastatic melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Lozupone, Francesco; Perdicchio, Maurizio; Brambilla, Daria; Borghi, Martina; Meschini, Stefania; Barca, Stefano; Marino, Maria Lucia; Logozzi, Mariantonia; Federici, Cristina; Iessi, Elisabetta; de Milito, Angelo; Fais, Stefano

    2009-12-01

    Tumour cannibalism is a characteristic of malignancy and metastatic behaviour. This atypical phagocytic activity is a crucial survival option for tumours in conditions of low nutrient supply, and has some similarities to the phagocytic activity of unicellular microorganisms. In fact, Dictyostelium discoideum has been used widely as a model to study phagocytosis. Recently, phg1A has been described as a protein that is primarily involved in the phagocytic process of this microorganism. The closest human homologue to phg1A is transmembrane 9 superfamily protein member 4 (TM9SF4). Here, we report that TM9SF4 is highly expressed in human malignant melanoma cells deriving from metastatic lesions, whereas it is undetectable in healthy human tissues and cells. TM9SF4 is predominantly expressed in acidic vesicles of melanoma cells, in which it co-localizes with the early endosome antigens Rab5 and early endosome antigen 1. TM9SF4 silencing induced marked inhibition of cannibal activity, which is consistent with a derangement of intracellular pH gradients, with alkalinization of acidic vesicles and acidification of the cell cytosol. We propose TM9SF4 as a new marker of malignancy, representing a potential new target for anti-tumour strategies with a specific role in tumour cannibalism and in the establishment of a metastatic phenotype.

  7. IgG1-iS18 impedes the adhesive and invasive potential of early and late stage malignant melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Munien, Carmelle; Rebelo, Thalia M; Ferreira, Eloise; Weiss, Stefan F T

    2017-02-15

    The 37kDa/67kDa laminin receptor (LRP/LR) is a non-integrin laminin receptor which is overexpressed in tumorigenic cells and supports progression of cancer via promoting metastasis, angiogenesis and telomerase activity and impediment of apoptosis. The present study investigates the role of LRP/LR on the metastatic potential of early (A375) and late (A375SM) stage malignant melanoma cells. Flow cytometry revealed that both early and late stage malignant melanoma cells display high levels of LRP/LR on their cell surface. Flow cytometry and western blot analysis showed that late stage malignant melanoma cells display significantly higher total and cell surface LRP/LR levels in comparison to early stage malignant melanoma cells and the poorly invasive breast cancer (MCF-7) control cell line. Targeting LRP/LR using the LRP/LR specific antibody IgG1-iS18 resulted in a significant reduction of the adhesive potential to laminin-1 and the invasive potential through the 'ECM-simulating' Matrigel™ of both early and late stage malignant melanoma cells. Furthermore, Pearson's correlation coefficient confirmed that increased LRP levels correlate with the increased invasive and adhesive potential in early and late stage melanoma cells. Thus, blocking LRP/LR using the IgG1-iS18 antibody may therefore be a promising therapeutic strategy for early and late stage malignant melanoma treatment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. 21 CFR 172.375 - Potassium iodide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) FOOD FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION (CONTINUED) FOOD ADDITIVES PERMITTED FOR DIRECT ADDITION TO FOOD FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION Special Dietary and Nutritional Additives § 172.375 Potassium iodide. The food additive potassium iodide may be...

  9. Fisetin, a phytochemical, potentiates sorafenib-induced apoptosis and abrogates tumor growth in athymic nude mice implanted with BRAF-mutated melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Pal, Harish Chandra; Baxter, Ronald D.; Hunt, Katherine M.; Agarwal, Jyoti; Elmets, Craig A.; Athar, Mohammad; Afaq, Farrukh

    2015-01-01

    Melanoma is the most deadly form of cutaneous malignancy, and its incidence rates are rising worldwide. In melanoma, constitutive activation of the BRAF/MEK/ERK (MAPK) and PI3K/AKT/mTOR (PI3K) signaling pathways plays a pivotal role in cell proliferation, survival and tumorigenesis. A combination of compounds that lead to an optimal blockade of these critical signaling pathways may provide an effective strategy for prevention and treatment of melanoma. The phytochemical fisetin is known to possess anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic activities. We found that fisetin treatment inhibited PI3K signaling pathway in melanoma cells. Therefore, we investigated the effect of fisetin and sorafenib (an RAF inhibitor) alone and in combination on cell proliferation, apoptosis and tumor growth. Combination treatment (fisetin + sorafenib) more effectively reduced the growth of BRAF-mutated human melanoma cells at lower doses when compared to individual agents. In addition, combination treatment resulted in enhanced (i) apoptosis, (ii) cleavage of caspase-3 and PARP, (iii) expression of Bax and Bak, (iv) inhibition of Bcl2 and Mcl-1, and (v) inhibition of expression of PI3K, phosphorylation of MEK1/2, ERK1/2, AKT and mTOR. In athymic nude mice subcutaneously implanted with melanoma cells (A375 and SK-MEL-28), we found that combination therapy resulted in greater reduction of tumor growth when compared to individual agents. Furthermore, combination therapy was more effective than monotherapy in: (i) inhibition of proliferation and angiogenesis, (ii) induction of apoptosis, and (iii) inhibition of the MAPK and PI3K pathways in xenograft tumors. These data suggest that simultaneous inhibition of both these signaling pathways using combination of fisetin and sorafenib may serve as a therapeutic option for the management of melanoma. PMID:26299806

  10. Fisetin, a phytochemical, potentiates sorafenib-induced apoptosis and abrogates tumor growth in athymic nude mice implanted with BRAF-mutated melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Pal, Harish Chandra; Baxter, Ronald D; Hunt, Katherine M; Agarwal, Jyoti; Elmets, Craig A; Athar, Mohammad; Afaq, Farrukh

    2015-09-29

    Melanoma is the most deadly form of cutaneous malignancy, and its incidence rates are rising worldwide. In melanoma, constitutive activation of the BRAF/MEK/ERK (MAPK) and PI3K/AKT/mTOR (PI3K) signaling pathways plays a pivotal role in cell proliferation, survival and tumorigenesis. A combination of compounds that lead to an optimal blockade of these critical signaling pathways may provide an effective strategy for prevention and treatment of melanoma. The phytochemical fisetin is known to possess anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic activities. We found that fisetin treatment inhibited PI3K signaling pathway in melanoma cells. Therefore, we investigated the effect of fisetin and sorafenib (an RAF inhibitor) alone and in combination on cell proliferation, apoptosis and tumor growth. Combination treatment (fisetin + sorafenib) more effectively reduced the growth of BRAF-mutated human melanoma cells at lower doses when compared to individual agents. In addition, combination treatment resulted in enhanced (i) apoptosis, (ii) cleavage of caspase-3 and PARP, (iii) expression of Bax and Bak, (iv) inhibition of Bcl2 and Mcl-1, and (v) inhibition of expression of PI3K, phosphorylation of MEK1/2, ERK1/2, AKT and mTOR. In athymic nude mice subcutaneously implanted with melanoma cells (A375 and SK-MEL-28), we found that combination therapy resulted in greater reduction of tumor growth when compared to individual agents. Furthermore, combination therapy was more effective than monotherapy in: (i) inhibition of proliferation and angiogenesis, (ii) induction of apoptosis, and (iii) inhibition of the MAPK and PI3K pathways in xenograft tumors. These data suggest that simultaneous inhibition of both these signaling pathways using combination of fisetin and sorafenib may serve as a therapeutic option for the management of melanoma.

  11. Evolving Therapeutic Strategies in Mucosal Melanoma Have Not Improved Survival Over Five Decades

    PubMed Central

    KIRCHOFF, DANIEL D.; DEUTSCH, GARY B.; FOSHAG, LELAND J.; LEE, JI HEY; SIM, MYUNG-SHIN; FARIES, MARK B.

    2016-01-01

    Mucosal melanoma represents a distinct minority of disease sites and portends a worse outcome. The ideal treatment and role of adjuvant therapy remains unknown at this time. We hypothesized that a combination of neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapies would improve survival in these aggressive melanomas. Our large, prospectively maintained melanoma database was queried for all patients diagnosed with mucosal melanoma. Over the past five decades, 227 patients were treated for mucosal melanoma. There were 82 patients with anorectal, 75 with sinonasal, and 70 with urogenital melanoma. Five-year overall survival and melanoma-specific survival for the entire cohort were 32.8 and 37.5 per cent, respectively, with median overall survival of 38.7 months. One hundred forty-two patients (63.8%) underwent adjuvant therapy and 15 were treated neoadjuvantly (6.6%). There was no survival difference by therapy type or timing, disease site, or decade of diagnosis. There was improved survival in patients undergoing multiple surgeries (Hazard Ratio [HR] 0.55, P = 0.0005). Patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy had significantly worse survival outcomes (HR 2.49, P = 0.013). Over the past five decades, improvements have not been seen in outcomes for mucosal melanoma. Although multiple surgical interventions portend a better outcome in patients with mucosal melanoma, adjuvant treatment decisions must be individualized. PMID:26802836

  12. Evolving Therapeutic Strategies in Mucosal Melanoma Have Not Improved Survival Over Five Decades.

    PubMed

    Kirchoff, Daniel D; Deutsch, Gary B; Foshag, Leland J; Lee, Ji Hey; Sim, Myung-Shin; Faries, Mark B

    2016-01-01

    Mucosal melanoma represents a distinct minority of disease sites and portends a worse outcome. The ideal treatment and role of adjuvant therapy remains unknown at this time. We hypothesized that a combination of neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapies would improve survival in these aggressive melanomas. Our large, prospectively maintained melanoma database was queried for all patients diagnosed with mucosal melanoma. Over the past five decades, 227 patients were treated for mucosal melanoma. There were 82 patients with anorectal, 75 with sinonasal, and 70 with urogenital melanoma. Five-year overall survival and melanoma-specific survival for the entire cohort were 32.8 and 37.5 per cent, respectively, with median overall survival of 38.7 months. One hundred forty-two patients (63.8%) underwent adjuvant therapy and 15 were treated neoadjuvantly (6.6%). There was no survival difference by therapy type or timing, disease site, or decade of diagnosis. There was improved survival in patients undergoing multiple surgeries (Hazard Ratio [HR] 0.55, P = 0.0005). Patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy had significantly worse survival outcomes (HR 2.49, P = 0.013). Over the past five decades, improvements have not been seen in outcomes for mucosal melanoma. Although multiple surgical interventions portend a better outcome in patients with mucosal melanoma, adjuvant treatment decisions must be individualized.

  13. MicroRNA-375 inhibits colorectal cancer growth by targeting PIK3CA

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wang, Yihui; Tang, Qingchao; Li, Mingqi

    2014-02-07

    Highlights: • miR-375 is downregulated in colorectal cancer cell lines and tissues. • miR-375 inhibits colorectal cancer cell growth by targeting PIK3CA. • miR-375 inhibits colorectal cancer cell growth in xenograft nude mice model. - Abstract: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most common cause of death from cancer. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) represent a class of small non-coding RNAs that control gene expression by triggering RNA degradation or interfering with translation. Aberrant miRNA expression is involved in human disease including cancer. Herein, we showed that miR-375 was frequently down-regulated in human colorectal cancer cell lines and tissues when compared to normalmore » human colon tissues. PIK3CA was identified as a potential miR-375 target by bioinformatics. Overexpression of miR-375 in SW480 and HCT15 cells reduced PIK3CA protein expression. Subsequently, using reporter constructs, we showed that the PIK3CA untranslated region (3′-UTR) carries the directly binding site of miR-375. Additionally, miR-375 suppressed CRC cell proliferation and colony formation and led to cell cycle arrest. Furthermore, miR-375 overexpression resulted in inhibition of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling pathway. SiRNA-mediated silencing of PIK3CA blocked the inhibitory effect of miR-375 on CRC cell growth. Lastly, we found overexpressed miR-375 effectively repressed tumor growth in xenograft animal experiments. Taken together, we propose that overexpression of miR-375 may provide a selective growth inhibition for CRC cells by targeting PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.« less

  14. The quinone methide aurin is a heat shock response inducer that causes proteotoxic stress and Noxa-dependent apoptosis in malignant melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Davis, Angela L; Qiao, Shuxi; Lesson, Jessica L; Rojo de la Vega, Montserrat; Park, Sophia L; Seanez, Carol M; Gokhale, Vijay; Cabello, Christopher M; Wondrak, Georg T

    2015-01-16

    Pharmacological induction of proteotoxic stress is rapidly emerging as a promising strategy for cancer cell-directed chemotherapeutic intervention. Here, we describe the identification of a novel drug-like heat shock response inducer for the therapeutic induction of proteotoxic stress targeting malignant human melanoma cells. Screening a focused library of compounds containing redox-directed electrophilic pharmacophores employing the Stress & Toxicity PathwayFinder(TM) PCR Array technology as a discovery tool, a drug-like triphenylmethane-derivative (aurin; 4-[bis(p-hydroxyphenyl)methylene]-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-one) was identified as an experimental cell stress modulator that causes (i) heat shock factor transcriptional activation, (ii) up-regulation of heat shock response gene expression (HSPA6, HSPA1A, DNAJB4, HMOX1), (iii) early unfolded protein response signaling (phospho-PERK, phospho-eIF2α, CHOP (CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein)), (iv) proteasome impairment with increased protein-ubiquitination, and (v) oxidative stress with glutathione depletion. Fluorescence polarization-based experiments revealed that aurin displays activity as a geldanamycin-competitive Hsp90α-antagonist, a finding further substantiated by molecular docking and ATPase inhibition analysis. Aurin exposure caused caspase-dependent cell death in a panel of human malignant melanoma cells (A375, G361, LOX-IMVI) but not in non-malignant human skin cells (Hs27 fibroblasts, HaCaT keratinocytes, primary melanocytes) undergoing the aurin-induced heat shock response without impairment of viability. Aurin-induced melanoma cell apoptosis depends on Noxa up-regulation as confirmed by siRNA rescue experiments demonstrating that siPMAIP1-based target down-regulation suppresses aurin-induced cell death. Taken together, our data suggest feasibility of apoptotic elimination of malignant melanoma cells using the quinone methide-derived heat shock response inducer aurin. © 2015 by The

  15. The Quinone Methide Aurin Is a Heat Shock Response Inducer That Causes Proteotoxic Stress and Noxa-dependent Apoptosis in Malignant Melanoma Cells*

    PubMed Central

    Davis, Angela L.; Qiao, Shuxi; Lesson, Jessica L.; Rojo de la Vega, Montserrat; Park, Sophia L.; Seanez, Carol M.; Gokhale, Vijay; Cabello, Christopher M.; Wondrak, Georg T.

    2015-01-01

    Pharmacological induction of proteotoxic stress is rapidly emerging as a promising strategy for cancer cell-directed chemotherapeutic intervention. Here, we describe the identification of a novel drug-like heat shock response inducer for the therapeutic induction of proteotoxic stress targeting malignant human melanoma cells. Screening a focused library of compounds containing redox-directed electrophilic pharmacophores employing the Stress & Toxicity PathwayFinderTM PCR Array technology as a discovery tool, a drug-like triphenylmethane-derivative (aurin; 4-[bis(p-hydroxyphenyl)methylene]-2,5-cyclohexadien-1-one) was identified as an experimental cell stress modulator that causes (i) heat shock factor transcriptional activation, (ii) up-regulation of heat shock response gene expression (HSPA6, HSPA1A, DNAJB4, HMOX1), (iii) early unfolded protein response signaling (phospho-PERK, phospho-eIF2α, CHOP (CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein)), (iv) proteasome impairment with increased protein-ubiquitination, and (v) oxidative stress with glutathione depletion. Fluorescence polarization-based experiments revealed that aurin displays activity as a geldanamycin-competitive Hsp90α-antagonist, a finding further substantiated by molecular docking and ATPase inhibition analysis. Aurin exposure caused caspase-dependent cell death in a panel of human malignant melanoma cells (A375, G361, LOX-IMVI) but not in non-malignant human skin cells (Hs27 fibroblasts, HaCaT keratinocytes, primary melanocytes) undergoing the aurin-induced heat shock response without impairment of viability. Aurin-induced melanoma cell apoptosis depends on Noxa up-regulation as confirmed by siRNA rescue experiments demonstrating that siPMAIP1-based target down-regulation suppresses aurin-induced cell death. Taken together, our data suggest feasibility of apoptotic elimination of malignant melanoma cells using the quinone methide-derived heat shock response inducer aurin. PMID:25477506

  16. Inhibition of cell proliferation, migration and invasion of B16-F10 melanoma cells by α-mangostin

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Beninati, Simone, E-mail: beninati@bio.uniroma2.it; Oliverio, Serafina; Cordella, Martina

    2014-08-08

    Highlights: • We studied the anticancer potential of a new emerging molecule, α-mangostin (α-M). • We provide first evidences on the effects of α-M on transglutaminase activity. • We deeply examined the antimetastatic effects of α-M through many in vitro assays. • Proteomic analysis revealed that α-M promotes a reorganization at cellular level. - Abstract: In this study, we have evaluated the potential antineoplastic effects of α-mangostin (α-M), the most representative xanthone in Garcinia mangostana pericarp, on melanoma cell lines. This xanthone markedly inhibits the proliferation of high-metastatic B16-F10 melanoma cells. Furthermore, by deeply analyzing which steps in the metastaticmore » process are influenced by xanthone it was observed that α-M strongly interferes with homotypic aggregation, adhesion, plasticity and invasion ability of B16-F10 cells, probably by the observed reduction of metalloproteinase-9 activity. The antiproliferative and antimetastatic properties of α-M have been established in human SK-MEL-28 and A375 melanoma cells. In order to identify pathways potentially involved in the antineoplastic properties of α-M, a comparative mass spectrometry proteomic approach was employed. These findings may improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-cancer effects of α-M on melanoma.« less

  17. Evaluation of Fluorine-18-Labeled α1(I)-N-Telopeptide Analogs as Substrate-Based Radiotracers for PET Imaging of Melanoma-Associated Lysyl Oxidase.

    PubMed

    Kuchar, Manuela; Neuber, Christin; Belter, Birgit; Bergmann, Ralf; Lenk, Jens; Wodtke, Robert; Kniess, Torsten; Steinbach, Jörg; Pietzsch, Jens; Löser, Reik

    2018-01-01

    Accumulating evidence suggests an unequivocal role of lysyl oxidases as key players of tumor progression and metastasis, which renders this enzyme family highly attractive for targeted non-invasive functional imaging of tumors. Considering their function in matrix remodeling, malignant melanoma appears as particularly interesting neoplasia in this respect. For the development of radiotracers that enable PET imaging of the melanoma-associated lysyl oxidase activity, substrates derived from the type I collagen α1 N-telopeptide were labeled with fluorine-18 using N -succinimidyl 4-[ 18 F]fluorobenzoate ([ 18 F]SFB) as prosthetic reagent. With regards to potential crosslinking to tumor-associated collagen in vivo , their interaction with triple-helical type I collagen was studied by SPR. A mouse model of human melanoma was established on the basis of the A375 cell line, for which the expression of the oncologically relevant lysyl oxidase isoforms LOX and LOXL2 was demonstrated in Western blot and immunohistochemical experiments. The radiopharmacological profiles of the peptidic radiotracers were evaluated in normal rats and A375 melanoma-bearing mice by ex vivo metabolite analysis, whole-body biodistribution studies and dynamic PET imaging. Out of three 18 F-labeled telopeptide analogs, the one with the most favorable substrate properties has shown favorable tumor uptake and tumor-to-muscle ratio. Lysyl oxidase-mediated tumor uptake was proven by pharmacological inhibition using β-aminopropionitrile and by employing negative-control analogs of impeded or abolished targeting capability. The latter were obtained by substituting the lysine residue by ornithine and norleucine, respectively. Comparing the tumor uptake of the lysine-containing peptide with that of the non-functional analogs indicate the feasibility of lysyl oxidase imaging in melanoma using substrate-based radiotracers.

  18. Evaluation of Fluorine-18-Labeled α1(I)-N-Telopeptide Analogs as Substrate-Based Radiotracers for PET Imaging of Melanoma-Associated Lysyl Oxidase

    PubMed Central

    Kuchar, Manuela; Neuber, Christin; Belter, Birgit; Bergmann, Ralf; Lenk, Jens; Wodtke, Robert; Kniess, Torsten; Steinbach, Jörg; Pietzsch, Jens; Löser, Reik

    2018-01-01

    Accumulating evidence suggests an unequivocal role of lysyl oxidases as key players of tumor progression and metastasis, which renders this enzyme family highly attractive for targeted non-invasive functional imaging of tumors. Considering their function in matrix remodeling, malignant melanoma appears as particularly interesting neoplasia in this respect. For the development of radiotracers that enable PET imaging of the melanoma-associated lysyl oxidase activity, substrates derived from the type I collagen α1 N-telopeptide were labeled with fluorine-18 using N-succinimidyl 4-[18F]fluorobenzoate ([18F]SFB) as prosthetic reagent. With regards to potential crosslinking to tumor-associated collagen in vivo, their interaction with triple-helical type I collagen was studied by SPR. A mouse model of human melanoma was established on the basis of the A375 cell line, for which the expression of the oncologically relevant lysyl oxidase isoforms LOX and LOXL2 was demonstrated in Western blot and immunohistochemical experiments. The radiopharmacological profiles of the peptidic radiotracers were evaluated in normal rats and A375 melanoma-bearing mice by ex vivo metabolite analysis, whole-body biodistribution studies and dynamic PET imaging. Out of three 18F-labeled telopeptide analogs, the one with the most favorable substrate properties has shown favorable tumor uptake and tumor-to-muscle ratio. Lysyl oxidase-mediated tumor uptake was proven by pharmacological inhibition using β-aminopropionitrile and by employing negative-control analogs of impeded or abolished targeting capability. The latter were obtained by substituting the lysine residue by ornithine and norleucine, respectively. Comparing the tumor uptake of the lysine-containing peptide with that of the non-functional analogs indicate the feasibility of lysyl oxidase imaging in melanoma using substrate-based radiotracers.

  19. Synergistic Combination of Novel Tubulin Inhibitor ABI-274 and Vemurafenib Overcome Vemurafenib Acquired Resistance in BRAFV600E Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Jin; Chen, Jianjun; Miller, Duane D.; Li, Wei

    2013-01-01

    Acquired clinical resistance to vemurafenib, a selective BRAFV600E inhibitor, arises frequently after short term chemotherapy. Since inhibitions of targets in the RAF-MEK-ERK pathway result in G0/G1 cell cycle arrest, vemurafenib-resistant cancer cells are expected to escape this cell cycle arrest and progress to subsequent G2/M phase. We hypothesized that a combined therapy using vemurafenib with a G2/M phase blocking agent will trap resistant cells and overcome vemurafenib resistance. To test this hypothesis, we first determined the combination index (CI) values of our novel tubulin inhibitor ABI-274 and vemurafenib on parental human A375 and MDA-MB-435 melanoma cell lines to be 0.32 and 0.1, respectively, suggesting strong synergy for the combination. We then developed an A375RF21 subline with significant acquired resistance to vemurafenib and confirmed the strong synergistic effect. Next we studied the potential mechanisms of overcoming vemurafenib resistance. Flow cytometry confirmed that the combination of ABI-274 and vemurafenib synergistically arrested cells in G1/G2/M phase, and significantly increased apoptosis in both parental A375 and the vemurafenib-resistant A375RF21 cells. Western blot analysis revealed that the combination treatment effectively reduced the level of phosphorylated and total AKT, activated the apoptosis cascade, and increased cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved PARP, but had no significant influence on the level of ERK phosphorylation. Finally, in vivo co-administration of vemurafenib with ABI-274 showed strong synergistic efficacy in the vemurafenib-resistant xenograft model in nude mice. Overall, these results offer a rational combination strategy to significantly enhance the therapeutic benefit in melanoma patients who inevitably become resistant to current vemurafenib therapy. PMID:24249714

  20. ADAM15 expression is downregulated in melanoma metastasis compared to primary melanoma

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ungerer, Christopher; Doberstein, Kai; Buerger, Claudia

    2010-10-22

    Research highlights: {yields} Strong ADAM15 expression is found in normal melanocytes. {yields} ADAM15 expression is significantly downregulated in patients with melanoma metastasis. {yields} TGF-{beta} can downregulate ADAM15 expression in melanoma cells. {yields} Overexpression of ADAM15 in melanoma cells inhibits migration, proliferation and invasion of melanoma cells. {yields} Conclusion: ADAM15 represents an tumor suppressor protein in melanoma. -- Abstract: In a mouse melanoma metastasis model it has been recently shown that ADAM15 overexpression in melanoma cells significantly reduced the number of metastatic nodules on the lung. Unfortunately, the expression of ADAM15 in human melanoma tissue has not been determined so far.more » In our study, we characterized the expression of ADAM15 in tissue micro-arrays of patients with primary melanoma with melanoma metastasis. ADAM15 was expressed in melanocytes and endothelial cells of benign nevi and melanoma tissue. Importantly, ADAM15 was significantly downregulated in melanoma metastasis compared to primary melanoma. We further demonstrate that IFN-{gamma} and TGF-{beta} downregulate ADAM15 protein levels in melanoma cells. To investigate the role of ADAM15 in melanoma progression, we overexpressed ADAM15 in melanoma cells. Importantly, overexpression of ADAM15 in melanoma cells reduced the migration, invasion and the anchorage dependent and independent cell growth of melanoma cells. In summary, the downregulation of ADAM15 plays an important role in melanoma progression and ADAM15 act as a tumorsuppressor in melanoma.« less

  1. The Effect of Bornyl cis-4-Hydroxycinnamate on Melanoma Cell Apoptosis Is Associated with Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Tzu-Yen; Wu, Yu-Jen; Chang, Chi-I; Wu, Mei-Li

    2018-01-01

    Bornyl cis-4-hydroxycinnamate, an active compound isolated from Piper betle stems, was investigated in terms of its effects on A2058 and A375 melanoma cell proliferation and protein expression in this study. We used flow cytometric analysis to examine the early stages of apoptosis induced by bornyl cis-4-hydroxycinnamate in the two melanoma cell lines and employed comparative proteomic analysis to investigate the effects of this compound on protein expression in A375 cells. Master maps generated by PDQuest software from two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) analysis of A375 cells showed that the expression levels of 35 proteins were significantly altered, with 18 proteins upregulated and 17 downregulated. The proteomics study identified several proteins that are involved in mitochondrial dysfunction and endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress), in addition to apoptosis-associated proteins, including prohibitin, hypoxia-upregulated protein 1, stress 70 protein, 78 kDa glucose-regulated protein (GRP78), and protein deglycase DJ-1 (protein DJ-1) in melanoma cells exposed to bornyl cis-4-hydroxycinnamate. The treatment also resulted in a marked decline of the mitochondrial membrane potential, in cytochrome C release into the cytosol, in the activation of Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), Bcl-2-associated death promoter protein (Bad), caspase-3, and caspase-9, and in the decreased expression of p-Bad, B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), Bcl-xl, and induced myeloid leukemia cell differentiation protein-1 (Mcl-1), indicating that apoptosis induced by bornyl cis-4-hydroxycinnamate was mediated by the mitochondria through the caspase-dependent pathway. Also, salubrinal (an eukaryotic initiation factor 2α inhibitor; eIF2α inhibitor) was able to protect the cells from bornyl cis-4-hydroxycinnamate-induced apoptosis. Bornyl cis-4-hydroxycinnamate-related cell death also implied that the protein kinase R-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK)–eIF2α–ATF4–CHOP signal pathways

  2. Transcriptional Profiling of Human Endogenous Retrovirus Group HERV-K(HML-2) Loci in Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Schmitt, Katja; Reichrath, Jörg; Roesch, Alexander; Meese, Eckart; Mayer, Jens

    2013-01-01

    Recent studies suggested a role for the human endogenous retrovirus (HERV) group HERV-K(HML-2) in melanoma because of upregulated transcription and expression of HERV-K(HML-2)-encoded proteins. Very little is known about which HML-2 loci are transcribed in melanoma. We assigned >1,400 HML-2 cDNA sequences generated from various melanoma and related samples to genomic HML-2 loci, identifying a total of 23 loci as transcribed. Transcription profiles of loci differed significantly between samples. One locus was found transcribed only in melanoma-derived samples but not in melanocytes and might represent a marker for melanoma. Several of the transcribed loci harbor ORFs for retroviral Gag and/or Env proteins. Env-encoding loci were transcribed only in melanoma. Specific investigation of rec and np9 transcripts indicated transcription of protein encoding loci in melanoma and melanocytes hinting at the relevance of Rec and Np9 in melanoma. UVB irradiation changed transcription profiles of loci and overall transcript levels decreased in melanoma and melanocytes. We further identified transcribed HML-2 loci formed by reverse transcription of spliced HML-2 transcripts by L1 machinery or in a retroviral fashion, with loci potentially encoding HML-2-like proteins. We reveal complex, sample-specific transcription of HML-2 loci in melanoma and related samples. Identified HML-2 loci and proteins encoded by those loci are particularly relevant for further studying the role of HML-2 in melanoma. Transcription of HERVs appears as a complex mechanism requiring specific studies to elucidate which HERV loci are transcribed and how transcribed HERVs may be involved in disease. PMID:23338945

  3. A novel fully-humanised 3D skin equivalent to model early melanoma invasion

    PubMed Central

    Hill, David S; Robinson, Neil D P; Caley, Matthew P; Chen, Mei; O’Toole, Edel A; Armstrong, Jane L; Przyborski, Stefan; Lovat, Penny E

    2015-01-01

    Metastatic melanoma remains incurable, emphasising the acute need for improved research models to investigate the underlying biological mechanisms mediating tumour invasion and metastasis, and to develop more effective targeted therapies to improve clinical outcome. Available animal models of melanoma do not accurately reflect human disease and current in vitro human skin equivalent models incorporating melanoma cells are not fully representative of the human skin microenvironment. We have developed a robust and reproducible, fully-humanised 3D skin equivalent comprising a stratified, terminally differentiated epidermis and a dermal compartment consisting of fibroblast-generated extracellular matrix. Melanoma cells incorporated into the epidermis were able to invade through the basement membrane and into the dermis, mirroring early tumour invasion in vivo. Comparison of our novel 3D melanoma skin equivalent with melanoma in situ and metastatic melanoma indicates this model accurately recreates features of disease pathology, making it a physiologically representative model of early radial and vertical growth phase melanoma invasion. PMID:26330548

  4. Basic and clinical aspects of malignant melanoma

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nathanson, L.

    1987-01-01

    This book contains the following 10 chapters: The role of oncogenes in the pathogenesis of malignant melanoma; Laminin and fibronectin modulate the metastatic activity of melanoma cells; Structure, function and biosynthesis of ganglioside antigens associated with human tumors derived from the neuroectoderm; Epidemiology of ocular melanoma; Malignant melanoma: Prognostic factors; Endocrine influences on the natural history of human malignant melanoma; Psychosocial factors associated with prognostic indicators, progression, psychophysiology, and tumor-host response in cutaneous malignant melanoma; Central nervous system metastases in malignant melanoma; Interferon trials in the management of malignant melanoma and other neoplasms: an overview; and The treatment of malignantmore » melanoma by fast neutrons.« less

  5. Cisplatin-induced apoptosis inhibits autophagy, which acts as a pro-survival mechanism in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Del Bello, Barbara; Toscano, Marzia; Moretti, Daniele; Maellaro, Emilia

    2013-01-01

    The interplay between a non-lethal autophagic response and apoptotic cell death is still a matter of debate in cancer cell biology. In the present study performed on human melanoma cells, we investigate the role of basal or stimulated autophagy in cisplatin-induced cytotoxicity, as well as the contribution of cisplatin-induced activation of caspases 3/7 and conventional calpains. The results show that, while down-regulating Beclin-1, Atg14 and LC3-II, cisplatin treatment inhibits the basal autophagic response, impairing a physiological pro-survival response. Consistently, exogenously stimulated autophagy, obtained with trehalose or calpains inhibitors (MDL-28170 and calpeptin), protects from cisplatin-induced apoptosis, and such a protection is reverted by inhibiting autophagy with 3-methyladenine or ATG5 silencing. In addition, during trehalose-stimulated autophagy, the cisplatin-induced activation of calpains is abrogated, suggesting the existence of a feedback loop between the autophagic process and calpains. On the whole, our results demonstrate that in human melanoma cells autophagy may function as a beneficial stress response, hindered by cisplatin-induced death mechanisms. In a therapeutic perspective, these findings suggest that the efficacy of cisplatin-based polychemotherapies for melanoma could be potentiated by inhibitors of autophagy.

  6. MDM4 is a key therapeutic target in cutaneous melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Gembarska, Agnieszka; Luciani, Flavie; Fedele, Clare; Russell, Elisabeth A; Dewaele, Michael; Villar, Stéphanie; Zwolinska, Aleksandra; Haupt, Sue; de Lange, Job; Yip, Dana; Goydos, James; Haigh, Jody J; Haupt, Ygal; Larue, Lionel; Jochemsen, Aart; Shi, Hubing; Moriceau, Gatien; Lo, Roger S; Ghanem, Ghanem; Shackleton, Mark; Bernal, Federico; Marine, Jean-Christophe

    2013-01-01

    The inactivation of the p53 tumor suppressor pathway, which often occurs through mutations in TP53 (encoding tumor protein 53) is a common step in human cancer. However, in melanoma—a highly chemotherapy-resistant disease—TP53 mutations are rare, raising the possibility that this cancer uses alternative ways to overcome p53-mediated tumor suppression. Here we show that Mdm4 p53 binding protein homolog (MDM4), a negative regulator of p53, is upregulated in a substantial proportion (∼65%) of stage I–IV human melanomas and that melanocyte-specific Mdm4 overexpression enhanced tumorigenesis in a mouse model of melanoma induced by the oncogene Nras. MDM4 promotes the survival of human metastatic melanoma by antagonizing p53 proapoptotic function. Notably, inhibition of the MDM4-p53 interaction restored p53 function in melanoma cells, resulting in increased sensitivity to cytotoxic chemotherapy and to inhibitors of the BRAF (V600E) oncogene. Our results identify MDM4 as a key determinant of impaired p53 function in human melanoma and designate MDM4 as a promising target for antimelanoma combination therapy. PMID:22820643

  7. Silencing FLI or targeting CD13/ANPEP lead to dephosphorylation of EPHA2, a mediator of BRAF inhibitor resistance, and induce growth arrest or apoptosis in melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Azimi, Alireza; Tuominen, Rainer; Costa Svedman, Fernanda; Caramuta, Stefano; Pernemalm, Maria; Frostvik Stolt, Marianne; Kanter, Lena; Kharaziha, Pedram; Lehtiö, Janne; Hertzman Johansson, Carolina; Höiom, Veronica; Hansson, Johan; Egyhazi Brage, Suzanne

    2017-08-31

    A majority of patients with BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma respond to therapy with BRAF inhibitors (BRAFi), but relapses are common owing to acquired resistance. To unravel BRAFi resistance mechanisms we have performed gene expression and mass spectrometry based proteome profiling of the sensitive parental A375 BRAF V600E-mutated human melanoma cell line and of daughter cell lines with induced BRAFi resistance. Increased expression of two novel resistance candidates, aminopeptidase-N (CD13/ANPEP) and ETS transcription factor FLI1 was observed in the BRAFi-resistant daughter cell lines. In addition, increased levels of the previously reported resistance mediators, receptor tyrosine kinase ephrine receptor A2 (EPHA2) and the hepatocyte growth factor receptor MET were also identified. The expression of these proteins was assessed in matched tumor samples from melanoma patients obtained before BRAFi and after disease progression. MET was overexpressed in all progression samples while the expression of the other candidates varied between the individual patients. Targeting CD13/ANPEP by a blocking antibody induced apoptosis in both parental A375- and BRAFi-resistant daughter cells as well as in melanoma cells with intrinsic BRAFi resistance and led to dephosphorylation of EPHA2 on S897, previously demonstrated to cause inhibition of the migratory capacity. AKT and RSK, both reported to induce EPHA2 S897 phosphorylation, were also dephosphorylated after inhibition of CD13/ANPEP. FLI1 silencing also caused decreases in EPHA2 S897 phosphorylation and in total MET protein expression. In addition, silencing of FLI1 sensitized the resistant cells to BRAFi. Furthermore, we show that BRAFi in combination with the multi kinase inhibitor dasatinib can abrogate BRAFi resistance and decrease both EPHA2 S897 phosphorylation and total FLI1 protein expression. This is the first report presenting CD13/ANPEP and FLI1 as important mediators of resistance to BRAF inhibition with

  8. MGDB: a comprehensive database of genes involved in melanoma.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Di; Zhu, Rongrong; Zhang, Hanqian; Zheng, Chun-Hou; Xia, Junfeng

    2015-01-01

    The Melanoma Gene Database (MGDB) is a manually curated catalog of molecular genetic data relating to genes involved in melanoma. The main purpose of this database is to establish a network of melanoma related genes and to facilitate the mechanistic study of melanoma tumorigenesis. The entries describing the relationships between melanoma and genes in the current release were manually extracted from PubMed abstracts, which contains cumulative to date 527 human melanoma genes (422 protein-coding and 105 non-coding genes). Each melanoma gene was annotated in seven different aspects (General Information, Expression, Methylation, Mutation, Interaction, Pathway and Drug). In addition, manually curated literature references have also been provided to support the inclusion of the gene in MGDB and establish its association with melanoma. MGDB has a user-friendly web interface with multiple browse and search functions. We hoped MGDB will enrich our knowledge about melanoma genetics and serve as a useful complement to the existing public resources. Database URL: http://bioinfo.ahu.edu.cn:8080/Melanoma/index.jsp. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press.

  9. In vitro anticancer activity of Betulinic acid and derivatives thereof on equine melanoma cell lines from grey horses and in vivo safety assessment of the compound NVX-207 in two horses.

    PubMed

    Liebscher, G; Vanchangiri, K; Mueller, Th; Feige, K; Cavalleri, J-M V; Paschke, R

    2016-02-25

    Betulinic acid, a pentacyclic triterpene, and its derivatives are promising compounds for cancer treatment in humans. Melanoma is not only a problem for humans but also for grey horses as they have a high potential of developing melanoma lesions coupled to the mutation causing their phenotype. Current chemotherapeutic treatment carries the risk of adverse health effects for the horse owner or the treating veterinarian by exposure to antineoplastic compounds. Most treatments have low prospects for systemic tumor regression. Thus, a new therapy is needed. In this in vitro study, Betulinic acid and its two derivatives B10 and NVX-207, both with an improved water solubility compared to Betulinic acid, were tested on two equine melanoma cell lines (MelDuWi and MellJess/HoMelZh) and human melanoma (A375) cell line. We could demonstrate that all three compounds especially NVX-207 show high cytotoxicity on both equine melanoma cell lines. The treatment with these compounds lead to externalization of phosphatidylserines on the cell membrane (AnnexinV-staining), DNA-fragmentation (cell cycle analysis) and activation of initiator and effector caspases (Caspase assays). Our results indicate that the apoptosis is induced in the equine melanoma cells by all three compounds. Furthermore, we succeed in encapsulating the most active compound NVX-207 in 2-Hydroxyprolyl-β-cyclodextrine without a loss of its activity. This formulation can be used as a promising antitumor agent for treating grey horse melanoma. In a first tolerability evaluation in vivo the formulation was administered every one week for 19 consecutive weeks and well tolerated in two adult melanoma affected horses. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. In vitro efficiency and mechanistic role of indocyanine green as photodynamic therapy agent for human melanoma

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mamoon, A.M.; Miller, L.; Gamal-Eldeen, A. M.

    2009-05-02

    Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising treatment for superficial cancer. However, poor therapeutic results have been reported for melanoma, due to the high melanin content. Indocyanine green (ICG) has near infrared absorption (700-800 nm) and melanins do not absorb strongly in this area. This study explores the efficiency of ICG as a PDT agent for human melanoma, and its mechanistic role in the cell death pathway. Human skin melanoma cells (Sk-Mel-28) were incubated with ICG and exposed to a low power Ti:Sapphire laser. Synchrotron-assisted Fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy and hierarchical cluster analysis were used to assess the cell damage andmore » changes in lipid, protein, and nucleic acids. The cell death pathway was determined by analysis of cell viability and apoptosis and necrosis markers. In the cell death pathway, {sup 1}O{sub 2} generation evoked rapid multiple consequences that trigger apoptosis after laser exposure for only 15min including the release of cytochrome c, the activation of total caspases, caspase-3, and caspase-9, the inhibition of NF-{Kappa}B P65, and the enhancement of DNA fragmentation, and histone acetylation. ICG/PDT can efficiently and rapidly induce apoptosis in human melanoma cells and it can be considered as a new therapeutic approach for topical treatment of melanoma.« less

  11. MicroRNA-375/SEC23A as biomarkers of the in vitro efficacy of vandetanib.

    PubMed

    Lassalle, Sandra; Zangari, Joséphine; Popa, Alexandra; Ilie, Marius; Hofman, Véronique; Long, Elodie; Patey, Martine; Tissier, Frédérique; Belléannée, Geneviève; Trouette, Hélène; Catargi, Bogdan; Peyrottes, Isabelle; Sadoul, Jean-Louis; Bordone, Olivier; Bonnetaud, Christelle; Butori, Catherine; Bozec, Alexandre; Guevara, Nicolas; Santini, José; Hénaoui, Imène Sarah; Lemaire, Géraldine; Blanck, Olivier; Vielh, Philippe; Barbry, Pascal; Mari, Bernard; Brest, Patrick; Hofman, Paul

    2016-05-24

    In this study, we performed microRNA (miRNA) expression profiling on a large series of sporadic and hereditary forms of medullary thyroid carcinomas (MTC). More than 60 miRNAs were significantly deregulated in tumor vs adjacent non-tumor tissues, partially overlapping with results of previous studies. We focused our attention on the strongest up-regulated miRNA in MTC samples, miR-375, the deregulation of which has been previously observed in a variety of human malignancies including MTC. We identified miR-375 targets by combining gene expression signatures from human MTC (TT) and normal follicular (Nthy-ori 3-1) cell lines transfected with an antagomiR-375 inhibitor or a miR-375 mimic, respectively, and from an in silico analysis of thyroid cell lines of Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia datasets. This approach identified SEC23A as a bona fide miR-375 target, which we validated by immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry of non-tumor and pathological thyroid tissue. Furthermore, we observed that miR-375 overexpression was associated with decreased cell proliferation and synergistically increased sensitivity to vandetanib, the clinically relevant treatment of metastatic MTC. We found that miR-375 increased PARP cleavage and decreased AKT phosphorylation, affecting both cell proliferation and viability. We confirmed these results through SEC23A direct silencing in combination with vandetanib, highlighting the importance of SEC23A in the miR-375-associated increased sensitivity to vandetanib.Since the combination of increased expression of miR-375 and decreased expression of SEC23A point to sensitivity to vandetanib, we question if the expression levels of miR-375 and SEC23A should be evaluated as an indicator of eligibility for treatment of MTC patients with vandetanib.

  12. Ionizing radiation modulates the surface expression of human leukocyte antigen-G in a human melanoma cell line.

    PubMed

    Michelin, Severino; Gallegos, Cristina E; Dubner, Diana; Favier, Benoit; Carosella, Edgardo D

    2009-12-01

    Human leukocyte antigen G (HLA-G) is a nonclassical HLA class I molecule involved in fetus protection from the maternal immune system, transplant tolerance, and viral and tumoral immune escape. Tumor-specific HLA-G expression has been described for a wide variety of malignancies, including melanomas. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether ionizing radiation (IR) could modulate the surface expression of HLA-G1 in a human melanoma cell line that expresses endogenously membrane-bound HLA-G1. For this purpose, cells were exposed to increasing doses of gamma-irradiation (0-20 Gy) and HLA-G1 levels at the plasma membrane were analyzed at different times postirradiation by flow cytometry. HLA-G total expression and the presence of the soluble form of HLA-G1 (sHLA-G1) in the culture medium of irradiated cells were also evaluated. IR was capable of downregulating cell surface and total HLA-G levels, with a concomitant increase of sHLA-G1 in the medium. These results could indicate that gamma-irradiation decreases HLA-G1 surface levels by enhancing the proteolytic cleavage of this molecule.

  13. Envelope residue 375 substitutions in simian–human immunodeficiency viruses enhance CD4 binding and replication in rhesus macaques

    PubMed Central

    Li, Hui; Wang, Shuyi; Kong, Rui; Ding, Wenge; Lee, Fang-Hua; Parker, Zahra; Kim, Eunlim; Learn, Gerald H.; Hahn, Paul; Policicchio, Ben; Brocca-Cofano, Egidio; Deleage, Claire; Hao, Xingpei; Chuang, Gwo-Yu; Gorman, Jason; Gardner, Matthew; Lewis, Mark G.; Hatziioannou, Theodora; Santra, Sampa; Apetrei, Cristian; Pandrea, Ivona; Alam, S. Munir; Liao, Hua-Xin; Shen, Xiaoying; Tomaras, Georgia D.; Farzan, Michael; Chertova, Elena; Keele, Brandon F.; Estes, Jacob D.; Lifson, Jeffrey D.; Doms, Robert W.; Montefiori, David C.; Haynes, Barton F.; Sodroski, Joseph G.; Kwong, Peter D.; Hahn, Beatrice H.; Shaw, George M.

    2016-01-01

    Most simian–human immunodeficiency viruses (SHIVs) bearing envelope (Env) glycoproteins from primary HIV-1 strains fail to infect rhesus macaques (RMs). We hypothesized that inefficient Env binding to rhesus CD4 (rhCD4) limits virus entry and replication and could be enhanced by substituting naturally occurring simian immunodeficiency virus Env residues at position 375, which resides at a critical location in the CD4-binding pocket and is under strong positive evolutionary pressure across the broad spectrum of primate lentiviruses. SHIVs containing primary or transmitted/founder HIV-1 subtype A, B, C, or D Envs with genotypic variants at residue 375 were constructed and analyzed in vitro and in vivo. Bulky hydrophobic or basic amino acids substituted for serine-375 enhanced Env affinity for rhCD4, virus entry into cells bearing rhCD4, and virus replication in primary rhCD4 T cells without appreciably affecting antigenicity or antibody-mediated neutralization sensitivity. Twenty-four RMs inoculated with subtype A, B, C, or D SHIVs all became productively infected with different Env375 variants—S, M, Y, H, W, or F—that were differentially selected in different Env backbones. Notably, SHIVs replicated persistently at titers comparable to HIV-1 in humans and elicited autologous neutralizing antibody responses typical of HIV-1. Seven animals succumbed to AIDS. These findings identify Env–rhCD4 binding as a critical determinant for productive SHIV infection in RMs and validate a novel and generalizable strategy for constructing SHIVs with Env glycoproteins of interest, including those that in humans elicit broadly neutralizing antibodies or bind particular Ig germ-line B-cell receptors. PMID:27247400

  14. Receptor-mediated cytotoxicity of alpha-MSH fragments containing melphalan in a human melanoma cell line.

    PubMed

    Morandini, R; Süli-Vargha, H; Libert, A; Loir, B; Botyánszki, J; Medzihradszky, K; Ghanem, G

    1994-01-02

    Four alpha-MSH drug conjugates have been synthesized, 2 C-terminal (Pep 3 and 4) and 2 central fragments (Pep 1 and 2), the latter being the 4-10 sequence known to be the main alpha-MSH-receptor-recognition site. Melphalan was introduced into each sequence at different locations. Their ability to recognize alpha-MSH receptors as well as their cytotoxic effects were compared in 3 cell lines: melanoma, carcinoma and fibroblast cells. Pep 1 and 2 were able to specifically bind to MSH receptors on melanoma cells by displacing labelled alpha-MSH from its binding sites at concentrations similar to the 4-10 heptapeptide sequence known to contain the main receptor-recognition site. They subsequently penetrate the cell, most probably by a receptor internalization mechanism, since about half of their effect could be inhibited by competition at the receptor level. Significant and selective cytotoxic effects to melanoma cells could be observed after only 2 hr exposure to the drug conjugates. Interestingly, these 2 conjugates, differing only in melphalan position, showed completely different cytotoxicity in terms of IC50 values, Pep 1 being 24 times more toxic to all cells; but the 2 were equally specific to melanoma cells. However, they both were less toxic to all cells than melphalan itself. Furthermore, Pep 1 and 2 were able to block the receptor and, unlike Pep 3 and 4, their cytotoxic effect could be significantly inhibited by an alpha-MSH agonist. Pep 3 and 4 were 5 to 10 times less toxic than melphalan to melanoma and carcinoma cells and 50 times less to fibroblast cells, and did not show any cell-type selectivity. They were less toxic than Pep 1 to melanoma and carcinoma cells by a factor of 2, but equally toxic to fibroblasts. In contrast, they were more toxic than Pep 2 to fibroblasts, melanoma and carcinoma by a factor of 3, 10 and 24 respectively. Our data strongly suggest a receptor-mediated cytotoxicity mechanism occurring with alpha-MSH central fragments in human

  15. Biflorin induces cytotoxicity by DNA interaction in genetically different human melanoma cell lines.

    PubMed

    Ralph, Ana Carolina Lima; Calcagno, Danielle Queiroz; da Silva Souza, Luciana Gregório; de Lemos, Telma Leda Gomes; Montenegro, Raquel Carvalho; de Arruda Cardoso Smith, Marília; de Vasconcellos, Marne Carvalho

    2016-08-01

    Cancer is a public health problem and the second leading cause of death worldwide. The incidence of cutaneous melanoma has been notably increasing, resulting in high aggressiveness and poor survival rates. Taking into account the antitumor activity of biflorin, a substance isolated from Capraria biflora L. roots that is cytotoxic in vitro and in vivo, this study aimed to demonstrate the action of biflorin against three established human melanoma cell lines that recapitulate the molecular landscape of the disease in terms of genetic alterations and mutations, such as the TP53, NRAS and BRAF genes. The results presented here indicate that biflorin reduces the viability of melanoma cell lines by DNA interactions. Biflorin causes single and double DNA strand breaks, consequently inhibiting cell cycle progression, replication and DNA repair and promoting apoptosis. Our data suggest that biflorin could be considered as a future therapeutic option for managing melanoma. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. siRNA - Mediated LRP/LR knock-down reduces cellular viability of malignant melanoma cells through the activation of apoptotic caspases.

    PubMed

    Rebelo, Thalia M; Vania, Leila; Ferreira, Eloise; Weiss, Stefan F T

    2018-07-01

    The 37 kDa/67 kDa laminin receptor (LRP/LR) is over-expressed in tumor cells and has been implicated in several tumourigenic processes such as metastasis and telomerase activation, however, more importantly the focus of the present study is on the maintenance of cellular viability and the evasion of apoptosis. The aim of the study was to investigate the role of LRP/LR on the cellular viability of early (A375) and late stage (A375SM) malignant melanoma cells. Flow cytometry and western blot analysis revealed that A375SM cells contain more cell-surface and total LRP/LR levels in comparison to the A375 cells, respectively. In order to determine the effect of LRP/LR on cell viability and apoptosis, LRP was down-regulated via siRNA technology. MTT assays revealed that LRP knock-down led to significant reductions in the viability of A375 and A375SM cells. Confocal microscopy indicated nuclear morphological changes suggestive of apoptotic induction in both cell lines and Annexin-V FITC/PI assays confirmed this observation. Additionally, caspase-3 activity assays revealed that apoptosis was induced in both cell lines after siRNA-mediated down-regulation of LRP. Caspase-8 and -9 activity assays suggested that post LRP knock-down; A375 cells undergo apoptosis solely via the extrinsic pathway, while A375SM cells undergo apoptosis via the intrinsic pathway. siRNAs mediated LRP knock-down might represent a powerful alternative therapeutic strategy for the treatment of malignant melanoma through the induction of apoptosis. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  17. The DNA methylation landscape of human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Jin, Seung-Gi; Xiong, Wenying; Wu, Xiwei; Yang, Lu; Pfeifer, Gerd P

    2015-12-01

    Using MIRA-seq, we have characterized the DNA methylome of metastatic melanoma and normal melanocytes. Individual tumors contained several thousand hypermethylated regions. We discovered 179 tumor-specific methylation peaks present in all (27/27) melanomas that may be effective disease biomarkers, and 3113 methylation peaks were seen in >40% of the tumors. We found that 150 of the approximately 1200 tumor-associated methylation peaks near transcription start sites (TSSs) were marked by H3K27me3 in melanocytes. DNA methylation in melanoma was specific for distinct H3K27me3 peaks rather than for broadly covered regions. However, numerous H3K27me3 peak-associated TSS regions remained devoid of DNA methylation in tumors. There was no relationship between BRAF mutations and the number of methylation peaks. Gene expression analysis showed upregulated immune response genes in melanomas presumably as a result of lymphocyte infiltration. Down-regulated genes were enriched for melanocyte differentiation factors; e.g., KIT, PAX3 and SOX10 became methylated and downregulated in melanoma. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Evaluation of MicroRNA375 as a Novel Biomarker for Graft Damage in Clinical Islet Transplantation.

    PubMed

    Kanak, Mazhar A; Takita, Morihito; Shahbazov, Rauf; Lawrence, Michael C; Chung, Wen Yuan; Dennison, Ashley R; Levy, Marlon F; Naziruddin, Bashoo

    2015-08-01

    Early and sensitive detection of islet graft damage is essential for improving posttransplant outcomes. MicroRNA 375 (miR375) has been reported as a biomarker of pancreatic β-cell death in small animal models. The miR375 levels were measured in purified human islets, sera from patients with autologous and allogeneic islet transplantation as well as total pancreatectomy alone (nontransplanted group). The miR375 levels were also determined in a miniaturized in vitro tube model comprising human islets and autologous blood. The miR375 expression level in islets was dose-dependent (P < 0.001) and significantly elevated after islet damage in plasma in the in vitro model (P = 0.003). Clinical analysis revealed that circulating miR375 levels in both autologous and allogeneic islet recipients were significantly elevated for 7 days after islet infusion, compared with the nontransplanted group (P = 0.005 and <0.001, respectively). Furthermore, miR375 detected the difference in islet graft damage among 3 different anti-inflammatory protocols for clinical autologous transplantation (P < 0.01). Circulating miR375 can be a reliable biomarker to detect graft damage in clinical islet transplantation because serum C-peptide and proinsulin levels are difficult to interpret due to the influence of multiple factors, such as β-cell stress and physiological response.

  19. Orally administered rapamycin, dacarbazine or both for treatment of human melanoma evaluated in severe combined immunodeficiency mice.

    PubMed

    Thallinger, Christiane; Skorjanec, Sophie; Soleiman, Afschin; Tzaneva, Stanislava; Griss, Johannes; Rous, Wolfgang; Poeppl, Wolfgang; Weinlich, Georg; Karimian-Teherani, Daniela; Joukhadar, Christian

    2008-01-01

    In this experimental study, the antineoplastic potential of orally administered rapamycin in human melanoma was evaluated and compared with dacarbazine (DTIC) as well as with the antineoplastic effect of the combination of both drugs. The substances were tested using 2 human melanoma cell lines, 518A2, which is highly susceptible to DTIC, and 607B, which is moderately susceptible. A human melanoma severe combined immunodeficiency mouse xenotransplantation model was used. After development of palpable tumors, mice received oral rapamycin or saline over 18 days. Additionally, from treatment day 4 to 8, mice were randomly chosen to receive either DTIC or saline treatment. The oral rapamycin treatment (1.5, 7.5, 15 and 30 mg/kg body weight) had an antineoplastic effect, ranging from 35 to 78% tumor weight reduction compared with the saline group. In DTIC less sensitive 607B tumors, rapamycin treatment (15 and 30 mg/kg body weight) was superior to DTIC treatment (p < 0.05). DTIC monotreatment reduced tumor weight in 518A2 tumors by 85% on average, whereas in 607B xenografts, no significant tumor weight reduction was observed compared with the saline group (p > 0.05). The combination of rapamycin and DTIC was not superior to rapamycin monotreatment in any cell line. These data indicate that oral rapamycin exerts a relevant antineoplastic effect on human melanoma cells. This effect appeared to be more pronounced in DTIC less sensitive melanoma xenografts. Copyright 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  20. Morphological changes in human melanoma cells following irradiation with thermal neutrons.

    PubMed

    Barkla, D H; Allen, B J; Brown, J K; Mountford, M; Mishima, Y; Ichihashi, M

    1989-01-01

    Morphological changes in two human melanoma cell lines, MM96 and MM418, following irradiation with thermal neutrons, were studied using light and electron microscopy. The results show that the response of human malignant melanoma cells to neutron irradiation is both cell line dependent and dose dependent, and that in any given cell line, some cells are more resistant to irradiation than others, thus demonstrating heterogeneity in respect to radiosensitivity. Cells repopulating MM96 flasks after irradiation were morphologically similar to the cells of origin whereas in MM418 flasks cells differentiated into five morphologically distinct subgroups and showed increased melanization. The results also show that radiation causes distinctive morphological patterns of damage although ultrastructural changes unique to the high LET particles released from boron 10 neutron capture are yet to be identified.

  1. 21 CFR 172.375 - Potassium iodide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) FOOD ADDITIVES PERMITTED FOR DIRECT ADDITION TO FOOD FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION Special Dietary and Nutritional Additives § 172.375 Potassium iodide. The food additive potassium iodide may be safely used in accordance with the...

  2. Whole Body Melanoma Transcriptome Response in Medaka

    PubMed Central

    Schartl, Manfred; Shen, Yingjia; Maurus, Katja; Walter, Ron; Tomlinson, Chad; Wilson, Richard K.; Postlethwait, John; Warren, Wesley C.

    2015-01-01

    The incidence of malignant melanoma continues to increase each year with poor prognosis for survival in many relapse cases. To reverse this trend, whole body response measures are needed to discover collaborative paths to primary and secondary malignancy. Several species of fish provide excellent melanoma models because fish and human melanocytes both appear in the epidermis, and fish and human pigment cell tumors share conserved gene expression signatures. For the first time, we have examined the whole body transcriptome response to invasive melanoma as a prelude to using transcriptome profiling to screen for drugs in a medaka (Oryzias latipes) model. We generated RNA-seq data from whole body RNA isolates for controls and melanoma fish. After testing for differential expression, 396 genes had significantly different expression (adjusted p-value <0.02) in the whole body transcriptome between melanoma and control fish; 379 of these genes were matched to human orthologs with 233 having annotated human gene symbols and 14 matched genes that contain putative deleterious variants in human melanoma at varying levels of recurrence. A detailed canonical pathway evaluation for significant enrichment showed the top scoring pathway to be antigen presentation but also included the expected melanocyte development and pigmentation signaling pathway. Results revealed a profound down-regulation of genes involved in the immune response, especially the innate immune system. We hypothesize that the developing melanoma actively suppresses the immune system responses of the body in reacting to the invasive malignancy, and that this mal-adaptive response contributes to disease progression, a result that suggests our whole-body transcriptomic approach merits further use. In these findings, we also observed novel genes not yet identified in human melanoma expression studies and uncovered known and new candidate drug targets for further testing in this malignant melanoma medaka model. PMID

  3. Whole Body Melanoma Transcriptome Response in Medaka.

    PubMed

    Schartl, Manfred; Shen, Yingjia; Maurus, Katja; Walter, Ron; Tomlinson, Chad; Wilson, Richard K; Postlethwait, John; Warren, Wesley C

    2015-01-01

    The incidence of malignant melanoma continues to increase each year with poor prognosis for survival in many relapse cases. To reverse this trend, whole body response measures are needed to discover collaborative paths to primary and secondary malignancy. Several species of fish provide excellent melanoma models because fish and human melanocytes both appear in the epidermis, and fish and human pigment cell tumors share conserved gene expression signatures. For the first time, we have examined the whole body transcriptome response to invasive melanoma as a prelude to using transcriptome profiling to screen for drugs in a medaka (Oryzias latipes) model. We generated RNA-seq data from whole body RNA isolates for controls and melanoma fish. After testing for differential expression, 396 genes had significantly different expression (adjusted p-value <0.02) in the whole body transcriptome between melanoma and control fish; 379 of these genes were matched to human orthologs with 233 having annotated human gene symbols and 14 matched genes that contain putative deleterious variants in human melanoma at varying levels of recurrence. A detailed canonical pathway evaluation for significant enrichment showed the top scoring pathway to be antigen presentation but also included the expected melanocyte development and pigmentation signaling pathway. Results revealed a profound down-regulation of genes involved in the immune response, especially the innate immune system. We hypothesize that the developing melanoma actively suppresses the immune system responses of the body in reacting to the invasive malignancy, and that this mal-adaptive response contributes to disease progression, a result that suggests our whole-body transcriptomic approach merits further use. In these findings, we also observed novel genes not yet identified in human melanoma expression studies and uncovered known and new candidate drug targets for further testing in this malignant melanoma medaka model.

  4. Hemoglobin enhances tissue factor expression on human malignant cells.

    PubMed

    Siddiqui, F A; Amirkhosravi, A; Amaya, M; Meyer, T; Biggerstaff, J; Desai, H; Francis, J L

    2001-04-01

    Tissue Factor (TF) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that complexes with factor VII/activated factor VII to initiate blood coagulation. TF may be expressed on the surface of various cells including monocytes and endothelial cells. Over-expression of TF in human tumor cell lines promotes metastasis. We recently showed that hemoglobin (Hb) forms a specific complex with TF purified from human malignant melanoma cells and enhances its procoagulant activity (PCA). To further study this interaction, we examined the effect of Hb on the expression of TF on human malignant (TF+) cells and KG1 myeloid leukemia (TF-) cells. Human melanoma A375 and J82 bladder carcinoma cells, which express TF at moderate and relatively high levels, respectively, were incubated with varying concentrations (0-1.5 mg/ml) of Hb. After washing, cells were analyzed for Hb binding and TF expression using flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. Hb bound to the cells in a concentration-dependent manner, and increased both TF expression and PCA. The human A375 malignant melanoma cells incubated with Hb (1 mg/ml) expressed up to six times more TF antigen than cells without Hb. This increase in TF expression and PCA of intact cells incubated with Hb was significantly inhibited by cycloheximide at a concentration of 10 microg/ml (P < 0.01). An increase in total cellular TF antigen content was demonstrated by specific immunoassay. In contrast, Hb (5 mg/ml) did not induce TF expression and PCA on KG1 cells as determined by flow cytometry and TF (FXAA) activity. We conclude that Hb specifically binds to TF-bearing malignant cells and increases their PCA. This effect seems to be at least partly due to de novo synthesis of TF and increased surface expression. However, the exact mechanism by which Hb binds and upregulates TF expression remains to be determined.

  5. A new O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase inhibitor associated with a nitrosourea (cystemustine) validates a strategy of melanoma-targeted therapy in murine B16 and human-resistant M4Beu melanoma xenograft models.

    PubMed

    Rapp, Maryse; Maurizis, Jean C; Papon, Janine; Labarre, Pierre; Wu, Ting-Di; Croisy, Alain; Guerquin-Kern, Jean L; Madelmont, Jean C; Mounetou, Emmanuelle

    2008-07-01

    Chemoresistance to O(6)-alkylating agents is a major barrier to successful treatment of melanoma. It is mainly due to a DNA repair suicide protein, O(6)-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT). Although AGT inactivation is a powerful clinical strategy for restoring tumor chemosensitivity, it was limited by increased toxicity to nontumoral cells resulting from a lack of tumor selectivity. Achieving enhanced chemosensitization via AGT inhibition preferably in the tumor should protect normal tissue. To this end, we have developed a strategy to target AGT inhibitors. In this study, we tested a new potential melanoma-directed AGT inhibitor [2-amino-6-(4-iodobenzyloxy)-9-[4-(diethylamino) ethylcarbamoylbenzyl] purine; IBgBZ] designed as a conjugate of O(6)-(4-iododbenzyl)guanine (IBg) as the AGT inactivator and a N,N-diethylaminoethylenebenzamido (BZ) moiety as the carrier to the malignant melanocytes. IBgBZ demonstrated AGT inactivation ability and potentiation of O(6)-alkylating agents (cystemustine, a chloroethylnitrosourea) in M4Beu highly chemoresistant human melanoma cells both in vitro and in tumor models. The biodisposition study on mice bearing B16 melanoma, the standard model for the evaluation of melanoma-directed agents, and the secondary ion mass spectrometry imaging confirmed the concentration of IBgBZ in the tumor and in particular in the intracytoplasmic melanosomes. These results validate the potential of IBgBZ as a new, more tumor-selective, AGT inhibitor in a strategy of melanoma-targeted therapy.

  6. Genetic Engineering of T Cells to Target HERV-K, an Ancient Retrovirus on Melanoma.

    PubMed

    Krishnamurthy, Janani; Rabinovich, Brian A; Mi, Tiejuan; Switzer, Kirsten C; Olivares, Simon; Maiti, Sourindra N; Plummer, Joshua B; Singh, Harjeet; Kumaresan, Pappanaicken R; Huls, Helen M; Wang-Johanning, Feng; Cooper, Laurence J N

    2015-07-15

    The human endogenous retrovirus (HERV-K) envelope (env) protein is a tumor-associated antigen (TAA) expressed on melanoma but not normal cells. This study was designed to engineer a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) on T-cell surface, such that they target tumors in advanced stages of melanoma. Expression of HERV-K protein was analyzed in 220 melanoma samples (with various stages of disease) and 139 normal organ donor tissues using immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis. HERV-K env-specific CAR derived from mouse monoclonal antibody was introduced into T cells using the transposon-based Sleeping Beauty (SB) system. HERV-K env-specific CAR(+) T cells were expanded ex vivo on activating and propagating cells (AaPC) and characterized for CAR expression and specificity. This includes evaluating the HERV-K-specific CAR(+) T cells for their ability to kill A375-SM metastasized tumors in a mouse xenograft model. We detected HERV-K env protein on melanoma but not in normal tissues. After electroporation of T cells and selection on HERV-K(+) AaPC, more than 95% of genetically modified T cells expressed the CAR with an effector memory phenotype and lysed HERV-K env(+) tumor targets in an antigen-specific manner. Even though there is apparent shedding of this TAA from tumor cells that can be recognized by HERV-K env-specific CAR(+) T cells, we observed a significant antitumor effect. Adoptive cellular immunotherapy with HERV-K env-specific CAR(+) T cells represents a clinically appealing treatment strategy for advanced-stage melanoma and provides an approach for targeting this TAA on other solid tumors. ©2015 American Association for Cancer Research.

  7. Ginsenoside G-Rh2 synergizes with SMI-4a in anti-melanoma activity through autophagic cell death.

    PubMed

    Lv, Da-Lun; Chen, Lei; Ding, Wei; Zhang, Wei; Wang, He-Li; Wang, Shuai; Liu, Wen-Bei

    2018-01-01

    Melanoma is a leading cause of cancer death worldwide, and SMI-4a and G-Rh2 exert anti-tumor activity in multiple cancer. However, SMI-4a as well as a synergistic relationship between SMI-4a and G-Rh2 in anti-melanoma capacity are still unknown. Therefore, we investigated the effects of SMI-4a and combined SMI-4a with G-Rh2 on the viability, apoptosis and autophagy of melanoma, and to preliminarily explore the underlying mechanism of SMI-4a and combined SMI-4a with G-Rh2 in inhibiting tumor growth. Cell viability was examined with cell counting Kit 8 assay and colony formation assay; Apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry and Caspase 3/7 activity assay; Western blotting was used to test proteins related to autophagy and the AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway; Tumor xenograft model in BALB/c nude mice was performed to evaluate the effects of SMI-4a and combined SMI-4a with G-Rh2 in anti-melanoma in vivo. SMI-4a, a pharmacological inhibitor of PIM-1, could decrease cell viability, induce apoptosis, and promote Caspase 3/7 activity in both A375 and G361 melanoma cells, and SMI-4a inhibited tumor growth by inducing autophagy via down-regulating AKT/mTOR axis in melanoma cells. Furthermore, G-Rh2 amplified the anti-tumor activity of SMI-4a in melanoma cells via strengthening autophagy. Our results suggested that SMI-4a could enhance autophagy-inducing apoptosis by inhibiting AKT/mTOR signaling pathway in melanoma cells, and G-Rh2 could enhance the effects of SMI-4a against melanoma cancer via amplifying autophagy induction. This study demonstrates that combined SMI-4a and G-Rh2 might be a novel alternative strategy for melanoma treatment.

  8. The selective cytotoxicity of new triazene compounds to human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Sousa, Ana; Santos, Fábio; Gaspar, Maria Manuela; Calado, Susana; Pereira, João D; Mendes, Eduarda; Francisco, Ana Paula; Perry, Maria Jesus

    2017-08-01

    Metastatic melanoma still remains one the most difficult cancers to overcome. The aim of our research was the design of anti-tumour triazene compounds 3 for application to a melanoma-specific therapy. The strategy exploits the unique enzyme pathway of melanin biosynthesis for conversion of non-toxic prodrugs into toxic drugs in the melanoma cell. The compounds 3 were designed by coupling two active moieties, the alkylating triazenes and different tyrosinase substrates. All compounds 3 revealed to be chemically stable in isotonic phosphate buffer (PBS) at physiologic pH (t ½ ≥48h), and most of them showed to be slowly hydrolysed in human plasma (1.5≤t ½ (h)≤161). Compounds 3c-n revealed to be excellent tyrosinase substrates (0.74≤t ½ (min)≤6) with the best tyrosinase substrate 3l releasing MMT 45s after tyrosinase activation. Structure-activity relationship studies allowed the identification of the better structural features for enzyme affinity. Furthermore, the derivatives 3l and 3m showed cell selectivity with significant cytotoxic effects (IC 50 values of 46-65μM) against melanoma cell lines with tyrosinase overexpression MNT-1 and B16F10. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Fluorescence in situ detection of human cutaneous melanoma: study of diagnostic parameters of the method.

    PubMed

    Chwirot, B W; Chwirot, S; Sypniewska, N; Michniewicz, Z; Redzinski, J; Kurzawski, G; Ruka, W

    2001-12-01

    Multicenter study of the diagnostic parameters was conducted by three groups in Poland to determine if in situ fluorescence detection of human cutaneous melanoma based on digital imaging of spectrally resolved autofluorescence can be used as a tool for a preliminary selection of patients at increased risk of the disease. Fluorescence examinations were performed for 7228 pigmented lesions in 4079 subjects. Histopathologic examinations showed 56 cases of melanoma. A sensitivity of fluorescence detection of melanoma was 82.7% in agreement with 82.5% found in earlier work. Using as a reference only the results of histopathologic examinations obtained for 568 cases we found a specificity of 59.9% and a positive predictive value of 17.5% (melanomas versus all pigmented lesions) or 24% (melanomas versus common and dysplastic naevi). The specificity and positive predictive value found in this work are significantly lower than reported earlier but still comparable with those reported for typical screening programs. In conclusion, the fluorescence method of in situ detection of melanoma can be used in screening large populations of patients for a selection of patients who should be examined by specialists.

  10. Quantitative comparison of the spreading and invasion of radial growth phase and metastatic melanoma cells in a three-dimensional human skin equivalent model.

    PubMed

    Haridas, Parvathi; McGovern, Jacqui A; McElwain, Sean D L; Simpson, Matthew J

    2017-01-01

    Standard two-dimensional (2D) cell migration assays do not provide information about vertical invasion processes, which are critical for melanoma progression. We provide information about three-dimensional (3D) melanoma cell migration, proliferation and invasion in a 3D melanoma skin equivalent (MSE) model. In particular, we pay careful attention to compare the structure of the tissues in the MSE with similarly-prepared 3D human skin equivalent (HSE) models. The HSE model is identically prepared to the MSE model except that melanoma cells are omitted. Using the MSE model, we examine melanoma migration, proliferation and invasion from two different human melanoma cell lines. One cell line, WM35, is associated with the early phase of the disease where spreading is thought to be confined to the epidermis. The other cell line, SK-MEL-28, is associated with the later phase of the disease where spreading into the dermis is expected. 3D MSE and HSE models are constructed using human de-epidermised dermis (DED) prepared from skin tissue. Primary fibroblasts and primary keratinocytes are used in the MSE and HSE models to ensure the formation of a stratified epidermis, with a well-defined basement membrane. Radial spreading of cells across the surface of the HSE and MSE models is observed. Vertical invasion of melanoma cells downward through the skin is observed and measured using immunohistochemistry. All measurements of invasion are made at day 0, 9, 15 and 20, providing detailed time course data. Both HSE and MSE models are similar to native skin in vivo , with a well-defined stratification of the epidermis that is separated from the dermis by a basement membrane. In the HSE and MSE we find fibroblast cells confined to the dermis, and differentiated keratinocytes in the epidermis. In the MSE, melanoma cells form colonies in the epidermis during the early part of the experiment. In the later stage of the experiment, the melanoma cells in the MSE invade deeper into the

  11. Quantitative comparison of the spreading and invasion of radial growth phase and metastatic melanoma cells in a three-dimensional human skin equivalent model

    PubMed Central

    Haridas, Parvathi; McGovern, Jacqui A.; McElwain, Sean D.L.

    2017-01-01

    Background Standard two-dimensional (2D) cell migration assays do not provide information about vertical invasion processes, which are critical for melanoma progression. We provide information about three-dimensional (3D) melanoma cell migration, proliferation and invasion in a 3D melanoma skin equivalent (MSE) model. In particular, we pay careful attention to compare the structure of the tissues in the MSE with similarly-prepared 3D human skin equivalent (HSE) models. The HSE model is identically prepared to the MSE model except that melanoma cells are omitted. Using the MSE model, we examine melanoma migration, proliferation and invasion from two different human melanoma cell lines. One cell line, WM35, is associated with the early phase of the disease where spreading is thought to be confined to the epidermis. The other cell line, SK-MEL-28, is associated with the later phase of the disease where spreading into the dermis is expected. Methods 3D MSE and HSE models are constructed using human de-epidermised dermis (DED) prepared from skin tissue. Primary fibroblasts and primary keratinocytes are used in the MSE and HSE models to ensure the formation of a stratified epidermis, with a well-defined basement membrane. Radial spreading of cells across the surface of the HSE and MSE models is observed. Vertical invasion of melanoma cells downward through the skin is observed and measured using immunohistochemistry. All measurements of invasion are made at day 0, 9, 15 and 20, providing detailed time course data. Results Both HSE and MSE models are similar to native skin in vivo, with a well-defined stratification of the epidermis that is separated from the dermis by a basement membrane. In the HSE and MSE we find fibroblast cells confined to the dermis, and differentiated keratinocytes in the epidermis. In the MSE, melanoma cells form colonies in the epidermis during the early part of the experiment. In the later stage of the experiment, the melanoma cells in the MSE

  12. Transcriptome association analysis identifies miR-375 as a major determinant of variable acetaminophen glucuronidation by human liver.

    PubMed

    Papageorgiou, Ioannis; Freytsis, Marina; Court, Michael H

    2016-10-01

    Acetaminophen is the leading cause of acute liver failure (ALF) in many countries including the United States. Hepatic glucuronidation by UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) 1A subfamily enzymes is the major route of acetaminophen elimination. Reduced glucuronidation may predispose some individuals to acetaminophen-induced ALF, but mechanisms underlying reduced glucuronidation are poorly understood. We hypothesized that specific microRNAs (miRNAs) may reduce UGT1A activity by direct effects on the UGT1A 3'-UTR shared by all UGT1A enzyme transcripts, or by indirect effects on transcription factors regulating UGT1A expression. We performed an unbiased miRNA whole transcriptome association analysis using a bank of human livers with known acetaminophen glucuronidation activities. Of 754 miRNAs evaluated, 9 miRNAs were identified that were significantly overexpressed (p<0.05; >2-fold) in livers with low acetaminophen glucuronidation activities compared with those with high activities. miR-375 showed the highest difference (>10-fold), and was chosen for further mechanistic validation. We demonstrated using in silico analysis and luciferase reporter assays that miR-375 has a unique functional binding site in the 3'-UTR of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) gene. Furthermore overexpression of miR-375 in LS180 cells demonstrated significant repression of endogenous AhR protein (by 40%) and mRNA (by 10%), as well as enzyme activity and/or mRNA of AhR regulated enzymes including UGT1A1, UGT1A6, and CYP1A2, without affecting UGT2B7, which is not regulated by AhR. Thus miR-375 is identified as a novel repressor of UGT1A-mediated hepatic acetaminophen glucuronidation through reduced AhR expression, which could predispose some individuals to increased risk for acetaminophen-induced ALF. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  13. Lebein, a Snake Venom Disintegrin, Induces Apoptosis in Human Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Hammouda, Manel B.; Montenegro, María F.; Sánchez-del-Campo, Luis; Zakraoui, Ons; Aloui, Zohra; Riahi-Chebbi, Ichrak; Karoui, Habib; Rodríguez-López, José Neptuno; Essafi-Benkhadir, Khadija

    2016-01-01

    Melanoma, the most threatening form of skin cancer, has a very poor prognosis and is characterized by its very invasive and chemoresistant properties. Despite the recent promising news from the field of immunotherapy, there is an urgent need for new therapeutic approaches that are free of resistance mechanisms and side effects. Anti-neoplasic properties have been highlighted for different disintegrins from snake venom including Lebein; however, the exact effect of Lebein on melanoma has not yet been defined. In this study, we showed that Lebein blocks melanoma cell proliferation and induces a more differentiated phenotype with inhibition of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) overexpression. Melanoma cells became detached but were less invasive with upregulation of E-cadherin after Lebein exposure. Lebein induced a caspase-independent apoptotic program with apoptosis inducing factor (AIF), BCL-2-associated X protein (BAX) and Bim overexpression together with downregulation of B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2). It generated a distinct response in reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and p53 levels depending on the p53 cell line status (wild type or mutant). Therefore, we propose Lebein as a new candidate for development of potential therapies for melanoma. PMID:27399772

  14. Safety of administering the canine melanoma DNA vaccine (Oncept) to cats with malignant melanoma - a retrospective study.

    PubMed

    Sarbu, Luminita; Kitchell, Barbara E; Bergman, Philip J

    2017-02-01

    Objectives A xenogeneic human tyrosinase DNA vaccine was developed for treatment of dogs with oral malignant melanoma (Oncept; Merial). No studies have evaluated the safety or efficacy of this vaccine in cats. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety of the canine melanoma vaccine in cats diagnosed with melanoma. Methods Medical records were reviewed from cats diagnosed with malignant melanoma and treated with the canine melanoma DNA vaccine (Oncept). Data regarding signalment, melanoma location, treatments received, vaccine adverse effects and cause of death were collected. Results A total of 114 melanoma vaccines were administered to 24 cats. Seven cats (11.4%) had clinical adverse effects from a total of 13 vaccines classified as grade 1 or 2 based on the Veterinary Cooperative Oncology Group's common terminology criteria for adverse events v1.1. These included pain on vaccine administration, brief muscle fasciculation, transient inappetence, depression, nausea and mild increase in pigmentation at the injection site. Nineteen cats were deceased at study close. The most common cause of death was melanoma (14 cats). Hematological and biochemical changes were observed in six cats, five of which had concurrent disease or treatments that likely caused or greatly contributed to the laboratory abnormalities found. Therefore, these adverse events were considered unlikely to be caused by the melanoma vaccine. One cat had transient grade 1 hypoalbuminemia, which was possibly caused by the vaccination but not thoroughly evaluated. Conclusions and relevance The canine melanoma DNA vaccine can be safely administered to cats, with minimal risk of adverse effects.

  15. Human Xenografts Are Not Rejected in a Naturally Occurring Immunodeficient Porcine Line: A Human Tumor Model in Pigs

    PubMed Central

    Basel, Matthew T.; Balivada, Sivasai; Beck, Amanda P.; Kerrigan, Maureen A.; Pyle, Marla M.; Dekkers, Jack C.M.; Wyatt, Carol R.; Rowland, Robert R.R.; Anderson, David E.; Bossmann, Stefan H.

    2012-01-01

    Abstract Animal models for cancer therapy are invaluable for preclinical testing of potential cancer treatments; however, therapies tested in such models often fail to translate into clinical settings. Therefore, a better preclinical model for cancer treatment testing is needed. Here we demonstrate that an immunodeficient line of pigs can host and support the growth of xenografted human tumors and has the potential to be an effective animal model for cancer therapy. Wild-type and immunodeficient pigs were injected subcutaneously in the left ear with human melanoma cells (A375SM cells) and in the right ear with human pancreatic carcinoma cells (PANC-1). All immunodeficient pigs developed tumors that were verified by histology and immunohistochemistry. Nonaffected littermates did not develop tumors. Immunodeficient pigs, which do not reject xenografted human tumors, have the potential to become an extremely useful animal model for cancer therapy because of their similarity in size, anatomy, and physiology to humans. PMID:23514746

  16. Monitoring the Systemic Human Memory B Cell Compartment of Melanoma Patients for Anti-Tumor IgG Antibodies

    PubMed Central

    Gilbert, Amy E.; Karagiannis, Panagiotis; Dodev, Tihomir; Koers, Alexander; Lacy, Katie; Josephs, Debra H.; Takhar, Pooja; Geh, Jenny L. C.; Healy, Ciaran; Harries, Mark; Acland, Katharine M.; Rudman, Sarah M.; Beavil, Rebecca L.; Blower, Philip J.; Beavil, Andrew J.; Gould, Hannah J.; Spicer, James; Nestle, Frank O.; Karagiannis, Sophia N.

    2011-01-01

    Melanoma, a potentially lethal skin cancer, is widely thought to be immunogenic in nature. While there has been much focus on T cell-mediated immune responses, limited knowledge exists on the role of mature B cells. We describe an approach, including a cell-based ELISA, to evaluate mature IgG antibody responses to melanoma from human peripheral blood B cells. We observed a significant increase in antibody responses from melanoma patients (n = 10) to primary and metastatic melanoma cells compared to healthy volunteers (n = 10) (P<0.0001). Interestingly, we detected a significant reduction in antibody responses to melanoma with advancing disease stage in our patient cohort (n = 21) (P<0.0001). Overall, 28% of melanoma patient-derived B cell cultures (n = 1,800) compared to 2% of cultures from healthy controls (n = 600) produced antibodies that recognized melanoma cells. Lastly, a patient-derived melanoma-specific monoclonal antibody was selected for further study. This antibody effectively killed melanoma cells in vitro via antibody-mediated cellular cytotoxicity. These data demonstrate the presence of a mature systemic B cell response in melanoma patients, which is reduced with disease progression, adding to previous reports of tumor-reactive antibodies in patient sera, and suggesting the merit of future work to elucidate the clinical relevance of activating humoral immune responses to cancer. PMID:21559411

  17. microRNA-216b inhibits cell proliferation and migration in human melanoma by targeting FOXM1 in vitro and in vivo.

    PubMed

    Sun, Mengyao; Wang, Xiaopeng; Tu, Chen; Wang, Shuang; Qu, Jianqiang; Xiao, Shengxiang

    2017-12-01

    MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an increasingly important role in cancer growth by coordinately suppressing genes that control cell migration, proliferation, and invasion. The above results can be achieved through the regulation of gene expression by miRNAs by suppressing translation or the direct sequence-specific degradation of the targeted mRNA. In the present study, we indicate that the expression of miR-216b could be effectively repressed both in human melanoma tissues through a comparison with primary melanoma and in human melanoma cell lines through a comparison with a normal human keratinocyte line. Moreover, miR-216b induced a clear decrease in melanoma cell proliferation and migration in vitro. Forkhead box M1 (FOXM1) was confirmed as a target gene of miR-216b, and the overexpression of miR-216b markedly repressed the luciferase activity of reporter plasmids containing the FOXM1 3'-UTR (untranslated region). Furthermore, miR-216b suppressed melanoma cell growth in nude mice in vivo, with the effects of miR-216b overexpression on melanoma cell growth and proliferation reversed by FOXM1 overexpression. The results demonstrated that miR-216b is a tumor suppressor in melanoma, identified the FOXM1 signaling pathway as a target of miR-216b action, and suggested a potential therapeutic role for miR-216b in melanoma. © 2017 International Federation for Cell Biology.

  18. Mitochondrial ATF2 translocation contributes to apoptosis induction and BRAF inhibitor resistance in melanoma through the interaction of Bim with VDAC1.

    PubMed

    Gao, Zongwei; Shang, Qingjuan; Liu, Zhaoyun; Deng, Chun; Guo, Chunbao

    2015-11-03

    The mitochondrial accumulation of ATF2 is involved in tumor suppressor activities via cytochrome c release in melanoma cells. However, the signaling pathways that connect mitochondrial ATF2 accumulation and cytochrome c release are not well documented. Several melanoma cell lines, B16F10, K1735M2, A375 and A375-R1, were treated with paclitaxel and vemurafenib to test the function of mitochondrial ATF2 and its connection to Bim and voltage-dependent anion channel 1 (VDAC1). Immunoprecipitation analysis was performed to investigate the functional interaction between the involved proteins. VDAC1 oligomerization was evaluated using an EGS-based crosslinking assay. The expression and migration of ATF2 to the mitochondria accounted for paclitaxel stimuli and acquired resistance to BRAF inhibitors. Mitochondrial ATF2 facilitated Bim stabilization through the inhibition of its degradation by the proteasome, thereby promoting cytochrome c release and inducing apoptosis in B16F10 and A375 cells. Studies using B16F10 and A375 cells genetically modified for ATF2 indicated that mitochondrial ATF2 was able to dissociate Bim from the Mcl-1/Bim complex to trigger VDAC1 oligomerization. Immunoprecipitation analysis revealed that Bim interacts with VDAC1, and this interaction was remarkably enhanced during apoptosis. These results reveal that mitochondrial ATF2 is associated with the induction of apoptosis and BRAF inhibitor resistance through Bim activation, which might suggest potential novel therapies for the targeted induction of apoptosis in melanoma therapy.

  19. Mitochondrial ATF2 translocation contributes to apoptosis induction and BRAF inhibitor resistance in melanoma through the interaction of Bim with VDAC1

    PubMed Central

    Deng, Chun; Guo, Chunbao

    2015-01-01

    Background The mitochondrial accumulation of ATF2 is involved in tumor suppressor activities via cytochrome c release in melanoma cells. However, the signaling pathways that connect mitochondrial ATF2 accumulation and cytochrome c release are not well documented. Methods Several melanoma cell lines, B16F10, K1735M2, A375 and A375-R1, were treated with paclitaxel and vemurafenib to test the function of mitochondrial ATF2 and its connection to Bim and voltage-dependent anion channel 1 (VDAC1). Immunoprecipitation analysis was performed to investigate the functional interaction between the involved proteins. VDAC1 oligomerization was evaluated using an EGS-based crosslinking assay. Results The expression and migration of ATF2 to the mitochondria accounted for paclitaxel stimuli and acquired resistance to BRAF inhibitors. Mitochondrial ATF2 facilitated Bim stabilization through the inhibition of its degradation by the proteasome, thereby promoting cytochrome c release and inducing apoptosis in B16F10 and A375 cells. Studies using B16F10 and A375 cells genetically modified for ATF2 indicated that mitochondrial ATF2 was able to dissociate Bim from the Mcl-1/Bim complex to trigger VDAC1 oligomerization. Immunoprecipitation analysis revealed that Bim interacts with VDAC1, and this interaction was remarkably enhanced during apoptosis. Conclusion These results reveal that mitochondrial ATF2 is associated with the induction of apoptosis and BRAF inhibitor resistance through Bim activation, which might suggest potential novel therapies for the targeted induction of apoptosis in melanoma therapy. PMID:26462148

  20. Ginsenoside Rg3 Inhibits Melanoma Cell Proliferation through Down-Regulation of Histone Deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) and Increase of p53 Acetylation

    PubMed Central

    Shan, Xiu; Fu, Yuan-Shan; Aziz, Faisal; Wang, Xiao-Qi; Yan, Qiu; Liu, Ji-Wei

    2014-01-01

    Malignant melanoma is an aggressive and deadly form of skin cancer, and despite recent advances in available therapies, is still lacking in completely effective treatments. Rg3, a monomer extracted from ginseng roots, has been attempted for the treatment of many cancers. It is reported that the expressions of histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) and p53 acetylation correlate with tumor cell growth. However, the antitumor effect of Rg3 on melanoma and the mechanism by which it regulates HDAC3 expression and p53 acetylation remain unknown. We found high expression of HDAC3 in human melanoma tissues to be significantly correlated to lymph node metastasis and clinical stage of disease (p<0.05). In melanoma cells, Rg3 inhibited cell proliferation and induced G0/G1 cell cycle arrest. Rg3 also decreased the expression of HDAC3 and increased the acetylation of p53 on lysine (k373/k382). Moreover, suppression of HDAC3 by either siRNA or a potent HDAC3 inhibitor (MS-275) inhibited cell proliferation, increased p53 acetylation and transcription activity. In A375 melanoma xenograft studies, we demonstrated that Rg3 and HDAC3 short hairpin RNA (shHDAC3) inhibited the growth of xenograft tumors with down-regulation of HDAC3 expression and up-regulation of p53 acetylation. In conclusion, Rg3 has antiproliferative activity against melanoma by decreasing HDAC3 and increasing acetylation of p53 both in vitro and in vivo. Thus, Rg3 serves as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of melanoma. PMID:25521755

  1. Indoor tanning in businesses and homes and risk of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer in two US case-control studies

    PubMed Central

    Ferrucci, Leah M.; Vogel, Rachel Isaksson; Cartmel, Brenda; Lazovich, DeAnn; Mayne, Susan T.

    2014-01-01

    Background Indoor tanning increases skin cancer risk. Beyond early research describing melanoma and sun lamps, few recent reports describe where individuals indoor tan and whether skin cancer risk varies by location (business, home-based). Objective Assess where individuals tanned indoors and skin cancer risk by tanning device location. Methods Multivariate logistic regression in two US case-control studies of melanoma (1,161 cases, 1,083 controls, ages 25–59) and early-onset basal cell carcinoma (BCC) (375 cases, 382 controls, under age 40) conducted between 2004 and 2010. Results Most indoor tanners (86.4–95.1%), especially younger individuals, tanned exclusively in businesses. Persons who used indoor tanning exclusively in businesses were at increased risk of melanoma (OR=1.82, 95% CI=1.47–2.26) and BCC (OR=1.69, 95% CI=1.15–2.48) compared to non-users. Melanoma risk was also increased in the small number who reported tanning indoors only at home relative to non-users (OR=4.14, 95% CI=1.75–9.78); 67.6% used sun lamps. Limitations Self-reported tanning, potential recall bias. Conclusion Business only tanning, despite claims of “safe" tanning, was positively associated with a significant risk of melanoma and BCC. Home tanning was uncommon and mostly from sun lamps which were rarely used by younger participants. Regardless of location, indoor tanning was associated with increased risk of skin cancer. PMID:25062934

  2. Pigment Production Analysis in Human Melanoma Cells.

    PubMed

    Hopkin, Amelia Soto; Paterson, Elyse K; Ruiz, Rolando; Ganesan, Anand K

    2016-05-25

    The human epidermal melanocyte is a highly specialized pigmented cell that serves to protect the epidermis from ultraviolet (UV) damage through the production of melanin, or melanogenesis. Misregulation in melanogenesis leading to either hyper- or hypo-pigmentation is found in human diseases such as malasma and vitiligo. Current therapies for these diseases are largely unsuccessful and the need for new therapies is necessary. In order to identify genes and or compounds that can alter melanogenesis, methods are required that can detect changes in pigment production as well as expression of key melanogenesis transcription factors and enzymes. Here we describe methods to detect changes in melanogenesis in a human melanoma cell line, MNT-1, by (1) analyzing pigment production by measuring the absorbance of melanin present by spectrophotometry, (2) analyzing transcript expression of potent regulators of melanogenesis by qunatitative reverse-transcription (RT)PCR and (3) analyzing protein expression of potent regulators of melanogenesis by Western blot (WB).

  3. CXCR6, a newly defined biomarker of tissue-specific stem cell asymmetric self-renewal, identifies more aggressive human melanoma cancer stem cells.

    PubMed

    Taghizadeh, Rouzbeh; Noh, Minsoo; Huh, Yang Hoon; Ciusani, Emilio; Sigalotti, Luca; Maio, Michele; Arosio, Beatrice; Nicotra, Maria R; Natali, PierGiorgio; Sherley, James L; La Porta, Caterina A M

    2010-12-22

    A fundamental problem in cancer research is identifying the cell type that is capable of sustaining neoplastic growth and its origin from normal tissue cells. Recent investigations of a variety of tumor types have shown that phenotypically identifiable and isolable subfractions of cells possess the tumor-forming ability. In the present paper, using two lineage-related human melanoma cell lines, primary melanoma line IGR39 and its metastatic derivative line IGR37, two main observations are reported. The first one is the first phenotypic evidence to support the origin of melanoma cancer stem cells (CSCs) from mutated tissue-specific stem cells; and the second one is the identification of a more aggressive subpopulation of CSCs in melanoma that are CXCR6+. We defined CXCR6 as a new biomarker for tissue-specific stem cell asymmetric self-renewal. Thus, the relationship between melanoma formation and ABCG2 and CXCR6 expression was investigated. Consistent with their non-metastatic character, unsorted IGR39 cells formed significantly smaller tumors than unsorted IGR37 cells. In addition, ABCG2+ cells produced tumors that had a 2-fold greater mass than tumors produced by unsorted cells or ABCG2- cells. CXCR6+ cells produced more aggressive tumors. CXCR6 identifies a more discrete subpopulation of cultured human melanoma cells with a more aggressive MCSC phenotype than cells selected on the basis of the ABCG2+ phenotype alone. The association of a more aggressive tumor phenotype with asymmetric self-renewal phenotype reveals a previously unrecognized aspect of tumor cell physiology. Namely, the retention of some tissue-specific stem cell attributes, like the ability to asymmetrically self-renew, impacts the natural history of human tumor development. Knowledge of this new aspect of tumor development and progression may provide new targets for cancer prevention and treatment.

  4. Spectrophotometric Method for Differentiation of Human Skin Melanoma. I. Optical Diffuse Reflection Coefficient

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Petruk, V. G.; Ivanov, A. P.; Kvaternyuk, S. M.; Barun, V. V.

    2016-03-01

    We have designed an experimental setup, based on two integrating spheres, that lets us measure the optical diffuse reflectance spectra (diffuse reflection coefficient vs. wavelength) of human skin quickly under clinical conditions in vivo. For the wavelength interval 520-1100 nm, we give the values of the diffuse reflection coefficient for healthy tissue, skin with a benign nevus, and skin with a malignant melanoma for a large group of test subjects. We experimentally established a number of wavelengths in the red-near IR region of the spectrum which can be used for early differential diagnosis of nevi and melanoma in patient cancer screening. According to the Kramer-Welch test, the probability of the diffuse reflection coefficient for skin with melanoma and a nevus having different distributions is >0.94, and at many wavelengths it is >0.999. By solving the inverse problem, we estimated the changes in a number of structural and biophysical parameters of the tissue on going from healthy skin to nevus and melanoma. The results obtained can provide a basis for developing a clinical approach to identifying the risk of malignant transformation of the skin before surgery and histological analysis of the tissue.

  5. ACY-1215 accelerates vemurafenib induced cell death of BRAF-mutant melanoma cells via induction of ER stress and inhibition of ERK activation.

    PubMed

    Peng, Ueihuei; Wang, Zhihao; Pei, Sa; Ou, Yunchao; Hu, Pengchao; Liu, Wanhong; Song, Jiquan

    2017-02-01

    BRAFV600E mutation is found in ~50% of melanoma patients and BRAFV600E kinase activity inhibitor, vemurafenib, has achieved a remarkable clinical response rate. However, most patients treated with vemurafenib eventually develop resistance. Overcoming primary and secondary resistance to selective BRAF inhibitors remains one of the most critically compelling challenges for these patients. HDAC6 has been shown to confer resistance to chemotherapy in several types of cancer. Few studies focused on the role of HDAC6 in vemurafenib resistance. Here we showed that overexpression of HDAC6 confers resistance to vemurafenib in BRAF-mutant A375 cells. ACY-1215, a selective HDAC6 inhibitor, inhibits the proliferation and induces the apoptosis of A375 cells. Moreover, ACY-1215 sensitizes A375 cells to vemurafenib induced cell proliferation inhibition and apoptosis induction, which occur partly through induction of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and inactivation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). Taken together, our results suggest that the inhibition of HDAC6 may be a promising strategy for the treatment of melanoma and overcoming resistance to vemurafenib.

  6. Induction of Melanogenesis by Rapamycin in Human MNT-1 Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Hah, Young-Sool; Cho, Hee Young; Lim, Tae-Yeon; Park, Dong Hwa; Kim, Hwa Mi; Yoon, Jimi; Kim, Jin Gu; Kim, Chi Yeon

    2012-01-01

    Background Melanogenesis is one of the characteristic parameters of differentiation in melanocytes and melanoma cells. Specific inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), such as wortmannin and LY294002, stimulate melanin production in mouse and in human melanoma cells, suggesting that PI3K and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) might be involved in the regulation of melanogenesis. Objective The involvement of the mTOR pathway in regulating melanogenesis was examined using human MNT-1 melanoma cells, and the effects of the potent inhibitor of mTOR, rapamycin, in the presence or absence of α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) were evaluated. Methods In cells treated with rapamycin, cell viability, melanin content, and tyrosinase (TYR) activity were measured and compared with untreated controls. Protein levels of TYR, tyrosinase-related protein (TYRP)-1, TYRP-2, and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) were also analyzed by Western blot. Results In rapamycin-treated cells, the melanin content increased concomitantly with an elevation in TYR activity, which plays a major role in melanogenesis. There was also an up-regulation of TYR, TYRP-1, and MITF proteins. Combined treatment with rapamycin or wortmannin and α-MSH increased melanogenesis more strongly than α-MSH alone. Conclusion Rapamycin-induced melanin formation may be mediated through the up-regulation of TYR protein and activity. Furthermore, rapamycin and wortmannin, inhibitors of mTOR and PI3K, respectively, have co-stimulatory effects with α-MSH in enhancing melanogenesis in melanocyte cells. PMID:22577264

  7. Induction of melanogenesis by rapamycin in human MNT-1 melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Hah, Young-Sool; Cho, Hee Young; Lim, Tae-Yeon; Park, Dong Hwa; Kim, Hwa Mi; Yoon, Jimi; Kim, Jin Gu; Kim, Chi Yeon; Yoon, Tae-Jin

    2012-05-01

    Melanogenesis is one of the characteristic parameters of differentiation in melanocytes and melanoma cells. Specific inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), such as wortmannin and LY294002, stimulate melanin production in mouse and in human melanoma cells, suggesting that PI3K and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) might be involved in the regulation of melanogenesis. The involvement of the mTOR pathway in regulating melanogenesis was examined using human MNT-1 melanoma cells, and the effects of the potent inhibitor of mTOR, rapamycin, in the presence or absence of α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) were evaluated. In cells treated with rapamycin, cell viability, melanin content, and tyrosinase (TYR) activity were measured and compared with untreated controls. Protein levels of TYR, tyrosinase-related protein (TYRP)-1, TYRP-2, and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) were also analyzed by Western blot. In rapamycin-treated cells, the melanin content increased concomitantly with an elevation in TYR activity, which plays a major role in melanogenesis. There was also an up-regulation of TYR, TYRP-1, and MITF proteins. Combined treatment with rapamycin or wortmannin and α-MSH increased melanogenesis more strongly than α-MSH alone. Rapamycin-induced melanin formation may be mediated through the up-regulation of TYR protein and activity. Furthermore, rapamycin and wortmannin, inhibitors of mTOR and PI3K, respectively, have co-stimulatory effects with α-MSH in enhancing melanogenesis in melanocyte cells.

  8. IGF-1R inhibition induces schedule-dependent sensitization of human melanoma to temozolomide

    PubMed Central

    Ramcharan, Roger; Aleksic, Tamara; Kamdoum, Wilfride Petnga; Gao, Shan; Pfister, Sophia X.; Tanner, Jordan; Bridges, Esther; Asher, Ruth; Watson, Amanda J.; Margison, Geoffrey P.; Woodcock, Mick; Repapi, Emmanouela; Li, Ji-Liang; Middleton, Mark R.; Macaulay, Valentine M.

    2015-01-01

    Prior studies implicate type 1 IGF receptor (IGF-1R) in mediating chemo-resistance. Here, we investigated whether IGF-1R influences response to temozolomide (TMZ), which generates DNA adducts that are removed by O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), or persist causing replication-associated double-strand breaks (DSBs). Initial assessment in 10 melanoma cell lines revealed that TMZ resistance correlated with MGMT expression (r = 0.79, p = 0.009), and in MGMT-proficient cell lines, with phospho-IGF-1R (r = 0.81, p = 0.038), suggesting that TMZ resistance associates with IGF-1R activation. Next, effects of IGF-1R inhibitors (IGF-1Ri) AZ3801 and linsitinib (OSI-906) were tested on TMZ-sensitivity, cell cycle progression and DSB induction. IGF-1Ri sensitized BRAF wild-type and mutant melanoma cells to TMZ in vitro, an effect that was independent of MGMT. Cells harboring wild-type p53 were more sensitive to IGF-1Ri, and showed schedule-dependent chemo-sensitization that was most effective when IGF-1Ri followed TMZ. This sequence sensitized to clinically-achievable TMZ concentrations and enhanced TMZ-induced apoptosis. Simultaneous or prior IGF-1Ri caused less effective chemo-sensitization, associated with increased G1 population and reduced accumulation of TMZ-induced DSBs. Clinically relevant sequential (TMZ → IGF-1Ri) treatment was tested in mice bearing A375M (V600E BRAF, wild-type p53) melanoma xenografts, achieving peak plasma/tumor IGF-1Ri levels comparable to clinical Cmax, and inducing extensive intratumoral apoptosis. TMZ or IGF-1Ri caused minor inhibition of tumor growth (gradient reduction 13%, 25% respectively), while combination treatment caused supra-additive growth delay (72%) that was significantly different from control (p < 0.01), TMZ (p < 0.01) and IGF-1Ri (p < 0.05) groups. These data highlight the importance of scheduling when combining IGF-1Ri and other targeted agents with drugs that induce replication-associated DNA damage. PMID

  9. miR-375 induces human decidua basalis-derived stromal cells to become insulin-producing cells.

    PubMed

    Shaer, Anahita; Azarpira, Negar; Vahdati, Akbar; Karimi, Mohammad Hosein; Shariati, Mehrdad

    2014-09-01

    This paper focuses on the development of renewable sources of isletreplacement tissue for the treatment of type I diabetes mellitus. Placental tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are a promising source for regenerative medicine due to their plasticity and easy availability. They have the potential to differentiate into insulin-producing cells. miR-375 is a micro RNA that is expressed in the pancreas and involved in islet development. Human placental decidua basalis MSCs (PDB-MSCs) were cultured from full-term human placenta. The immunophenotype of the isolated cells was checked for CD90, CD105, CD44, CD133 and CD34 markers. The MSCs (P3) were chemically transfected with hsa-miR-375. Total RNA was extracted 4 and 6 days after transfection. The expressions of insulin, NGN3, GLUT2, PAX4, PAX6, KIR6.2, NKX6.1, PDX1, and glucagon genes were evaluated using real-time qPCR. On day 6, we tested the potency of the clusters in response to the high glucose challenge and assessed the presence of insulin and NGN3 proteins via immunocytochemistry. Flow cytometry analysis confirmed that more than 90% of the cells were positive for CD90, CD105 and CD44 and negative for CD133 and CD34. Morphological changes were followed from day 2. Cell clusters formed during day 6. Insulin-producing clusters showed a deep red color with DTZ. The expression of pancreatic-specific transcription factors increased remarkably during the four days after transfection and significantly increased on day 7. The clusters were positive for insulin and NGN3 proteins, and C-peptide and insulin secretion increased in response to changes in the glucose concentration (2.8 mM and 16.7 mM). In conclusion, the MSCs could be programmed into functional insulin-producing cells by transfection of miR-375.

  10. Cloning and Characterization of the Genes Encoding the Murine Homologues of the Human Melanoma Antigens MART1 and gp100

    PubMed Central

    Zhai, Yifan; Yang, James C.; Spiess, Paul; Nishimura, Michael I.; Overwijk, Willem W.; Roberts, Bruce; Restifo, Nicholas P.; Rosenberg, Steven A.

    2008-01-01

    The recent identification of genes encoding melanoma-associated antigens has opened new possibilities for the development of cancer vaccines designed to cause the rejection of established tumors. To develop a syngeneic animal model for evaluating antigen-specific vaccines in cancer therapy, the murine homologues of the human melanoma antigens MART1 and gp 100, which were specifically recognized by tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes from patients with melanoma, were cloned and sequenced from a murine B16 melanoma cDNA library. The open reading frames of murine MART1 and gp 100 encode proteins of 113- and 626-amino acids with 68.8 and 77% identity to the respective human proteins. Comparison of the DNA sequences of the murine MART1 genes, derived from normal melanocytes, the immortalized nontumorgenic melanocyte line Melan-a and the B16 melanoma, showed all to be identical. Northern and Western blot analyses confirmed that both genes encoded products that were melanocyte lineage proteins. Mice immunized with murine MART1 or gp 100 using recombinant vaccinia virus failed to produce any detectable T-cell responses or protective immunity against B16 melanoma. In contrast, immunization of mice with human gp 100 using recombinant adenoviruses elicited T cells specific for hgp100, but these T cells also cross reacted with B16 tumor in vitro and induced significant but weak protection against B16 challenge. Immunization with human and mouse gp100 together [adenovirus type 2 (Ad2)-hep100 plus recombinant vaccinia virus (rVV)-mgp100], or immunization with human gp100 (Ad2-hgp100) and boosting with heterologous vector (rVV-hgp100 or rVV-mgp100) or homologous vector (Ad2-hgp100), did not significantly enhance the protective response against B16 melanoma. These results may suggest that immunization with heterologous tumor antigen, rather than self, may be more effective as an immunotherapeutic reagent in designing antigen-specific cancer vaccines. PMID:9101410

  11. MAGE-A1 promotes melanoma proliferation and migration through C-JUN activation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wang, Dong; The 309th Hospital of China People's Liberation Army, Beijing 100091; Wang, Junyun

    2016-05-13

    MAGE-A1 belongs to the chromosome X-clustered genes of cancer-testis antigen family and is normally expressed in the human germ line but is also overexpressed in various tumors. Previous studies of MAGE-A1 in melanoma mainly focused on methylation changes or its role in immunotherapy, however, its biological functions in melanoma have remained unknown. In order to determine the role of MAGE-A1 in melanoma growth and metastasis, we manipulated melanoma cell lines with overexpression and knockdown of MAGE-A1. Integration of cell proliferation assays, transwell migration and invasion assays, and RNA-Seq analysis revealed that up-regulation of MAGE-A1 dramatically promoted proliferation, migration, and invasionmore » of human melanoma cell lines in vitro, while down-regulation of MAGE-A1 inhibited those characteristics associated with tumor cells. Furthermore, transcriptome sequencing revealed that MAGE-A1 exerts its tumor promoting activity by activating p-C-JUN directly or through ERK-MAPK signaling pathways. Based on our findings, we propose that MAGE-A1 may be a potential therapeutic target for melanoma patients. - Highlights: • MAGE-A1 promotes proliferation and clone formation in melanoma cell lines. • MAGE-A1 enhances tumor cell migration and invasion in melanoma cell lines. • Network including C-JUN, IL8, and ARHGAP29 play critical role in malignant melanoma. • Oncogenic MAGE-A1 increases p-C-JUN levels, possibly via ERK-MAPK signaling pathway.« less

  12. Examination by EPR spectroscopy of free radicals in melanins isolated from A-375 cells exposed on valproic acid and cisplatin.

    PubMed

    Chodurek, Ewa; Zdybel, Magdalena; Pilawa, Barbara; Dzierzewicz, Zofia

    2012-01-01

    Drug binding by melanin biopolymers influence the effectiveness of the chemotherapy, radiotherapy and photodynamic therapy. Free radicals of melanins take part in formation of their complex with drugs. The aim of this work was to determine the effect of the two compounds: valproic acid (VPA) and cisplatin (CPT) on free radicals properties of melanin isolated from A-375 melanoma cells. Free radicals were examined by an X-band (9.3 GHz) electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. EPR spectra were measured for the model synthetic eumelanin - DOPA-melanin, the melanin isolated from the control A-375 cells and these cells treated by VPA, CPT and both VPA and CPT. For all the examined samples broad EPR lines (deltaBpp: 0.48-0.68 mT) with g-factors of 2.0045-2.0060 characteristic for o-semiquinone free radicals were observed. Free radicals concentrations (N) in the tested samples, g-factors, amplitudes (A), integral intensities (I) and linewidths (deltaBpp) of the EPR spectra, were analyzed. The EPR lines were homogeneously broadened. Continuous microwave saturation of the EPR spectra indicated that slow spin-lattice relaxation processes existed in all the tested melanin samples. The relatively slowest spin-lattice relaxation processes characterized melanin isolated from A-375 cells treated with both VPA and CPT. The changes of the EPR spectra with increasing microwave power in the range of 2.2-70 mW were evaluated. Free radicals concentrations in the melanin from A-375 cells were higher than in the synthetic DOPA-melanin. The strong increase of free radicals concentration in the melanin from A-375 cells was observed after their treating by VPA. CPT also caused the increase of free radicals concentrations in the examined natural melanin. The free radicals concentration in melanin isolated from A-375 cells treated with both VPA and CPT was slightly higher than those in melanin from the control cells.

  13. [Endocrine factors influencing melanoma progression].

    PubMed

    Dobos, Judit

    2009-03-01

    According to recent findings that beside cancers traditionally considered as hormone-dependent, several other tumor types show different behavior in the two sexes, indicating the possible role of endocrine factors in the course of these diseases. The possibility that endocrine factors may influence the clinical course of human malignant melanoma is suggested by the higher survival rate in premenopausal vs. postmenopausal women or men of any ages. However, investigations on the sex hormone receptor status of human cutaneous melanomas and experiments attempting to support the epidemiological results yielded conflicting results. In our human melanoma cell lines we failed to detect steroid receptors at protein level, while quantitative PCR demonstrated that their mRNA expression level was orders of magnitude lower compared to the positive control cell lines. Sex hormones did not influence the in vitro features of the human melanoma cells considerably. On the other hand, glucocorticoid receptor was present both at mRNA and protein level, although dexamethasone was effective in vitro only at high doses. Our previous experiments showed that intrasplenic injection of human melanoma cells resulted in a significantly higher number of liver colonies in male than in female SCID mice. We now show that this difference evolves during the first day. After injection into the tail vein we did not observe gender-dependent difference in the efficiency of pulmonary colonization. Examining the pattern of metastasis formation after intracardiac injection, we have found differences between the two sexes in the incidence or number of colonies only in the case of the liver but not in other organs. We concluded that the observed phenomenon is specific to the liver; therefore we investigated the effects of 2-methoxyestradiol, an endogenous metabolite of estradiol produced mainly in the liver, with an estrogen receptor-independent antitumor activity. 2ME2 effectively inhibited melanoma cell

  14. DNA methylation and histone acetylation regulate the expression of MGMT and chemosensitivity to temozolomide in malignant melanoma cell lines.

    PubMed

    Chen, Ya-Ping; Hou, Xiao-Yang; Yang, Chun-Sheng; Jiang, Xiao-Xiao; Yang, Ming; Xu, Xi-Feng; Feng, Shou-Xin; Liu, Yan-Qun; Jiang, Guan

    2016-08-01

    Malignant melanoma is an aggressive, highly lethal dermatological malignancy. Chemoresistance and rapid metastasis limit the curative effect of multimodal therapies like surgery or chemotherapy. The suicide enzyme O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) removes adducts from the O6-position of guanine to repair DNA damage. High MGMT expression is associated with resistance to therapy in melanoma. However, it is unknown if MGMT is regulated by DNA methylation or histone acetylation in melanoma. We examined the effects of the DNA methylation inhibitor 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine and histone deacetylase inhibitor Trichostatin A alone or in combination on MGMT expression and promoter methylation and histone acetylation in A375, MV3, and M14 melanoma cells. This study demonstrates that MGMT expression, CpG island methylation, and histone acetylation vary between melanoma cell lines. Combined treatment with 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine and Trichostatin A led to reexpression of MGMT, indicating that DNA methylation and histone deacetylation are associated with silencing of MGMT in melanoma. This study provides information on the role of epigenetic modifications in malignant melanoma that may enable the development of new strategies for treating malignant melanoma.

  15. Experimental Studies of Boronophenylalanine ((10)BPA) Biodistribution for the Individual Application of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) for Malignant Melanoma Treatment.

    PubMed

    Carpano, Marina; Perona, Marina; Rodriguez, Carla; Nievas, Susana; Olivera, Maria; Santa Cruz, Gustavo A; Brandizzi, Daniel; Cabrini, Romulo; Pisarev, Mario; Juvenal, Guillermo Juan; Dagrosa, Maria Alejandra

    2015-10-01

    Patients with the same histopathologic diagnosis of cutaneous melanoma treated with identical protocols of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) have shown different clinical outcomes. The objective of the present studies was to evaluate the biodistribution of boronophenilalanina ((10)BPA) for the potential application of BNCT for the treatment of melanoma on an individual basis. The boronophenilalanine (BPA) uptake was evaluated in 3 human melanoma cell lines: MEL-J, A375, and M8. NIH nude mice were implanted with 4 10(6) MEL-J cells, and biodistribution studies of BPA (350 mg/kg intraperitoneally) were performed. Static infrared imaging using a specially modified infrared camera adapted to measure the body infrared radiance of small animals was used. Proliferation marker, Ki-67, and endothelial marker, CD31, were analyzed in tumor samples. The in vitro studies demonstrated different patterns of BPA uptake for each analyzed cell line (P<.001 for MEL-J and A375 vs M8 cells). The in vivo studies showed a maximum average boron concentration of 25.9 ± 2.6 μg/g in tumor, with individual values ranging between 11.7 and 52.0 μg/g of (10)B 2 hours after the injection of BPA. Tumor temperature always decreased as the tumors increased in size, with values ranging between 37 °C and 23 °C. A significant correlation between tumor temperature and tumor-to-blood boron concentration ratio was found (R(2) = 0.7, rational function fit). The immunohistochemical studies revealed, in tumors with extensive areas of viability, a high number of positive cells for Ki-67, blood vessels of large diameter evidenced by the marker CD31, and a direct logistic correlation between proliferative status and boron concentration difference between tumor and blood (R(2) = 0.81, logistic function fit). We propose that these methods could be suitable for designing new screening protocols applied before melanoma BNCT treatment for each individual patient and lesion. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc

  16. Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) drives mTOR pathway activation and proliferation of human melanoma by reversible nitrosylation of TSC2

    PubMed Central

    Lopez-Rivera, Esther; Jayaraman, Padmini; Parikh, Falguni; Davies, Michael A.; Ekmekcioglu, Suhendan; Izadmehr, Sudeh; Milton, Denái R.; Chipuk, Jerry E.; Grimm, Elizabeth A.; Estrada, Yeriel; Aguirre-Ghiso, Julio; Sikora, Andrew G.

    2014-01-01

    Melanoma is one of the cancers of fastest-rising incidence in the world. iNOS is overexpressed in melanoma and other cancers, and previous data suggest that iNOS and nitric oxide (NO) drive survival and proliferation of human melanoma cells. However, specific mechanisms through which this occurs are poorly defined. One candidate is the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, which plays a major role in proliferation, angiogenesis, and metastasis of melanoma and other cancers. We used the chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assay to test the hypothesis that melanoma growth is regulated by iNOS-dependent mTOR pathway activation. Both pharmacologic inhibition and siRNA-mediated gene silencing of iNOS suppressed melanoma proliferation and in vivo growth on the CAM in human melanoma models. This was associated with strong downregulation of mTOR pathway activation by Western blot analysis of p-mTOR, p-P70S6K, p-S6RP, and p-4EBP1. iNOS expression and NO were associated with reversible nitrosylation of TSC2, and inhibited dimerization of TSC2 with its inhibitory partner TSC1, enhancing GTPase activity of its target Rheb, a critical activator of mTOR signaling. Immunohistochemical analysis of tumor specimens from stage III melanoma patients showed a significant correlation between iNOS expression levels and expression of mTOR pathway members. Exogenously-supplied NO was also sufficient to reverse mTOR pathway inhibition by the B-Raf inhibitor Vemurafenib. In summary, covalent modification of TSC2 by iNOS-derived NO is associated with impaired TSC2/TSC1 dimerization, mTOR pathway activation, and proliferation of human melanoma. This model is consistent with the known association of iNOS overexpression and poor prognosis in melanoma and other cancers. PMID:24398473

  17. 21 CFR 172.375 - Potassium iodide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... CONSUMPTION (CONTINUED) FOOD ADDITIVES PERMITTED FOR DIRECT ADDITION TO FOOD FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION Special Dietary and Nutritional Additives § 172.375 Potassium iodide. The food additive potassium iodide may be..., will not result in daily ingestion of the additive so as to provide a total amount of iodine in excess...

  18. 21 CFR 172.375 - Potassium iodide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... CONSUMPTION (CONTINUED) FOOD ADDITIVES PERMITTED FOR DIRECT ADDITION TO FOOD FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION Special Dietary and Nutritional Additives § 172.375 Potassium iodide. The food additive potassium iodide may be..., will not result in daily ingestion of the additive so as to provide a total amount of iodine in excess...

  19. Tumor Cell Plasticity in Uveal Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Folberg, Robert; Arbieva, Zarema; Moses, Jonas; Hayee, Amin; Sandal, Tone; Kadkol, ShriHari; Lin, Amy Y.; Valyi-Nagy, Klara; Setty, Suman; Leach, Lu; Chévez-Barrios, Patricia; Larsen, Peter; Majumdar, Dibyen; Pe’er, Jacob; Maniotis, Andrew J.

    2006-01-01

    The histological detection of laminin-rich vasculogenic mimicry patterns in human primary uveal melanomas is associated with death from metastases. We therefore hypothesized that highly invasive uveal melanoma cells forming vasculogenic mimicry patterns after exposure to a laminin-rich three-dimensional microenvironment would differentially express genes associated with invasive and metastatic behavior. However, we discovered that genes associated with differentiation (GDF15 and ATF3) and suppression of proliferation (CDKNa1/p21) were up-regulated in highly invasive uveal melanoma cells forming vasculogenic mimicry patterns, and genes associated with promotion of invasive and metastatic behavior such as CD44, CCNE2 (cyclin E2), THBS1 (thrombospondin 1), and CSPG2 (chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan; versican) were down-regulated. After forming vasculogenic mimicry patterns, uveal melanoma cells invaded only short distances, failed to replicate, and changed morphologically from the invasive epithelioid to the indolent spindle A phenotype. In human tissue samples, uveal melanoma cells within vasculogenic mimicry patterns assumed the spindle A morphology, and the expression of Ki67 was significantly reduced in adjacent melanoma cells. Thus, the generation of vasculogenic mimicry patterns is accompanied by dampening of the invasive and metastatic uveal melanoma genotype and phenotype and underscores the plasticity of these cells in response to cues from the microenvironment. PMID:17003493

  20. Expression signatures of early-stage and advanced medaka melanomas.

    PubMed

    Klotz, Barbara; Kneitz, Susanne; Regensburger, Martina; Hahn, Lena; Dannemann, Michael; Kelso, Janet; Nickel, Birgit; Lu, Yuan; Boswell, William; Postlethwait, John; Warren, Wesley; Kunz, Manfred; Walter, Ronald B; Schartl, Manfred

    2018-06-01

    Melanoma is one of the most aggressive tumors with a very low survival rate once metastasized. The incidence of newly detected cases increases every year suggesting the necessity of development and application of innovative treatment strategies. Human melanoma develops from melanocytes localized in the epidermis of the skin to malignant tumors because of deregulated effectors influencing several molecular pathways. Despite many advances in describing the molecular changes accompanying melanoma formation, many critical and clinically relevant molecular features of the transformed pigment cells and the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. To contribute to a better understanding of the molecular processes of melanoma formation, we use a transgenic medaka melanoma model that is well suited for the investigation of melanoma tumor development because fish and human melanocytes are both localized in the epidermis. The purpose of our study was to gain insights into melanoma development from the first steps of tumor formation up to melanoma progression and to identify gene expression patterns that will be useful for monitoring treatment effects in drug screening approaches. Comparing transcriptomes from juvenile fish at the tumor initiating stage with nevi and advanced melanoma of adults, we identified stage specific expression signatures and pathways that are characteristic for the development of medaka melanoma, and are also found in human malignancies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Defective regulation of autophagy upon leucine deprivation reveals a targetable liability of human melanoma cells in vitro and in vivo

    PubMed Central

    Sheen, Joon-Ho; Zoncu, Roberto; Kim, Dohoon; Sabatini, David M.

    2011-01-01

    SUMMARY Autophagy is of increasing interest as a target for cancer therapy. We find that leucine deprivation causes the caspase-dependent apoptotic death of melanoma cells because it fails to appropriately activate autophagy. Hyperactivation of the RAS-MEK pathway, which is common in melanoma, prevents leucine deprivation from inhibiting mTORC1, the main repressor of autophagy under nutrient-rich conditions. In an in vivo tumor xenograft model, the combination of a leucine-free diet and an autophagy inhibitor synergistically suppresses the growth of human melanoma tumors and triggers widespread apoptosis of the cancer cells. Together, our study represents proof of principle that anti-cancer effects can be obtained with a combination of autophagy inhibition and strategies to deprive tumors of leucine. PMID:21575862

  2. A Novel Inhibitor of STAT3 Activation Is Efficacious Against Established Central Nervous System Melanoma and Inhibits Regulatory T Cells

    PubMed Central

    Kong, Ling-Yuan; Abou-Ghazal, Mohamed K.; Wei, Jun; Chakraborty, Arup; Sun, Wei; Qiao, Wei; Fuller, Gregory N.; Fokt, Izabela; Grimm, Elizabeth A.; Schmittling, Robert J.; Archer, Gary E.; Sampson, John H.; Priebe, Waldemar; Heimberger, Amy B.

    2008-01-01

    Purpose Activation of STAT3 has been identified as a central mediator of melanoma growth and metastasis. We hypothesized that WP1066, a novel STAT3 blockade agent, has marked antitumor activity, even against the melanoma metastasis to brain, a site typically refractory to therapies. Experimental Design The antitumor activities and related mechanisms of WP1066 were investigated both in vitro on melanoma cell lines and in vivo on mice with subcutaneously syngeneic melanoma or with intracerebral melanoma tumors. Results WP1066 achieved an IC50 of 1.6 μM, 2.3 μM, and 1.5 μM against melanoma cell line A375, B16 and B16EGFRvIII, respectively. WP1066 suppressed the phosphorylation of JAK2 and STAT3 (Tyr705) in these cells. Tumor growth in mice with subcutaneously established syngeneic melanoma was markedly inhibited by WP1066 compared with that in controls. Long-term survival (>78 days) was observed in 80% of mice with established intracerebral syngeneic melanoma treated with 40 mg/kg of WP1066 in contrast to control mice who survived for a median of 15 days. Although WP1066 did not induce immunological memory or enhance humoral responses to EGFRvIII, this compound reduced the production of immunosuppressive cytokines and chemokines (TGF-β, RANTES, MCP-1, VEGF), markedly inhibited natural and inducible Treg proliferation, and significantly increased cytotoxic immune responses of T cells. Conclusions The antitumor cytotoxic effects of WP1066 and its ability to induce antitumor immune responses suggest that this compound has potential for the effective treatment of melanoma metastatic to brain. PMID:18794085

  3. Anacardic acid enhances the anticancer activity of liposomal mitoxantrone towards melanoma cell lines – in vitro studies

    PubMed Central

    Legut, Mateusz; Lipka, Dominik; Filipczak, Nina; Piwoni, Adriana; Kozubek, Arkadiusz; Gubernator, Jerzy

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes a novel formulation of antineoplastic drug: mitoxantrone loaded into liposomal carriers enriched with encapsulated anacardic acid in the liposomal bilayer using a vitamin C gradient. Anacardic acid is a potent epigenetic agent with anticancer activity. This is the first liposomal formulation to combine an actively encapsulated drug and anacardic acid. The liposomes were characterized in terms of basic parameters, such as size, zeta potential, optimal drug-to-lipid ratio, loading time and temperature, and stability at 4°C and in human plasma in vitro. The formulation was found to be stable, and the loading process was rapid and efficient (drug-to-lipid ratio of up to 0.3 with over 90% efficiency in 5 minutes). The cytotoxicity of these formulations was assessed using the human melanoma cell lines A375 and Hs294T and the normal human dermal fibroblast line. The results showed that anacardic acid and to a smaller extent vitamin C significantly increased the cytotoxicity of the drug towards melanoma compared to ammonium sulfate liposomes. On the other hand, vitamin C and anacardic acid both protected normal cells from damage caused by the drug. The formulation combining anacardic acid, vitamin C, and mitoxantrone showed promising results in terms of cytotoxicity and cytoprotection. Therefore, it has potential for anticancer treatment. PMID:24489469

  4. The oncolytic peptide LTX-315 induces cell death and DAMP release by mitochondria distortion in human melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Eike, Liv-Marie; Yang, Nannan; Rekdal, Øystein; Sveinbjørnsson, Baldur

    2015-01-01

    Host defense peptides (HDPs) are naturally occurring molecules found in most species, in which they play a significant role in the first line defense against intruding pathogens, and several HDPs have been shown to possess anticancer activity. Structure-activity relationship studies on the HDP bovine lactoferricin revealed a de novo design of a nonamer peptide LTX-315, with oncolytic properties. In the present study, we investigated the oncolytic activity of LTX-315 in human melanoma cells (A375). LTX-315 induced a rapid plasma membrane disruption and cell death within 2 hours. At a low concentration, fluorescence-labeled LTX-315 was internalized and accumulated in cytoplasmic vacuoles in close proximity to the mitochondria. The mitochondrial membrane potential was shown to depolarize as a consequence of LTX-315 treatment and at ultrastructural level, the mitochondria morphology was significantly altered. Release of danger signals (DAMPs) such as ATP, Cytochrome C and HMGB1 into the cell supernatant of cultured cells was evident minutes after peptide treatment. The oncolytic effect of LTX-315 involving perturbation of both the cell membrane and the mitochondria with subsequent release of DAMPs may highlight the ability of LTX-315 to induce complete regression and long-term protective immune responses as previously reported in experimental animal models. PMID:26472184

  5. c-RET Molecule in Malignant Melanoma from Oncogenic RET-Carrying Transgenic Mice and Human Cell Lines

    PubMed Central

    Takeda, Kozue; Iida, Machiko; Kumasaka, Mayuko; Matsumoto, Yoshinari; Kato, Masashi

    2010-01-01

    Malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive cancers and its incidence worldwide has been increasing at a greater rate than that of any other cancer. We previously reported that constitutively activated RFP-RET-carrying transgenic mice (RET-mice) spontaneously develop malignant melanoma. In this study, we showed that expression levels of intrinsic c-Ret, glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (Gdnf) and Gdnf receptor alpha 1 (Gfra1) transcripts in malignant melanomas from RET-transgenic mice were significantly upregulated compared with those in benign melanocytic tumors. These results suggest that not only introduced oncogenic RET but also intrinsic c-Ret/Gdnf are involved in murine melanomagenesis in RET-mice. We then showed that c-RET and GDNF transcript expression levels in human malignant melanoma cell lines (HM3KO and MNT-1) were higher than those in primary cultured normal human epithelial melanocytes (NHEM), while GFRa1 transcript expression levels were comparable among NHEM, HM3KO and MNT-1. We next showed c-RET and GFRa1 protein expression in HM3KO cells and GDNF-mediated increased levels of their phosphorylated c-RET tyrosine kinase and signal transduction molecules (ERK and AKT) sited potentially downstream of c-RET. Taken together with the finding of augmented proliferation of HM3KO cells after GDNF stimulation, our results suggest that GDNF-mediated c-RET kinase activation is associated with the pathogenesis of malignant melanoma. PMID:20422010

  6. c-RET molecule in malignant melanoma from oncogenic RET-carrying transgenic mice and human cell lines.

    PubMed

    Ohshima, Yuichiro; Yajima, Ichiro; Takeda, Kozue; Iida, Machiko; Kumasaka, Mayuko; Matsumoto, Yoshinari; Kato, Masashi

    2010-04-21

    Malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive cancers and its incidence worldwide has been increasing at a greater rate than that of any other cancer. We previously reported that constitutively activated RFP-RET-carrying transgenic mice (RET-mice) spontaneously develop malignant melanoma. In this study, we showed that expression levels of intrinsic c-Ret, glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (Gdnf) and Gdnf receptor alpha 1 (Gfra1) transcripts in malignant melanomas from RET-transgenic mice were significantly upregulated compared with those in benign melanocytic tumors. These results suggest that not only introduced oncogenic RET but also intrinsic c-Ret/Gdnf are involved in murine melanomagenesis in RET-mice. We then showed that c-RET and GDNF transcript expression levels in human malignant melanoma cell lines (HM3KO and MNT-1) were higher than those in primary cultured normal human epithelial melanocytes (NHEM), while GFRa1 transcript expression levels were comparable among NHEM, HM3KO and MNT-1. We next showed c-RET and GFRa1 protein expression in HM3KO cells and GDNF-mediated increased levels of their phosphorylated c-RET tyrosine kinase and signal transduction molecules (ERK and AKT) sited potentially downstream of c-RET. Taken together with the finding of augmented proliferation of HM3KO cells after GDNF stimulation, our results suggest that GDNF-mediated c-RET kinase activation is associated with the pathogenesis of malignant melanoma.

  7. [Characterization of genetic alterations in primary human melanomas carrying BRAF or NRAS mutation].

    PubMed

    Lázár, Viktória

    2013-06-01

    Human malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive forms of skin cancer with an exceptionally bad prognosis. Melanoma often displays constitutively activated MAPK pathway through BRAF or NRAS mutations. It is also known that these mutations are almost never simultaneously present and that they appear at early stages and preserved throughout tumor progression, although it is proved that these alterations alone are insufficient to cause tumor progression. Therefore the first aim of our study was to evaluate those distinct genetic alterations which can properly differentiate the three important molecular subtypes of primary melanomas with a) BRAF, b) NRAS mutation and c) WT (wild type for both loci). High-resolution array comparative genomic hybridization (array CGH) was used to assess genome-wide analysis of DNA copy number alterations. Primary melanomas with BRAF mutation more frequently exhibited losses on 10q23-10q26 and gains on chromosome 7 and 1q23-1q25 compared to melanomas with NRAS mutation. Loss on the 11q23-11q25 sequence was found mainly in conjunction with NRAS mutation. Based on these results, we proved the existence of marked differences in the genetic pattern of the BRAF and NRAS mutated melanoma subgroups, which might suggest that these mutations contribute to the development of malignant melanoma in conjunction with distinct cooperating oncogenic events. In general, it is an interesting phenomenon suggesting that these mutations provide probably the "guiding force" for these tumors and it also suggests that there are alternative genetic pathways to melanoma. These additional oncogenic events which are associated with BRAF or NRAS mutations can provide rational additional targets for a combination therapy with kinase inhibitors. In this study we also investigated the specific dynamic activities among different signalling pathways highlighting the frequent alterations of genes involved in the signalling interactions between the MAPK-JAK pathways

  8. Epigenetic regulation in human melanoma: past and future.

    PubMed

    Sarkar, Debina; Leung, Euphemia Y; Baguley, Bruce C; Finlay, Graeme J; Askarian-Amiri, Marjan E

    2015-01-01

    The development and progression of melanoma have been attributed to independent or combined genetic and epigenetic events. There has been remarkable progress in understanding melanoma pathogenesis in terms of genetic alterations. However, recent studies have revealed a complex involvement of epigenetic mechanisms in the regulation of gene expression, including methylation, chromatin modification and remodeling, and the diverse activities of non-coding RNAs. The roles of gene methylation and miRNAs have been relatively well studied in melanoma, but other studies have shown that changes in chromatin status and in the differential expression of long non-coding RNAs can lead to altered regulation of key genes. Taken together, they affect the functioning of signaling pathways that influence each other, intersect, and form networks in which local perturbations disturb the activity of the whole system. Here, we focus on how epigenetic events intertwine with these pathways and contribute to the molecular pathogenesis of melanoma.

  9. Anti-proliferative activity of 2,6-dichloro-9- or 7-(ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-9H- or 7H-purines against several human solid tumour cell lines.

    PubMed

    Morales, Fátima; Ramírez, Alberto; Conejo-García, Ana; Morata, Cynthia; Marchal, Juan A; Campos, Joaquín M

    2014-04-09

    As leads we took several benzo-fused seven- and six-membered scaffolds linked to the pyrimidine or purine moieties with notable anti-proliferative activity against human breast, colon and melanoma cancerous cell lines. We then decided to maintain the double-ringed nitrogenous bases and change the other components to the ethyl acetate moiety. This way six purine and two 5-fluorouracil derivatives were obtained and evaluated against the MCF-7, HCT-116, A-375 and G-361 cancer cell lines. Two QSARs are obtained between the anti-proliferative IC₅₀ values for compounds 26-33 and the clog P against the melanoma cell lines A-375 and G-361. Our results show that two of the analogues [ethyl 2-(2,6-dichloro-9H- or 7H-purine-9- or 7-yl)acetates (30 and 33, respectively)] are potent cytotoxic agents against all the tumour cell lines assayed, showing single-digit micromolar IC₅₀ values. This exemplifies the potential of our previously reported purine compounds to qualify as lead structures for medicinal chemistry campaigns, affording simplified analogues easy to synthesize and with a noteworthy bioactivity. The selective activity of 30 and 33 against the melanoma cell line A-375, via apoptosis, supposes a great advantage for a future therapeutic use. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  10. Etiology of melanoma.

    PubMed

    Koh, H K; Sinks, T H; Geller, A C; Miller, D R; Lew, R A

    1993-01-01

    Although the precise etiology of melanoma remains unknown, much data link sunlight to melanoma. The imperfect evidence associating sun exposure (particularly UVB radiation) with melanoma emerges from human data, obviating problems inherent in extrapolation from animal and other models. However, the mechanism by which sunlight might possibly initiate or promote melanoma remains obscure. Some clarification should emerge from the potential isolation of genes that carry susceptibility to melanoma in families prone to the disease; such work could serve as a basis to distinguish genetic and environmental influences in melanoma [167]. Continued studies of faulty DNA repair in XP patients may elucidate the steps in mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. Future case-control studies must address the limits on the accuracy of recall and the limits on statistical methods to separate the cluster of phenotypic risk needed in determining biologically effective dose. Animal and in vitro studies must contribute more insight. Further research in the South American opossum models appears promising [72]. Although ozone depletion has been documented, there has been little definitive evidence of subsequent increase of UVB at the Earth's surface. Nevertheless, the threat posed by ozone depletion deserves continued environmental action and public education. The role of precursor lesions, particularly dysplastic nevi/atypical moles, must be clarified with future research. The distribution of melanoma among various work forces suggests that occupational risk factors may play an important role in the etiology of this disease [168-170]. The consistent reports of excess melanoma among accountants, clerical workers, professional workers, and teachers deserve further study. Furthermore, evidence of excesses in printing and press, petrochemical, and the telecommunications industries require follow-up. Carefully planned studies that account for nonoccupational risk factors are recommended. Research over

  11. Irreversible Electroporation of Human Primary Uveal Melanoma in Enucleated Eyes

    PubMed Central

    Mandel, Yossi; Laufer, Shlomi; Belkin, Michael; Rubinsky, Boris; Pe'er, Jacob; Frenkel, Shahar

    2013-01-01

    Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common primary intraocular tumor in adults and is characterized by high rates of metastatic disease. Although brachytherapy is the most common globe-sparing treatment option for small- and medium-sized tumors, the treatment is associated with severe adverse reactions and does not lead to increased survival rates as compared to enucleation. The use of irreversible electroporation (IRE) for tumor ablation has potential advantages in the treatment of tumors in complex organs such as the eye. Following previous theoretical work, herein we evaluate the use of IRE for uveal tumor ablation in human ex vivo eye model. Enucleated eyes of patients with uveal melanoma were treated with short electric pulses (50–100 µs, 1000–2000 V/cm) using a customized electrode design. Tumor bioimpedance was measured before and after treatment and was followed by histopathological evaluation. We found that IRE caused tumor ablation characterized by cell membrane disruption while sparing the non-cellular sclera. Membrane disruption and loss of cellular capacitance were also associated with significant reduction in total tumor impedance and loss of impedance frequency dependence. The effect was more pronounced near the pulsing electrodes and was dependent on time from treatment to fixation. Future studies should further evaluate the potential of IRE as an alternative method of uveal melanoma treatment. PMID:24039721

  12. MDA-9/Syntenin and IGFBP-2 Promote Angiogenesis in Human Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Das, Swadesh K.; Bhutia, Sujit K.; Azab, Belal; Kegelman, Timothy P.; Peachy, Leyla; Santhekadur, Prasanna K.; Dasgupta, Santanu; Dash, Rupesh; Dent, Paul; Grant, Steven; Emdad, Luni; Pellecchia, Maurizio; Sarkar, Devanand; Fisher, Paul B.

    2012-01-01

    Melanoma differentiation associated gene-9 (mda-9/syntenin) encodes an adapter scaffold protein whose expression correlates with and mediates melanoma progression and metastasis. Tumor angiogenesis represents an integral component of cancer metastasis prompting us to investigate a possible role of mda-9/syntenin in inducing angiogenesis. Genetic (gain-of-function and loss-of-function) and pharmacological approaches were employed to modify mda-9/syntenin expression in normal immortal melanocytes, early radial growth phase melanoma and metastatic melanoma cells. The consequence of modifying mda-9/syntenin expression on angiogenesis was evaluated using both in vitro and in vivo assays, including tube formation assays using human vascular endothelial cells, CAM assays and xenograft tumor animal models. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments confirm that MDA-9/syntenin induces angiogenesis by augmenting expression of several pro-angiogenic factors/genes. Experimental evidence is provided for a model of angiogenesis induction by MDA-9/syntenin in which MDA-9/syntenin interacts with the ECM activating Src and FAK resulting in activation by phosphorylation of Akt, which induces HIF-1α. The HIF-1α activates transcription of Insulin Growth Factor Binding Protein-2 (IGFBP-2), which is secreted thereby promoting angiogenesis and further induces endothelial cells to produce and secrete VEGF-A augmenting tumor angiogenesis. Our studies delineate an unanticipated cell non-autonomous function of MDA-9/syntenin in the context of angiogenesis, which may directly contribute to its metastasis-promoting properties. As a result, targeting MDA-9/syntenin or its downstream-regulated molecules may provide a means of simultaneously impeding metastasis by both directly inhibiting tumor cell transformed properties (autonomous) and indirectly by blocking angiogenesis (non-autonomous). PMID:23233738

  13. Prognostic factors for melanoma patients with lesions 0.76 - 1.69 mm in thickness. An appraisal of "thin" level IV lesions.

    PubMed Central

    Day, C L; Mihm, M C; Sober, A J; Harris, M N; Kopf, A W; Fitzpatrick, T B; Lew, R A; Harrist, T J; Golomb, F M; Postel, A; Hennessey, P; Gumport, S L; Raker, J W; Malt, R A; Cosimi, A B; Wood, W C; Roses, D F; Gorstein, F; Rigel, D; Friedman, R J; Mintzis, M M

    1982-01-01

    Fourteen variables were tested for their prognostic usefulness in 203 patients with clinical Stage I melanoma and primary tumor 0.76-169 mm thick. Only two variables, primary tumor location and level of invasion, were useful in predicting death from melanoma for these patients. Of the 12 deaths from melanoma, 11 occurred in patients with primary tumors located on the upper back, posterior arm, posterior neck, and posterior scalp (=BANS). There has been only one death from melanoma in 136 patients with melanoma located at other sites (11/67 vs 1/136, p less than 0.0001 Fisher's Exact Test). Of the 67 BANS patients, 51 had level II or level III lesions and five (10%0 died of melanoma. This compared with six deaths from melanoma in 16 patients (37.5%) with level IV BANS lesions (5/51 vs 6/16, p = 0.01 Fisher's Exact Test). The relatively high incidence of both melanoma deaths and regional node metastases for the BANS group merits consideration for testing the efficacy of elective regional node dissection for these patients. PMID:7055381

  14. Simvastatin rises reactive oxygen species levels and induces senescence in human melanoma cells by activation of p53/p21 pathway

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Guterres, Fernanda Augusta de Lima Barbosa; Martinez, Glaucia Regina; Rocha, Maria Eliane Merlin

    2013-11-15

    Recent studies demonstrated that simvastatin has antitumor properties in several types of cancer cells, mainly by inducing apoptosis and inhibiting growth. The arrest of proliferation is a feature of cellular senescence; however, the occurrence of senescence in melanoma cells upon simvastatin treatment has not been investigated until now. Our results demonstrated that exposure of human metastatic melanoma cells (WM9) to simvastatin induces a senescent phenotype, characterized by G1 arrest, positive staining for senescence-associated β-galactosidase assay, and morphological changes. Also, the main pathways leading to cell senescence were examined in simvastatin-treated human melanoma cells, and the expression levels of phospho-p53 andmore » p21 were upregulated by simvastatin, suggesting that cell cycle regulators and DNA damage pathways are involved in the onset of senescence. Since simvastatin can act as a pro-oxidant agent, and oxidative stress may be related to senescence, we measured the intracellular ROS levels in WM9 cells upon simvastatin treatment. Interestingly, we found an increased amount of intracellular ROS in these cells, which was accompanied by elevated expression of catalase and peroxiredoxin-1. Collectively, our results demonstrated that simvastatin can induce senescence in human melanoma cells by activation of p53/p21 pathway, and that oxidative stress may be related to this process. - Highlights: • Lower concentrations of simvastatin can induce senescent phenotype in melanoma cells. • Simvastatin induces senescence in human melanoma cells via p53/p21 pathway. • Senescent phenotype is related with increased intracellular ROS. • Partial detoxification of ROS by catalase/peroxiredoxin-1 could lead cells to senescence rather than apoptosis.« less

  15. A Novel Plant Sesquiterpene Lactone Derivative, DETD-35, Suppresses BRAFV600E Mutant Melanoma Growth and Overcomes Acquired Vemurafenib Resistance in Mice.

    PubMed

    Feng, Jia-Hua; Nakagawa-Goto, Kyoko; Lee, Kuo-Hsiung; Shyur, Lie-Fen

    2016-06-01

    Acquired resistance to vemurafenib develops through reactivation of RAF/MEK/ERK signaling or bypass mechanisms. Recent combination therapies such as a MEK inhibitor combined with vemurafenib show improvement in major clinical end points, but the percentage of patients with adverse toxic events is higher than with vemurafenib monotherapy and most patients ultimately relapse. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop new antimelanoma drugs and/or adjuvant agents for vemurafenib therapy. In this study, we created a novel semiorganically modified derivative, DETD-35, from deoxyelephantopin (DET), a plant sesquiterpene lactone demonstrated as an anti-inflammatory and anti-mammary tumor agent. Our results show that DETD-35 inhibited proliferation of a panel of melanoma cell lines, including acquired vemurafenib resistance A375 cells (A375-R) established in this study, with superior activities to DET and no cytotoxicity to normal melanocytes. DETD-35 suppressed tumor growth and reduced tumor mass as effectively as vemurafenib in A375 xenograft study. Furthermore, DETD-35 also reduced tumor growth in both acquired (A375-R) and intrinsic (A2058) vemurafenib resistance xenograft models, where vemurafenib showed no antitumor activity. Notably, the combination of DETD-35 and vemurafenib exhibited the most significant effects in both in vitro and in vivo xenograft studies due to synergism of the compound and the drug. Mechanistic studies suggested that DETD-35 overcame acquired vemurafenib resistance at least in part through deregulating MEK-ERK, Akt, and STAT3 signaling pathways and promoting apoptosis of cancer cells. Overall, our results suggest that DETD-35 may be useful as a therapeutic or adjuvant agent against BRAF(V600E) mutant and acquired vemurafenib resistance melanoma. Mol Cancer Ther; 15(6); 1163-76. ©2016 AACR. ©2016 American Association for Cancer Research.

  16. GPNMB expression in uveal melanoma: a potential for targeted therapy.

    PubMed

    Williams, Michelle D; Esmaeli, Bita; Soheili, Aydin; Simantov, Ronit; Gombos, Dan S; Bedikian, Agop Y; Hwu, Patrick

    2010-06-01

    Uveal melanoma is an aggressive disease without effective adjuvant therapy for metastases. Despite genomic differences between cutaneous and uveal melanomas, therapies based on shared biological factors could be effective against both tumor types. High expression of glycoprotein-NMB (GPNMB) in cutaneous melanomas led to the development of CDX-011 (glembatumumab vedotin), a fully human monoclonal antibody against the extracellular domain of GPNMB conjugated to the cytotoxic microtubule toxin monomethylauristatin E. Ongoing phase II trials suggest that CDX-011 has activity against advanced cutaneous melanomas. To determine the potential role of CDX-011 in uveal melanomas, we studied their GPNMB expression. Paraffin-embedded tissues from 22 uveal melanomas treated by enucleation from 2004-2007 at one institution were evaluated immunohistochemically for expression of GPNMB using biotinylated CDX-011 (unconjugated) antibody. Melanoma cells were evaluated for percentage and intensity of expression. Spectral imaging was used in one case with high melanin content. Clinical data were reviewed. Twelve women and 10 men with a median age of 58.7 years (range: 28-83 years) were included. Eighteen of 21 tumors evaluated immunohistochemically (85.7%) expressed GPNMB in 10-90% of tumor cells with variable intensity (5 tumors, 1+; 11, 2+; and 2, 3+). Eleven of 18 tumors (61.1%) expressed GPNMB in >or=50% of cells. Spectral imaging showed diffuse CDX-011 (unconjugated) reactivity in the remaining case. Uveal melanoma, like cutaneous melanoma, commonly expresses GPNMB. Ongoing clinical trials of CDX-011 should be extended to patients with metastatic uveal melanoma to determine potential efficacy in this subset of patients with melanoma.

  17. A Novel Therapy for Melanoma Developed in Mice: Transformation of Melanoma into Dendritic Cells with Listeria monocytogenes

    PubMed Central

    Bronchalo-Vicente, Lucia; Rodriguez-Del Rio, Estela; Freire, Javier; Calderon-Gonzalez, Ricardo; Frande-Cabanes, Elisabet; Gomez-Roman, Jose Javier; Fernández-Llaca, Hector; Yañez-Diaz, Sonsoles; Alvarez-Dominguez, Carmen

    2015-01-01

    Listeria monocytogenes is a gram-positive bacteria and human pathogen widely used in cancer immunotherapy because of its capacity to induce a specific cytotoxic T cell response in tumours. This bacterial pathogen strongly induces innate and specific immunity with the potential to overcome tumour induced tolerance and weak immunogenicity. Here, we propose a Listeria based vaccination for melanoma based in its tropism for these tumour cells and its ability to transform in vitro and in vivo melanoma cells into matured and activated dendritic cells with competent microbicidal and antigen processing abilities. This Listeria based vaccination using low doses of the pathogen caused melanoma regression by apoptosis as well as bacterial clearance. Vaccination efficacy is LLO dependent and implies the reduction of LLO-specific CD4+ T cell responses, strong stimulation of innate pro-inflammatory immune cells and a prevalence of LLO-specific CD8+ T cells involved in tumour regression and Listeria elimination. These results support the use of low doses of pathogenic Listeria as safe melanoma therapeutic vaccines that do not require antibiotics for bacterial removal. PMID:25760947

  18. Immunotherapy of metastatic melanoma by reversal of immune suppression

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Biggs, M.W.; Eiselein, J.E.

    1997-01-01

    Beginning with the observation that the human enteorvirus, Poliovirus Sabin 1, will lyse human melanoma cells in culture, clinical trials involving two patients with advance melanoma were performed. Parenteral injection of the viable Poliovirus into cutaneous melanoma metastases followed in 24 hours by oral administration of cyclophosphamide. The results of these two trials are described.

  19. Different dose rate-dependent responses of human melanoma cells and fibroblasts to low dose fast neutrons.

    PubMed

    Dionet, Claude; Müller-Barthélémy, Melanie; Marceau, Geoffroy; Denis, Jean-Marc; Averbeck, Dietrich; Gueulette, John; Sapin, Vincent; Pereira, Bruno; Tchirkov, Andrei; Chautard, Emmanuel; Verrelle, Pierre

    2016-09-01

    To analyze the dose rate influence in hyper-radiosensitivity (HRS) of human melanoma cells to very low doses of fast neutrons and to compare to the behaviour of normal human skin fibroblasts. We explored different neutron dose rates as well as possible implication of DNA double-strand breaks (DSB), apoptosis, and energy-provider adenosine-triphosphate (ATP) levels during HRS. HRS in melanoma cells appears only at a very low dose rate (VLDR), while a high dose rate (HDR) induces an initial cell-radioresistance (ICRR). HRS does not seem to be due either to DSB or to apoptosis. Both phenomena (HRS and ICRR) appear to be related to ATP availability for triggering cell repair. Fibroblast survival after neutron irradiation is also dose rate-dependent but without HRS. Melanoma cells or fibroblasts exert their own survival behaviour at very low doses of neutrons, suggesting that in some cases there is a differential between cancer and normal cells radiation responses. Only the survival of fibroblasts at HDR fits the linear no-threshold model. This new insight into human cell responses to very low doses of neutrons, concerns natural radiations, surroundings of accelerators, proton-therapy devices, flights at high altitude. Furthermore, ATP inhibitors could increase HRS during high-linear energy transfer (high-LET) irradiation.

  20. The role of nitric oxide in melanoma.

    PubMed

    Yarlagadda, Keerthi; Hassani, John; Foote, Isaac P; Markowitz, Joseph

    2017-12-01

    Nitric oxide (NO) is a small gaseous signaling molecule that mediates its effects in melanoma through free radical formation and enzymatic processes. Investigations have demonstrated multiple roles for NO in melanoma pathology via immune surveillance, apoptosis, angiogenesis, melanogenesis, and on the melanoma cell itself. In general, elevated levels of NO prognosticate a poor outcome for melanoma patients. However, there are processes where the relative concentration of NO in different environments may also serve to limit melanoma proliferation. This review serves to outline the roles of NO in melanoma development and proliferation. As demonstrated by multiple in vivo murine models and observations from human tissue, NO may promote melanoma formation and proliferation through its interaction via inhibitory immune cells, inhibition of apoptosis, stimulation of pro-tumorigenic cytokines, activation of tumor associated macrophages, alteration of angiogenic processes, and stimulation of melanoma formation itself. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Rendomab B4, a monoclonal antibody that discriminates the human endothelin B receptor of melanoma cells and inhibits their migration

    PubMed Central

    Borrull, Aurélie; Allard, Bertrand; Wijkhuisen, Anne; Herbet, Amaury; Lamourette, Patricia; Birouk, Wided; Leiber, Denis; Tanfin, Zahra; Ducancel, Frédéric; Boquet, Didier; Couraud, Jean-Yves; Robin, Philippe

    2016-01-01

    ABSTRACT Metastatic melanoma is an aggressive cancer with a poor prognostic, and the design of new targeted drugs to treat melanoma is a therapeutic challenge. A promising approach is to produce monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against the endothelin B receptor (ETB), which is known to be overexpressed in melanoma and to contribute to proliferation, migration and vasculogenic mimicry associated with invasiveness of this cancer. We previously described rendomab-B1, a mAb produced by DNA immunization. It is endowed with remarkable characteristics in term of affinity, specificity and antagonist properties against human ETB expressed by the endothelial cells, but, surprisingly, had poor affinity for ETB expressed by melanoma cells. This characteristic strongly suggested the existence of a tumor-specific ETB form. In the study reported here, we identified a new mAb, rendomab-B4, which, in contrast to rendomab-B1, binds ETB expressed on UACC-257, WM-266-4 and SLM8 melanoma cells. Moreover, after binding to UACC-257 cells, rendomab-B4 is internalized and colocalizes with the endosomal protein EEA-1. Interestingly, rendomab-B4, despite its inability to compete with endothelin binding, is able to inhibit phospholipase C pathway and migration induced by endothelin. By contrast, rendomab-B4 fails to decrease ERK1/2 phosphorylation induced by endothelin, suggesting a biased effect on ETB. These particular properties make rendomab-B4 an interesting tool to analyze ETB-structure/function and a promising starting point for the development of new immunological tools in the field of melanoma therapeutics. PMID:27390909

  2. c-FLIP and the NOXA/Mcl-1 axis participate in the synergistic effect of pemetrexed plus cisplatin in human choroidal melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Xiaofei; Kong, Feng; Wang, Lei; Zhang, Han

    2017-01-01

    Choroidal melanoma is the most common primary malignant intraocular tumor, and very few effective therapies are available to treat it. Our study aimed to understand whether pemetrexed plus cisplatin exerts a beneficial synergistic effect in human choroidal melanoma cells and to delineate the underlying molecular mechanism. To accomplish these aims, we treated choroidal melanoma cells with pemetrexed and cisplatin and assessed cell survival with SRB and MTT assays. Proteins were detected using western blotting analysis. NOXA and CHOP were knocked down with siRNA. We found that pemetrexed or cisplatin alone inhibited survival and induced apoptosis in human choroidal melanoma cells. Furthermore, the expression levels of c-FLIP, an anti-apoptotic protein in the extrinsic apoptosis pathway, and Mcl-1, an anti-apoptotic protein in the intrinsic apoptosis pathway, were decreased by pemetrexed or cisplatin respectively, while the expression of a pro-apoptotic protein in the intrinsic apoptosis pathway, NOXA, was up-regulated. Moreover, pemetrexed or cisplatin alone increased the protein expression of the endoplasmic reticulum stress markers IRE1α, Bip and CHOP. Silencing CHOP expression reduced NOXA expression. These findings suggest that the pemetrexed or cisplatin induced intrinsic apoptosis via activation of the ER stress response. Importantly, combining the two compounds more strongly induced apoptosis. Following the cotreatment, CHOP and NOXA expression increased, while c-FLIP and Mcl-1 expression decreased, and these effects were more pronounced than when using either compound alone. This result suggests that pemetrexed and cisplatin synergistically activate ER stress response-induced apoptosis in choroidal melanoma cells. To summarize, the c-FLIP and NOXA/Mcl-1 axis participated in the synergistic effect of pemetrexed plus cisplatin in human choroidal melanoma cells. Intrinsic apoptosis was induced via activation of the ER stress response. Our study provides

  3. 40 CFR 97.375 - Petitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 20 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Petitions. 97.375 Section 97.375... BUDGET TRADING PROGRAM AND CAIR NOX AND SO2 TRADING PROGRAMS Monitoring and Reporting § 97.375 Petitions. The CAIR designated representative of a CAIR NOX Ozone Season unit may submit a petition under § 75.66...

  4. The role of tumor microenvironment in development and progression of malignant melanomas - a systematic review.

    PubMed

    Gurzu, Simona; Beleaua, Marius Alexandru; Jung, Ioan

    2018-01-01

    To reveal the particular aspects of the tumor microenvironment of malignant melanomas, a systematic review including 34 representative papers was performed. The review took into account the aspects related the Wnt/β-catenin pathway-related epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) versus mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) of keratinocytes, fibroblasts and melanoma cells, as possible tools for understanding genesis and evolution of malignant melanoma. The possible reversible features of EMT and the role of tumor microenvironment in the metastatic process were also analyzed. A particular issue was related on the cancer stem cells that include melanocyte stem cells (McSCs) and multipotent mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs). As the McSCs embryological development in mouse is not similar to human development, the role of stem cells in genesis and development of human melanoma should be proved in human melanoma cells only. For further development of targeted therapy, a better understanding of melanomagenesis pathways and its microenvironment particularities is necessary.

  5. Differential biological effects of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) between mouse (B16F10) and human melanoma (BLM) cell lines.

    PubMed

    Joshi, Kumud; Hassan, Sherif S; Ramaraj, Pandurangan

    2017-01-01

    Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is a weak androgen and had been shown to have anti-cancer, anti-adipogenic and anti-inflammatory effects on mouse and other rodent models, but not on humans, suggesting a systemic level difference between mouse and human. Our previous study on DHEA biological functions involving a variety of cell lines, suggested that the functional differences between mouse and human existed even at the cellular level. Hence, using mouse and human melanoma cell models, in-vitro effects of DHEA on cell growth, mechanism of cell death and mechanism of DHEA action were studied. Results indicated a differential biological effects of DHEA between mouse and human melanoma cell lines. These in-vitro studies also suggested that the differential biological effects observed between these two cell lines could be due to the difference in the way DHEA was processed or metabolized inside the cell.

  6. MDA-9/syntenin and IGFBP-2 promote angiogenesis in human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Das, Swadesh K; Bhutia, Sujit K; Azab, Belal; Kegelman, Timothy P; Peachy, Leyla; Santhekadur, Prasanna K; Dasgupta, Santanu; Dash, Rupesh; Dent, Paul; Grant, Steven; Emdad, Luni; Pellecchia, Maurizio; Sarkar, Devanand; Fisher, Paul B

    2013-01-15

    Melanoma differentiation-associated gene-9 (mda-9/syntenin) encodes an adapter scaffold protein whose expression correlates with and mediates melanoma progression and metastasis. Tumor angiogenesis represents an integral component of cancer metastasis prompting us to investigate a possible role of mda-9/syntenin in inducing angiogenesis. Genetic (gain-of-function and loss-of-function) and pharmacologic approaches were used to modify mda-9/syntenin expression in normal immortal melanocytes, early radial growth phase melanoma, and metastatic melanoma cells. The consequence of modifying mda-9/syntenin expression on angiogenesis was evaluated using both in vitro and in vivo assays, including tube formation assays using human vascular endothelial cells, chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assays and xenograft tumor animal models. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments confirm that MDA-9/syntenin induces angiogenesis by augmenting expression of several proangiogenic factors/genes. Experimental evidence is provided for a model of angiogenesis induction by MDA-9/syntenin in which MDA-9/syntenin interacts with the extracellular matrix (ECM), activating Src and FAK resulting in activation by phosphorylation of Akt, which induces hypoxia inducible factor 1-α (HIF-1α). The HIF-1α activates transcription of insulin growth factor-binding protein-2 (IGFBP-2), which is secreted thereby promoting angiogenesis and further induces endothelial cells to produce and secrete VEGF-A augmenting tumor angiogenesis. Our studies delineate an unanticipated cell nonautonomous function of MDA-9/syntenin in the context of angiogenesis, which may directly contribute to its metastasis-promoting properties. As a result, targeting MDA-9/syntenin or its downstream-regulated molecules may provide a means of simultaneously impeding metastasis by both directly inhibiting tumor cell transformed properties (autonomous) and indirectly by blocking angiogenesis (nonautonomous).

  7. Nitric oxide donor augments antineoplastic effects of arginine deprivation in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Mayevska, Oksana; Chen, Oleh; Karatsai, Olena; Bobak, Yaroslav; Barska, Maryna; Lyniv, Liliana; Pavlyk, Iuliia; Rzhepetskyy, Yuriy; Igumentseva, Natalia; Redowicz, Maria Jolanta; Stasyk, Oleh

    2017-06-15

    Anticancer therapy based on recombinant arginine-degrading enzymes has been proposed for the treatment of several types of malignant cells deficient in arginine biosynthesis. One of the predicted side effects of such therapy is restricted bioavailability of nitric oxide as arginine catabolic product. Prolonged NO limitation may lead to unwanted disturbances in NO-dependent vasodilation, cardiovascular and immune systems. This problem can be overcome by co-supplementation with exogenous NO donor. However, NO may potentially counteract anticancer effects of therapy based on arginine deprivation. In this study, we evaluate for the first time the effects of an exogenous NO donor, sodium nitroprusside, on viability and metastatic properties of two human melanoma cell lines SK-MEL-28 and WM793 under arginine-deprived conditions. It was revealed that NO did not rescue melanoma cells from specific effects evoked by arginine deprivation, namely decreased viability and induction of apoptosis, dramatically reduced motility, invasiveness and clonogenic potential. Moreover, sodium nitroprusside co-treatment augmented several of these antineoplastic effects. We report that a combination of NO-donor and arginine deprivation strongly and specifically impaired metastatic behavior of melanoma cells. Thus, sodium nitroprusside can be considered as an adjuvant for the more efficient treatment of malignant melanoma and possibly other tumors with arginine-degrading enzymes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Melanoma

    MedlinePlus

    Melanoma is the most serious type of skin cancer. Often the first sign of melanoma is a change in the size, shape, color, or feel of a mole. Most melanomas have a black or black-blue area. Melanoma ...

  9. Therapeutic Efficacy of a {sup 188}Re-Labeled {alpha}-Melanocyte-Stimulating Hormone Peptide Analog in Murine and Human Melanoma-Bearing Mouse Models

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Miao, Yubin; Owen, Nellie K.; Fisher, Darrell R.

    2005-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the therapeutic efficacy of {sup 188}Re-(Arg{sup 11})CCMSH in the B16/F1 murine melanoma and TXM13 human melanoma bearing mouse models. Method: (Arg11)CCMSH was synthesized and labeled with {sup 188}Re to form {sup 188}Re-(Agr{sup 11})CCMSH. B16/F1 melanoma tumor bearing mice were administrated with 200 Ci, 600 Ci and 2x400 Ci of {sup 188}Re-(Arg{sup 11})CCMSH via the tail vein, respectively. TXM13 melanoma tumor hearing mice were separately injected with 600 Ci, 2x400 Ci and 1000 Ci of 100Re-(Arg{sup 11})CCMSH through the tail vein. Two groups of 10 mice bearing either B16/F1 or TXM13 tumors weremore » injected with saline as untreated controls. Results: In contrast to the untreated control group, {sup 188}Re(Arg11)CCMSH yielded rapid and lasting therapeutic effects in the treatment groups with either B16/F1 or TXM13 tumors. The tumor growth rate was reduced and the survival rate was prolonged in the treatment groups. Treatment with 2x400 Ci of {sup 188}Re-Arg{sup 11}CCMSH significantly extended the mean life of B16/F1 tumor mice (p<0.05), while the mean life of TXm13 tumor mice was significantly prolonged after treatment with 600 Ci and 1000 Ci doses of {sup 188}Re-(Arg{sup 11})CCMSH (p<0.05 High-dose {sup 188}Re-(Arg{sup 11}))CCMSH produced no observed normal-tissue toxicity. Conclusions: The therapy study results revealed that {sup 188}Re-Arg11 CCMSH yielded significant therapeutic effects in both B16/F1 murine melanoma and TXM13 human melanoma bearing mouse models. {sup 188}Re-(Arg{sup 11})CCMSH appears to be a promising radiolabeled peptide for targeted radionuclide therapy of melanoma.« less

  10. Integrative Genome Comparison of Primary and Metastatic Melanomas

    PubMed Central

    Feng, Bin; Nazarian, Rosalynn M.; Bosenberg, Marcus; Wu, Min; Scott, Kenneth L.; Kwong, Lawrence N.; Xiao, Yonghong; Cordon-Cardo, Carlos; Granter, Scott R.; Ramaswamy, Sridhar; Golub, Todd; Duncan, Lyn M.; Wagner, Stephan N.; Brennan, Cameron; Chin, Lynda

    2010-01-01

    A cardinal feature of malignant melanoma is its metastatic propensity. An incomplete view of the genetic events driving metastatic progression has been a major barrier to rational development of effective therapeutics and prognostic diagnostics for melanoma patients. In this study, we conducted global genomic characterization of primary and metastatic melanomas to examine the genomic landscape associated with metastatic progression. In addition to uncovering three genomic subclasses of metastastic melanomas, we delineated 39 focal and recurrent regions of amplification and deletions, many of which encompassed resident genes that have not been implicated in cancer or metastasis. To identify progression-associated metastasis gene candidates, we applied a statistical approach, Integrative Genome Comparison (IGC), to define 32 genomic regions of interest that were significantly altered in metastatic relative to primary melanomas, encompassing 30 resident genes with statistically significant expression deregulation. Functional assays on a subset of these candidates, including MET, ASPM, AKAP9, IMP3, PRKCA, RPA3, and SCAP2, validated their pro-invasion activities in human melanoma cells. Validity of the IGC approach was further reinforced by tissue microarray analysis of Survivin showing significant increased protein expression in thick versus thin primary cutaneous melanomas, and a progression correlation with lymph node metastases. Together, these functional validation results and correlative analysis of human tissues support the thesis that integrated genomic and pathological analyses of staged melanomas provide a productive entry point for discovery of melanoma metastases genes. PMID:20520718

  11. Pleckstrin homology domain-interacting protein (PHIP) as a marker and mediator of melanoma metastasis

    PubMed Central

    De Semir, David; Nosrati, Mehdi; Bezrookove, Vladimir; Dar, Altaf A.; Federman, Scot; Bienvenu, Geraldine; Venna, Suraj; Rangel, Javier; Climent, Joan; Meyer Tamgüney, Tanja M.; Thummala, Suresh; Tong, Schuyler; Leong, Stanley P. L.; Haqq, Chris; Billings, Paul; Miller, James R.; Sagebiel, Richard W.; Debs, Robert; Kashani-Sabet, Mohammed

    2012-01-01

    Although melanomas with mutant v-Raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B1 (BRAF) can now be effectively targeted, there is no molecular target for most melanomas expressing wild-type BRAF. Here, we show that the activation of Pleckstrin homology domain-interacting protein (PHIP), promotes melanoma metastasis, can be used to classify a subset of primary melanomas, and is a prognostic biomarker for melanoma. Systemic, plasmid-based shRNA targeting of Phip inhibited the metastatic progression of melanoma, whereas stable suppression of Phip in melanoma cell lines suppressed metastatic potential and prolonged the survival of tumor-bearing mice. The human PHIP gene resides on 6q14.1, and although 6q loss has been observed in melanoma, the PHIP locus was preserved in melanoma cell lines and patient samples, and its overexpression was an independent adverse predictor of survival in melanoma patients. In addition, a high proportion of PHIP-overexpressing melanomas harbored increased PHIP copy number. PHIP-overexpressing melanomas include tumors with wild-type BRAF, neuroblastoma RAS viral (v-ras) oncogene homolog, and phosphatase and tensin homolog, demonstrating PHIP activation in triple-negative melanoma. These results describe previously unreported roles for PHIP in predicting and promoting melanoma metastasis, and in the molecular classification of melanoma. PMID:22511720

  12. Detection of melanomas by digital imaging of spectrally resolved UV light-induced autofluorescence of human skin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chwirot, B. W.; Chwirot, S.; Jedrzejczyk, W.; Redzinski, J.; Raczynska, A. M.; Telega, K.

    2001-07-01

    We studied spectral and spatial distributions of the intensity of the ultraviolet light-excited fluorescence of human skin. Our studied performed in situ in 162 patients with malignant and non-malignant skin lesions resulted in a new method of detecting melanomas in situ using digital imaging of the spectrally resolved fluorescence. With our diagnostic algorithm we could successfully detect 88.5% of the cases of melanoma in the group of patients subject to examinations with the fluorescence method. A patent application for the method has been submitted to the Patent Office in Warsaw.

  13. Malignant Melanoma Presenting as a Mediastinal Malignant Melanoma Presenting as a Mediastinal Unknown Primary Origin?

    PubMed

    Pujani, Mukta; Hassan, Mohd Jaseem; Jetley, Sujata; Raina, Prabhat Kumar; Kumar, Mukesh

    2017-01-01

    The most common site of primary malignant melanoma is the skin, however, virtually any organ system may be involved. Metastatic melanoma of unknown primary origin accounts for approximately 2-6% of all melanoma cases. The mediastinum as the site for malignant melanoma is extremely rare, both as a primary or metastatic lesion. Primary malignant melanoma of mediastinum is very rare with only a handful of reports in the literature. We hereby report a rare case of malignant melanoma of mediastinum in a 31 year old male who was initially misdiagnosed on fine needle aspiration cytology as adenocarcinoma for which he received chemotherapy with clinical deterioration. Even on extensive meticulous search, no primary was discovered.

  14. Susceptibility of In Vitro Melanoma Skin Cancer to Photoactivated Hypericin versus Aluminium(III) Phthalocyanine Chloride Tetrasulphonate

    PubMed Central

    Ndhundhuma, I. M.

    2017-01-01

    The sensitivity of human melanoma cells to photoactivated Hypericin (Hyp) compared to aluminium(III) phthalocyanine chloride tetrasulphonate (AlPcS4Cl) is reported in this study. Melanoma cells (A375 cell line) were treated with various concentrations of Hyp or AlPcS4Cl alone, for 1, 4, and 24 hrs; varying doses of laser irradiation alone (594 or 682 nm); or optimal concentrations of PSs combined with laser irradiation. Changes in cell morphology, viability, membrane integrity, and proliferation after treatment of cells were determined using inverted microscopy, Trypan blue cell exclusion, Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) membrane integrity, and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) cell proliferation assay, respectively. More than 60% of cell survival was observed when cells were treated with 2.5 μM of Hyp or AlPcS4Cl alone at all incubation times or with 5 J/cm2 of 594 or 682 nm laser alone. Combination of PSs and respective lasers leads to a statistically significant incubation time-dependent decrease in survival of cells. Flow cytometry using the FITC Annexin V/PI apoptosis kit demonstrated that cell death induced after Hyp-PDT is via early and late apoptosis whereas early apoptosis was the main mechanism observed with AlPcS4Cl-PDT. Hyp-PDT compared to AlPcS4Cl-PDT is indicated to be a more effective cancer cell death inducer in melanoma cells. PMID:29147654

  15. Cross-Priming of Naive Cd8 T Cells against Melanoma Antigens Using Dendritic Cells Loaded with Killed Allogeneic Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Berard, Frederic; Blanco, Patrick; Davoust, Jean; Neidhart-Berard, Eve-Marie; Nouri-Shirazi, Mahyar; Taquet, Nicolas; Rimoldi, Donata; Cerottini, Jean Charles; Banchereau, Jacques; Palucka, A. Karolina

    2000-01-01

    The goal of tumor immunotherapy is to elicit immune responses against autologous tumors. It would be highly desirable that such responses include multiple T cell clones against multiple tumor antigens. This could be obtained using the antigen presenting capacity of dendritic cells (DCs) and cross-priming. That is, one could load the DC with tumor lines of any human histocompatibility leukocyte antigen (HLA) type to elicit T cell responses against the autologous tumor. In this study, we show that human DCs derived from monocytes and loaded with killed melanoma cells prime naive CD45RA+CD27+CD8+ T cells against the four shared melanoma antigens: MAGE-3, gp100, tyrosinase, and MART-1. HLA-A201+ naive T cells primed by DCs loaded with HLA-A201− melanoma cells are able to kill several HLA-A201+ melanoma targets. Cytotoxic T lymphocyte priming towards melanoma antigens is also obtained with cells from metastatic melanoma patients. This demonstration of cross-priming against shared tumor antigens builds the basis for using allogeneic tumor cell lines to deliver tumor antigens to DCs for vaccination protocols. PMID:11104796

  16. Harnessing BET Inhibitor Sensitivity Reveals AMIGO2 as a Melanoma Survival Gene.

    PubMed

    Fontanals-Cirera, Barbara; Hasson, Dan; Vardabasso, Chiara; Di Micco, Raffaella; Agrawal, Praveen; Chowdhury, Asif; Gantz, Madeleine; de Pablos-Aragoneses, Ana; Morgenstern, Ari; Wu, Pamela; Filipescu, Dan; Valle-Garcia, David; Darvishian, Farbod; Roe, Jae-Seok; Davies, Michael A; Vakoc, Christopher R; Hernando, Eva; Bernstein, Emily

    2017-11-16

    Bromodomain and extraterminal domain inhibitors (BETi) represent promising therapeutic agents for metastatic melanoma, yet their mechanism of action remains unclear. Here we interrogated the transcriptional effects of BETi and identified AMIGO2, a transmembrane molecule, as a BET target gene essential for melanoma cell survival. AMIGO2 is upregulated in melanoma cells and tissues compared to human melanocytes and nevi, and AMIGO2 silencing in melanoma cells induces G1/S arrest followed by apoptosis. We identified the pseudokinase PTK7 as an AMIGO2 interactor whose function is regulated by AMIGO2. Epigenomic profiling and genome editing revealed that AMIGO2 is regulated by a melanoma-specific BRD2/4-bound promoter and super-enhancer configuration. Upon BETi treatment, BETs are evicted from these regulatory elements, resulting in AMIGO2 silencing and changes in PTK7 proteolytic processing. Collectively, this study uncovers mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effects of BETi in melanoma and reveals the AMIGO2-PTK7 axis as a targetable pathway for metastatic melanoma. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Comparative Aspects of Canine Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Nishiya, Adriana Tomoko; Massoco, Cristina Oliveira; Felizzola, Claudia Ronca; Perlmann, Eduardo; Batschinski, Karen; Tedardi, Marcello Vannucci; Garcia, Jéssica Soares; Mendonça, Priscila Pedra; Teixeira, Tarso Felipe; Zaidan Dagli, Maria Lucia

    2016-01-01

    Melanomas are malignant neoplasms originating from melanocytes. They occur in most animal species, but the dog is considered the best animal model for the disease. Melanomas in dogs are most frequently found in the buccal cavity, but the skin, eyes, and digits are other common locations for these neoplasms. The aim of this review is to report etiological, epidemiological, pathological, and molecular aspects of melanomas in dogs. Furthermore, the particular biological behaviors of these tumors in the different body locations are shown. Insights into the therapeutic approaches are described. Surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, and the outcomes after these treatments are presented. New therapeutic perspectives are also depicted. All efforts are geared toward better characterization and control of malignant melanomas in dogs, for the benefit of these companion animals, and also in an attempt to benefit the treatment of human melanomas. PMID:29056717

  18. Proteomic Analysis of Laser Microdissected Melanoma Cells from Skin Organ Cultures

    PubMed Central

    Hood, Brian L.; Grahovac, Jelena; Flint, Melanie S.; Sun, Mai; Charro, Nuno; Becker, Dorothea; Wells, Alan; Conrads, Thomas P

    2010-01-01

    Gaining insights into the molecular events that govern the progression from melanoma in situ to advanced melanoma, and understanding how the local microenvironment at the melanoma site influences this progression, are two clinically pivotal aspects that to date are largely unexplored. In an effort to identify key regulators of the crosstalk between melanoma cells and the melanoma-skin microenvironment, primary and metastatic human melanoma cells were seeded into skin organ cultures (SOCs), and grown for two weeks. Melanoma cells were recovered from SOCs by laser microdissection and whole-cell tryptic digests analyzed by nanoflow liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with an LTQ-Orbitrap. The differential protein abundances were calculated by spectral counting, the results of which provides evidence that cell-matrix and cell-adhesion molecules that are upregulated in the presence of these melanoma cells recapitulate proteomic data obtained from comparative analysis of human biopsies of invasive melanoma and a tissue sample of adjacent, non-involved skin. This concordance demonstrates the value of SOCs for conducting proteomic investigations of the melanoma microenvironment. PMID:20459140

  19. Docosahexaenoic acid, G protein-coupled receptors, and melanoma: is G protein-coupled receptor 40 a potential therapeutic target?

    PubMed

    Nehra, Deepika; Pan, Amy H; Le, Hau D; Fallon, Erica M; Carlson, Sarah J; Kalish, Brian T; Puder, Mark

    2014-05-15

    To determine the effect of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on the growth of human melanoma in vitro and in vivo and to better understand the potential role of the G protein-coupled receptors (GPRs) in mediating this effect. For in vitro studies, human melanoma and control fibroblast cells were treated with DHA and TAK-875 (selective GPR40 agonist) and a cell viability assay was performed to determine cell counts. A murine subcutaneous xenograft model of human melanoma was used to test the effect of dietary treatment with an omega-3 fatty acid (FA) rich diet compared with an omega-6 FA rich diet on the growth of human melanoma in vivo. A similar animal model was used to test the effect of oral TAK-875 on the growth of established melanoma tumors in vivo. DHA has an inhibitory effect on the growth of human melanoma both in vitro and in vivo. Tumors from animals on the omega-3 FA rich diet were 69% smaller in weight (P = 0.005) and 76% smaller in volume compared with tumors from animals on the omega-6 FA rich diet. TAK-875 has an inhibitory effect on the growth of human melanoma both in vitro and in vivo. Tumors from animals treated with TAK-875 were 46% smaller in weight (P = 0.07), 62% smaller in volume (P = 0.03), and grew 77% slower (P = 0.04) compared with the placebo group. DHA and TAK-875 have a profound and selective inhibitory effect on the growth of human melanoma both in vitro and in vivo. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Single-chain antibody-delivered Livin siRNA inhibits human malignant melanoma growth in vitro and in vivo.

    PubMed

    Wang, Hao; Yang, Yifei; Wang, Wei; Guan, Bing; Xun, Meng; Zhang, Hai; Wang, Ziling; Zhao, Yong

    2017-05-01

    Although gene therapy has brought new insights into the treatment of malignant melanoma, targeting delivery of nucleic acid which targets critical oncogene/anti-oncogene in vivo is still a bottleneck in the therapeutic application. Our previous in vitro studies have found that the oncogene Livin could serve as a potential molecular target by small interfering RNA for gene therapy of malignant melanoma. However, how to transport Livin small interfering RNA into malignant melanoma cells specifically and efficiently in vivo needs further investigation. Cumulative evidence has suggested that single-chain antibody-mediated small interfering RNA targeted delivery is an effective way to silence specific genes in human cancer cells. Indeed, this study designed a protamine-single-chain antibody fusion protein, anti-MM scFv-tP, to deliver Livin small interfering RNA into LiBr cells. Further experiments confirmed the induction of cell apoptosis and suppression of cell proliferation by anti-MM scFv-tP in LiBr cells, along with efficient silence of Livin gene both in vitro and in vivo. Altogether, our findings provide a feasible approach to transport Livin small interfering RNA to malignant melanoma cells which would be a new therapeutic strategy for combating malignant melanoma.

  1. Comparison of a treatment strategy combining CCI-779 plus DTIC versus DTIC monotreatment in human melanoma in SCID mice.

    PubMed

    Thallinger, Christiane; Werzowa, Johannes; Poeppl, Wolfgang; Kovar, Florian M; Pratscher, Barbara; Valent, Peter; Quehenberger, Peter; Joukhadar, Christian

    2007-10-01

    This study compares the antineoplastic potential of a novel treatment strategy combining cell cycle inhibitor-779 (CCI-779) plus dacarbazine (DTIC) versus DTIC monotreatment, the current chemotherapeutic mainstay in combating metastatic melanoma. A controlled four-group parallel study design comprising 24-40 mice per tumor cell line was used in a severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID)-mouse xenotransplantation model. SCID mice were injected with 518A2, Mel-JUSO, or 607B human melanoma cells. After they developed tumors, mice received daily CCI-779 or solvent over 14 days. From treatment day 4-8 mice were additionally injected with DTIC or saline. Treatment with CCI-779 plus DTIC was superior to single agent DTIC in two out of three cell lines (P<0.05). The tumor weight reduction was 44+/-17 and 61+/-6% compared with DTIC monotreatment in Mel-JUSO and 607B melanomas, respectively (P<0.05). In contrast, in 518A2 xenotransplants, CCI-779 plus DTIC treatment was as effective as DTIC monotreatment. CCI-779 monotherapy exerted no statistically significant antitumor effect. Collectively, these data indicate that CCI-779 has the potential to increase the chemotherapeutic efficacy, as the combination of CCI-779 plus DTIC proved to be more efficacious compared to DTIC monotherapy in two out of three melanoma cell lines in vivo.

  2. PP2B and ERK1/2 regulate hyaluronan synthesis of HT168 and WM35 human melanoma cell lines.

    PubMed

    Katona, Éva; Juhász, Tamás; Somogyi, Csilla Szűcs; Hajdú, Tibor; Szász, Csaba; Rácz, Kálmán; Kókai, Endre; Gergely, Pál; Zákány, Róza

    2016-03-01

    Hyaluronan (HA) is the major glycosaminoglycan component of the extracellular matrix in either normal or malignant tissues and it may affect proliferation, motility and differentiation of various cell types. Three isoforms of plasma membrane-bound hyaluronan synthases (HAS 1, 2 and 3) secrete and simultaneously bind pericellular HA. HAS enzymes are subjects of post-translational protein phosphorylation which is believed to regulate their enzymatic activity. In this study, we investigated the HA homeostasis of normal human epidermal melanocytes, HT168 and WM35 human melanoma cell lines and melanoma metastases. HAS2 and HAS3 were detected in all the samples, while the expression of HAS1 was not detectable in any case. Malignant tissue samples and melanoma cell lines contained extra- and intracellular HA abundantly but not normal melanocytes. Applying HA as a chemoattractant facilitated the migration of melanoma cells in Boyden chamber. The amount of HA was reduced upon the inhibition of calcineurin with cyclosporine A (CsA), while the inhibition of ERK1/2 with PD098059 elevated it in both cell lines. The signals of Ser/Thr phosphoproteins at 57 kD were stronger after CsA treatment, while a markedly weaker signal was detected upon inhibition of the MAPK pathway. Our results suggest opposing effects of the two investigated enzymes on the HA homeostasis of melanoma cells. We propose that the dephosphorylation of HAS enzymes targeted by PP2B augments HA production, while their phosphorylation by the activity of MAPK pathway reduces HA synthesis. As the expression of the HA receptor RHAMM was also significantly enhanced by PD098059, the MAPK pathway exerted a complex attenuating effect on HA signalling in the investigated melanoma cells. This observation suggests that the application of MAPK-ERK pathway inhibitors requires a careful therapeutic design in melanoma treatment.

  3. PP2B and ERK1/2 regulate hyaluronan synthesis of HT168 and WM35 human melanoma cell lines

    PubMed Central

    KATONA, ÉVA; JUHÁSZ, TAMÁS; SOMOGYI, CSILLA SZŰCS; HAJDÚ, TIBOR; SZÁSZ, CSABA; RÁCZ, KÁLMÁN; KÓKAI, ENDRE; GERGELY, PÁL; ZÁKÁNY, RÓZA

    2016-01-01

    Hyaluronan (HA) is the major glycosaminoglycan component of the extracellular matrix in either normal or malignant tissues and it may affect proliferation, motility and differentiation of various cell types. Three isoforms of plasma membrane-bound hyaluronan synthases (HAS 1, 2 and 3) secrete and simultaneously bind pericellular HA. HAS enzymes are subjects of post-translational protein phosphorylation which is believed to regulate their enzymatic activity. In this study, we investigated the HA homeostasis of normal human epidermal melanocytes, HT168 and WM35 human melanoma cell lines and melanoma metastases. HAS2 and HAS3 were detected in all the samples, while the expression of HAS1 was not detectable in any case. Malignant tissue samples and melanoma cell lines contained extra- and intracellular HA abundantly but not normal melanocytes. Applying HA as a chemoattractant facilitated the migration of melanoma cells in Boyden chamber. The amount of HA was reduced upon the inhibition of calcineurin with cyclosporine A (CsA), while the inhibition of ERK1/2 with PD098059 elevated it in both cell lines. The signals of Ser/Thr phosphoproteins at 57 kD were stronger after CsA treatment, while a markedly weaker signal was detected upon inhibition of the MAPK pathway. Our results suggest opposing effects of the two investigated enzymes on the HA homeostasis of melanoma cells. We propose that the dephosphorylation of HAS enzymes targeted by PP2B augments HA production, while their phosphorylation by the activity of MAPK pathway reduces HA synthesis. As the expression of the HA receptor RHAMM was also significantly enhanced by PD098059, the MAPK pathway exerted a complex attenuating effect on HA signalling in the investigated melanoma cells. This observation suggests that the application of MAPK-ERK pathway inhibitors requires a careful therapeutic design in melanoma treatment. PMID:26717964

  4. Photosensitized rose Bengal-induced phototoxicity on human melanoma cell line under natural sunlight exposure.

    PubMed

    Srivastav, Ajeet K; Mujtaba, Syed Faiz; Dwivedi, Ashish; Amar, Saroj K; Goyal, Shruti; Verma, Ankit; Kushwaha, Hari N; Chaturvedi, Rajnish K; Ray, Ratan Singh

    2016-03-01

    Rose Bengal (RB) is an anionic water-soluble xanthene dye, which used for many years to assess eye cornea and conjunctiva damage. RB showed strong absorption maxima (λmax) under visible light followed by UV-B and UV-A. RB under sunlight exposure showed a time-dependent photodegradation. Our results show that photosensitized RB generates (1)O2 via Type-II photodynamic pathway and induced DNA damage under sunlight/UV-R exposure. 2'dGuO degradation, micronuclei formation, and single- and double-strand breakage were the outcome of photogenotoxicity caused by RB. Quenching studies with NaN3 advocate the involvement of (1)O2 in RB photogenotoxicity. RB induced linoleic acid photoperoxidation, which was parallel to (1)O2-mediated DNA damage. Oxidative stress in A375 cell line (human melanoma cell line) was detected through DCF-DA assay. Photosensitized RB decreased maximum cellular viability under sunlight followed by UV-B and UV-A exposures. Apoptosis was detected as a pattern of cell death through the increased of caspase-3 activity, decreased mitochondrial membrane potential, and PS translocation through inner to outer plasma membrane. Increased cytosolic levels of Bax also advocate the apoptotic cell death. We propose a p53-mediated apoptosis via increased expression of Bax gene and protein. Thus, the exact mechanism behind RB phototoxicity was the involvement of (1)O2, which induced oxidative stress-mediated DNA and membrane damage, finally apoptotic cell death under natural sunlight exposure. The study suggests that after the use of RB, sunlight exposure may avoid to prevent from its harmful effects. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  5. De-adhesion dynamics of melanoma cells from brain endothelial layer.

    PubMed

    Varga, Béla; Domokos, Réka Anita; Fazakas, Csilla; Wilhelm, Imola; Krizbai, István A; Szegletes, Zsolt; Gergely, Csilla; Váró, György; Végh, Attila G

    2018-03-01

    Metastasis formation is a complex and not entirely understood process. The poorest prognosis and the most feared complications are associated to brain metastases. Melanoma derived brain metastases show the highest prevalence. Due to the lack of classical lymphatic drainage, in the process of brain metastases formation the haematogenous route is of primordial importance. The first and crucial step in this multistep process is the establishment of firm adhesion between the blood travelling melanoma cells and the tightly connected layer of the endothelium, which is the fundamental structure of the blood-brain barrier. This study compares the de-adhesion properties and dynamics of three melanoma cells types (WM35, A2058 and A375) to a confluent layer of brain micro-capillary endothelial cells. Cell type dependent adhesion characteristics are presented, pointing towards the existence of metastatic potential related nanomechanical aspects. Apparent mechanical properties such as elasticity, maximal adhesion force, number, size and distance of individual rupture events showed altered values pointing towards cell type dependent aspects. Our results underline the importance of mechanical details in case of intercellular interactions. Nevertheless, it suggests that in adequate circumstances elastic and adhesive characterizations might be used as biomarkers. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  6. 20 CFR 375.7 - Operating regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Operating regulations. 375.7 Section 375.7 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD EMERGENCY REGULATIONS PLAN OF OPERATION DURING A NATIONAL EMERGENCY § 375.7 Operating regulations. (a) Retirement claims. (1) In a national emergency as defined in...

  7. 20 CFR 375.7 - Operating regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Operating regulations. 375.7 Section 375.7 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD EMERGENCY REGULATIONS PLAN OF OPERATION DURING A NATIONAL EMERGENCY § 375.7 Operating regulations. (a) Retirement claims. (1) In a national emergency as defined in...

  8. Sensitization of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand-resistant malignant melanomas by quercetin.

    PubMed

    Turner, Katherine A; Manouchehri, Jasmine M; Kalafatis, Michael

    2018-03-28

    Malignant melanoma is the most commonly diagnosed skin cancer associated with a high rate of metastasis. Low-stage melanoma is easily treated, but metastatic malignant melanoma is an extremely treatment-resistant malignancy with low survival rates. The application of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (rhTRAIL) for the treatment of metastatic malignant melanoma holds considerable promise because of its selective proapoptotic activity towards cancer cells and not nontransformed cells. Unfortunately, the clinical utilization of rhTRAIL has been terminated due to the resistance of many cancer cells to undergo apoptosis in response to rhTRAIL. However, rhTRAIL-resistance can be abrogated through the cotreatment with compounds derived from 'Mother Nature' such as quercetin that can modulate cellular components responsible for rhTRAIL-resistance. Here, we show that rhTRAIL-resistant malignant melanomas are sensitized by quercetin. Quercetin action is manifested by the upregulation of rhTRAIL-binding receptors DR4 and DR5 on the surface of cancer cells and by increased rate of the proteasome-mediated degradation of the antiapoptotic protein FLIP. Our data provide for a new efficient and nontoxic treatment of malignant melanoma.This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License 4.0 (CCBY-NC-ND), where it is permissible to download and share the work provided it is properly cited. The work cannot be changed in any way or used commercially without permission from the journal. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

  9. Experimental Studies of Boronophenylalanine ({sup 10}BPA) Biodistribution for the Individual Application of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) for Malignant Melanoma Treatment

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Carpano, Marina; Perona, Marina; Rodriguez, Carla

    Purpose: Patients with the same histopathologic diagnosis of cutaneous melanoma treated with identical protocols of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) have shown different clinical outcomes. The objective of the present studies was to evaluate the biodistribution of boronophenilalanina ({sup 10}BPA) for the potential application of BNCT for the treatment of melanoma on an individual basis. Methods and Materials: The boronophenilalanine (BPA) uptake was evaluated in 3 human melanoma cell lines: MEL-J, A375, and M8. NIH nude mice were implanted with 4 10{sup 6} MEL-J cells, and biodistribution studies of BPA (350 mg/kg intraperitoneally) were performed. Static infrared imaging using a speciallymore » modified infrared camera adapted to measure the body infrared radiance of small animals was used. Proliferation marker, Ki-67, and endothelial marker, CD31, were analyzed in tumor samples. Results: The in vitro studies demonstrated different patterns of BPA uptake for each analyzed cell line (P<.001 for MEL-J and A375 vs M8 cells). The in vivo studies showed a maximum average boron concentration of 25.9 ± 2.6 μg/g in tumor, with individual values ranging between 11.7 and 52.0 μg/g of {sup 10}B 2 hours after the injection of BPA. Tumor temperature always decreased as the tumors increased in size, with values ranging between 37°C and 23°C. A significant correlation between tumor temperature and tumor-to-blood boron concentration ratio was found (R{sup 2} = 0.7, rational function fit). The immunohistochemical studies revealed, in tumors with extensive areas of viability, a high number of positive cells for Ki-67, blood vessels of large diameter evidenced by the marker CD31, and a direct logistic correlation between proliferative status and boron concentration difference between tumor and blood (R{sup 2} = 0.81, logistic function fit). Conclusion: We propose that these methods could be suitable for designing new screening protocols applied before

  10. NGF reprograms metastatic melanoma to a bipotent glial-melanocyte neural crest-like precursor

    PubMed Central

    Kasemeier-Kulesa, Jennifer C.; Romine, Morgan H.; Morrison, Jason A.; Bailey, Caleb M.; Welch, Danny R.

    2018-01-01

    ABSTRACT Melanoma pathogenesis from normal neural crest-derived melanocytes is often fatal due to aggressive cell invasion throughout the body. The identification of signals that reprogram de-differentiated, metastatic melanoma cells to a less aggressive and stable phenotype would provide a novel strategy to limit disease progression. In this study, we identify and test the function of developmental signals within the chick embryonic neural crest microenvironment to reprogram and sustain the transition of human metastatic melanoma to a neural crest cell-like phenotype. Results reveal that co-culture of the highly aggressive and metastatic human melanoma cell line C8161 upregulate a marker of melanosome formation (Mart-1) in the presence of embryonic day 3.5 chick trunk dorsal root ganglia. We identify nerve growth factor (NGF) as the signal within this tissue driving Mart-1 re-expression and show that NGF receptors trkA and p75 cooperate to induce Mart-1 re-expression. Furthermore, Mart-1 expressing C8161 cells acquire a gene signature of poorly aggressive C81-61 cells. These data suggest that targeting NGF signaling may yield a novel strategy to reprogram metastatic melanoma toward a benign cell type. PMID:29175861

  11. The sodium pump α1 sub-unit: a disease progression–related target for metastatic melanoma treatment

    PubMed Central

    Mathieu, Véronique; Pirker, Christine; Martin de Lassalle, Elisabeth; Vernier, Mathieu; Mijatovic, Tatjana; DeNeve, Nancy; Gaussin, Jean-François; Dehoux, Mischael; Lefranc, Florence; Berger, Walter; Kiss, Robert

    2009-01-01

    Melanomas remain associated with dismal prognosis because they are naturally resistant to apoptosis and they markedly metastasize. Up-regulated expression of sodium pump α sub-units has previously been demonstrated when comparing metastatic to non-metastatic melanomas. Our previous data revealed that impairing sodium pump α1 activity by means of selective ligands, that are cardiotonic steroids, markedly impairs cell migration and kills apoptosis-resistant cancer cells. The objective of this study was to determine the expression levels of sodium pump α sub-units in melanoma clinical samples and cell lines and also to characterize the role of α1 sub-units in melanoma cell biology. Quantitative RT-PCR, Western blotting and immunohistochemistry were used to determine the expression levels of sodium pump α sub-units. In vitro cytotoxicity of various cardenolides and of an anti-α1 siRNA was evaluated by means of MTT assay, quantitative videomicroscopy and through apoptosis assays. The in vivo activity of a novel cardenolide UNBS1450 was evaluated in a melanoma brain metastasis model. Our data show that all investigated human melanoma cell lines expressed high levels of the α1 sub-unit, and 33% of human melanomas displayed significant α1 sub-unit expression in correlation with the Breslow index. Furthermore, cardenolides (notably UNBS1450; currently in Phase I clinical trials) displayed marked anti-tumour effects against melanomas in vitro. This activity was closely paralleled by decreases in cMyc expression and by increases in apoptotic features. UNBS1450 also displayed marked anti-tumour activity in the aggressive human metastatic brain melanoma model in vivo. The α1 sodium pump sub-unit could represent a potential novel target for combating melanoma. PMID:19243476

  12. Eradication of melanoma in vitro and in vivo via targeting with a Killer-Red-containing telomerase-dependent adenovirus.

    PubMed

    Takehara, Kiyoto; Yano, Shuya; Tazawa, Hiroshi; Kishimoto, Hiroyuki; Narii, Nobuhiro; Mizuguchi, Hiroyuki; Urata, Yasuo; Kagawa, Shunsuke; Fujiwara, Toshiyoshi; Hoffman, Robert M

    2017-08-18

    Melanoma is a highly recalcitrant cancer and transformative therapy is necessary for the cure of this disease. We recently developed a telomerase-dependent adenovirus containing the fluorescent protein Killer-Red. In the present report, we first determined the efficacy of Killer-Red adenovirus combined with laser irradiation on human melanoma cell lines in vitro. Cell viability of human melanoma cells was reduced in a dose-dependent and irradiation-time-dependent manner. We used an intradermal xenografted melanoma model in nude mice to determine efficacy of the Killer-Red adenovirus. Intratumoral injection of Killer-Red adenovirus, combined with laser irradiation, eradicated the melanoma indicating the potential of a new paradigm of cancer therapy.

  13. 14 CFR 375.34 - Indoctrination training.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Indoctrination training. 375.34 Section 375... § 375.34 Indoctrination training. Foreign civil aircraft may be operated in the United States for the purpose of giving indoctrination training in the operation of the aircraft concerned to a buyer or a buyer...

  14. The Generation of Insulin Producing Cells from Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells by MiR-375 and Anti-MiR-9.

    PubMed

    Jafarian, Arefeh; Taghikani, Mohammad; Abroun, Saeid; Allahverdi, Amir; Lamei, Maryam; Lakpour, Niknam; Soleimani, Masoud

    2015-01-01

    MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a group of endogenous small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. A number of studies have led to the notion that some miRNAs have key roles in control of pancreatic islet development and insulin secretion. Based on some studies on miRNAs pattern, the researchers in this paper investigated the pancreatic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSCs) by up-regulation of miR-375 and down-regulation of miR-9 by lentiviruses containing miR-375 and anti-miR-9. After 21 days of induction, islet-like clusters containing insulin producing cells (IPCs) were confirmed by dithizone (DTZ) staining. The IPCs and β cell specific related genes and proteins were detected using qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence on days 7, 14 and 21 of differentiation. Glucose challenge test was performed at different concentrations of glucose so extracellular and intracellular insulin and C-peptide were assayed using ELISA kit. Although derived IPCs by miR-375 alone were capable to express insulin and other endocrine specific transcription factors, the cells lacked the machinery to respond to glucose. It was found that over-expression of miR-375 led to a reduction in levels of Mtpn protein in derived IPCs, while treatment with anti-miR-9 following miR-375 over-expression had synergistic effects on MSCs differentiation and insulin secretion in a glucose-regulated manner. The researchers reported that silencing of miR-9 increased OC-2 protein in IPCs that may contribute to the observed glucose-regulated insulin secretion. Although the roles of miR-375 and miR-9 are well known in pancreatic development and insulin secretion, the use of these miRNAs in transdifferentiation was never demonstrated. These findings highlight miRNAs functions in stem cells differentiation and suggest that they could be used as therapeutic tools for gene-based therapy in diabetes mellitus.

  15. Melanoma-specific marker expression in skin biopsy tissues as a tool to facilitate melanoma diagnosis.

    PubMed

    Alexandrescu, Doru T; Kauffman, C Lisa; Jatkoe, Timothy A; Hartmann, Dan P; Vener, Tatiana; Wang, Haiying; Derecho, Carlo; Rajpurohit, Yashoda; Wang, Yixin; Palma, John F

    2010-07-01

    Diagnosis of cutaneous melanoma requires accurate differentiation of true malignant tumors from highly atypical lesions, which lack the capacity to develop uncontrolled proliferation and to metastasize. We used melanoma markers from previous work to differentiate benign and atypical lesions from melanoma using paraffin-embedded tissue. This critical step in diagnosis generates the most uncertainty and discrepancy between dermatopathologists. A total of 193 biopsy tissues were selected: 47 melanomas, 48 benign nevi, and 98 atypical/suspicious, including 48 atypical nevi and 50 melanomas as later assigned by expert dermatopathologists. Performance for SILV, GDF15, and L1CAM normalized to TYR in unequivocal melanoma versus benign nevi resulted in an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.94, 0.67, and 0.5, respectively. SILV also differentiated atypical cases classified as melanoma from atypical nevi with an AUC=0.74. Furthermore, SILV showed a significant difference between suspicious melanoma and each suspicious atypia group: melanoma versus severe atypia and melanoma versus moderate atypia had P-values of 0.0077 and 0.0009, respectively. SILV showed clear discrimination between melanoma and benign unequivocal cases as well as between different atypia subgroups in the group of suspicious samples. The role and potential utility of this molecular assay as an adjunct to the morphological diagnosis of melanoma are discussed.

  16. 21 CFR 173.375 - Cetylpyridinium chloride.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 3 2010-04-01 2009-04-01 true Cetylpyridinium chloride. 173.375 Section 173.375... CONSUMPTION Specific Usage Additives § 173.375 Cetylpyridinium chloride. Cetylpyridinium chloride (CAS Reg. No....1666 of this chapter, at a concentration of 1.5 times that of cetylpyridinium chloride. (c) The...

  17. Microsomal PGE2 synthase-1 regulates melanoma cell survival and associates with melanoma disease progression

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Sun-Hee; Hashimoto, Yuuri; Cho, Sung-Nam; Roszik, Jason; Milton, Denái R.; Dal, Fulya; Kim, Sangwon F.; Menter, David G.; Yang, Peiying; Ekmekcioglu, Suhendan; Grimm, Elizabeth A.

    2016-01-01

    Summary COX-2 and its product PGE2 enhance carcinogenesis and tumor progression, which has been previously reported in melanoma. As most COX inhibitors cause much toxicity, the downstream microsomal PGE2 synthase-1 (mPGES1) is a consideration for targeting. Human melanoma TMAs were employed for testing mPGES1 protein staining intensity and percentage levels and both increased with clinical stage; employing a different Stage III TMA, mPGES1 intensity (not percentage) associated with reduced patient survival. Our results further show that iNOS was also highly expressed in melanoma tissues with high mPGES1 levels, and iNOS-mediated NO promoted mPGES1 expression and PGE2 production. An mPGES1specific inhibitor (CAY10526) as well as siRNA attenuated cell survival and increased apoptosis. CAY10526 significantly suppressed tumor growth and increased apoptosis in melanoma xenografts. Our findings support the value of a prognostic and predictive role for mPGES1, and suggest targeting this molecule in the PGE2 pathway as another avenue toward improving melanoma therapy. PMID:26801201

  18. Thrombospondin 1 promotes an aggressive phenotype through epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Jayachandran, Aparna; Anaka, Matthew; Prithviraj, Prashanth; Hudson, Christopher; McKeown, Sonja J; Lo, Pu-Han; Vella, Laura J; Goding, Colin R; Cebon, Jonathan; Behren, Andreas

    2014-07-30

    Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), in which epithelial cells loose their polarity and become motile mesenchymal cells, is a determinant of melanoma metastasis. We compared gene expression signatures of mesenchymal-like melanoma cells with those of epithelial-like melanoma cells, and identified Thrombospondin 1 (THBS1) as highly up-regulated in the mesenchymal phenotype. This study investigated whether THBS1, a major physiological activator of transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta, is involved in melanoma EMT-like process. We sought to examine expression patterns in distinct melanoma phenotypes including invasive, de-differentiated, label-retaining and drug resistant populations that are putatively associated with an EMT-like process. Here we show that THBS1 expression and secretion was elevated in melanoma cells exhibiting invasive, drug resistant, label retaining and mesenchymal phenotypes and correlated with reduced expression of genes involved in pigmentation. Elevated THBS1 levels were detected in Vemurafenib resistant melanoma cells and inhibition of THBS1 led to significantly reduced chemoresistance in melanoma cells. Notably, siRNA-mediated silencing of THBS1 and neutralizing antibody to THBS1 reduced invasion in mesenchymal-like melanoma cells, while ectopic THBS1 expression in epithelial-like melanoma cells enhanced invasion. Furthermore, the loss of THBS1 inhibited in vivo motility of melanoma cells within the embryonic chicken neural tube. In addition, we found aberrant THBS1 protein expression in metastatic melanoma tumor biopsies. These results implicate a role for THBS1 in EMT, and hence THBS1 may serve as a novel target for strategies aimed at the treatment of melanoma invasion and drug resistance.

  19. Thrombospondin 1 promotes an aggressive phenotype through epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in human melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Jayachandran, Aparna; Anaka, Matthew; Prithviraj, Prashanth; Hudson, Christopher; McKeown, Sonja J; Lo, Pu-Han; Vella, Laura J; Goding, Colin R; Cebon, Jonathan; Behren, Andreas

    2014-01-01

    Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), in which epithelial cells loose their polarity and become motile mesenchymal cells, is a determinant of melanoma metastasis. We compared gene expression signatures of mesenchymal-like melanoma cells with those of epithelial-like melanoma cells, and identified Thrombospondin 1 (THBS1) as highly up-regulated in the mesenchymal phenotype. This study investigated whether THBS1, a major physiological activator of transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta, is involved in melanoma EMT-like process. We sought to examine expression patterns in distinct melanoma phenotypes including invasive, de-differentiated, label-retaining and drug resistant populations that are putatively associated with an EMT-like process. Here we show that THBS1 expression and secretion was elevated in melanoma cells exhibiting invasive, drug resistant, label retaining and mesenchymal phenotypes and correlated with reduced expression of genes involved in pigmentation. Elevated THBS1 levels were detected in Vemurafenib resistant melanoma cells and inhibition of THBS1 led to significantly reduced chemoresistance in melanoma cells. Notably, siRNA-mediated silencing of THBS1 and neutralizing antibody to THBS1 reduced invasion in mesenchymal-like melanoma cells, while ectopic THBS1 expression in epithelial-like melanoma cells enhanced invasion. Furthermore, the loss of THBS1 inhibited in vivo motility of melanoma cells within the embryonic chicken neural tube. In addition, we found aberrant THBS1 protein expression in metastatic melanoma tumor biopsies. These results implicate a role for THBS1 in EMT, and hence THBS1 may serve as a novel target for strategies aimed at the treatment of melanoma invasion and drug resistance. PMID:25051363

  20. Endogenous Noxa Determines the Strong Proapoptotic Synergism of the BH3-Mimetic ABT-737 with Chemotherapeutic Agents in Human Melanoma Cells12

    PubMed Central

    Weber, Arnim; Kirejczyk, Zofia; Potthoff, Stephanie; Ploner, Christian; Häcker, Georg

    2009-01-01

    Human melanoma cells are very resistant to treatment with chemotherapeutic agents, and melanoma shows poor response to chemotherapeutic therapy. We describe a strong synergistic proapoptotic effect of the Bcl-2 family inhibitor ABT-737 and the standard antimelanoma drugs, namely, dacarbazine and fotemustine, and the experimental agent, imiquimod. Experiments with human melanoma cells, keratinocytes, and embryonic fibroblasts showed that all three agents activated the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway. ABT-737 on its own was ineffective in melanoma cells unless Mcl-1 was experimentally downregulated. However, ABT-737 strongly enhanced the proapoptotic activity of the chemotherapeutic drugs. Whereas cell death induction by all three agents involved the activity of both BH3-only proteins, Bim and Noxa, the combination with ABT-737 overcame the requirement for Bim. However, the synergism between ABT-737 and imiquimod or dacarbazine required endogenous Noxa, as demonstrated by experiments with Noxa-specific RNAi. Surprisingly, although Bim was activated, it was unable to replace Noxa. Studies of mitochondrial cytochrome c release using BH3 peptides confirmed that a main effect of dacarbazine, fotemustine, and imiquimod was to neutralize Mcl-1, thereby sensitizing mitochondria to the inhibition of other Bcl-2 family members through ABT-737. ABT-737 is thus a promising agent for combination therapy for human melanoma. Importantly, the efficacy of this therapy depends on endogenous Noxa, and the ability of chemotherapeutic drugs to activate Noxa may be a valuable predictor of their synergism with Bcl-2-targeting drugs. PMID:19412422

  1. 21 CFR 172.375 - Potassium iodide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Potassium iodide. 172.375 Section 172.375 Food and... Dietary and Nutritional Additives § 172.375 Potassium iodide. The food additive potassium iodide may be safely used in accordance with the following prescribed conditions: (a) Potassium iodide may be safely...

  2. A novel compound which sensitizes BRAF wild-type melanoma cells to vemurafenib in a TRIM16-dependent manner.

    PubMed

    Sutton, Selina K; Carter, Daniel R; Kim, Patrick; Tan, Owen; Arndt, Greg M; Zhang, Xu Dong; Baell, Jonathan; Noll, Benjamin D; Wang, Shudong; Kumar, Naresh; McArthur, Grant A; Cheung, Belamy B; Marshall, Glenn M

    2016-08-09

    There is an urgent need for better therapeutic options for advanced melanoma patients, particularly those without the BRAFV600E/K mutation. In melanoma cells, loss of TRIM16 expression is a marker of cell migration and metastasis, while the BRAF inhibitor, vemurafenib, induces melanoma cell growth arrest in a TRIM16-dependent manner. Here we identify a novel small molecule compound which sensitized BRAF wild-type melanoma cells to vemurafenib. High throughput, cell-based, chemical library screening identified a compound (C012) which significantly reduced melanoma cell viability, with limited toxicity for normal human fibroblasts. When combined with the BRAFV600E/K inhibitor, vemurafenib, C012 synergistically increased vemurafenib potency in 5 BRAFWT and 4 out of 5 BRAFV600E human melanoma cell lines (Combination Index: CI < 1), and, dramatically reduced colony forming ability. In addition, this drug combination was significantly anti-tumorigenic in vivo in a melanoma xenograft mouse model. The combination of vemurafenib and C012 markedly increased expression of TRIM16 protein, and knockdown of TRIM16 significantly reduced the growth inhibitory effects of the vemurafenib and C012 combination. These findings suggest that the combination of C012 and vemurafenib may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of melanoma, and, that reactivation of TRIM16 may be an effective strategy for patients with this disease.

  3. A novel compound which sensitizes BRAF wild-type melanoma cells to vemurafenib in a TRIM16-dependent manner

    PubMed Central

    Sutton, Selina K.; Carter, Daniel R.; Kim, Patrick; Tan, Owen; Arndt, Greg M.; Zhang, Xu Dong; Baell, Jonathan; Noll, Benjamin D.; Wang, Shudong; Kumar, Naresh; McArthur, Grant A.; Cheung, Belamy B.; Marshall, Glenn M.

    2016-01-01

    There is an urgent need for better therapeutic options for advanced melanoma patients, particularly those without the BRAFV600E/K mutation. In melanoma cells, loss of TRIM16 expression is a marker of cell migration and metastasis, while the BRAF inhibitor, vemurafenib, induces melanoma cell growth arrest in a TRIM16-dependent manner. Here we identify a novel small molecule compound which sensitized BRAF wild-type melanoma cells to vemurafenib. High throughput, cell-based, chemical library screening identified a compound (C012) which significantly reduced melanoma cell viability, with limited toxicity for normal human fibroblasts. When combined with the BRAFV600E/K inhibitor, vemurafenib, C012 synergistically increased vemurafenib potency in 5 BRAFWT and 4 out of 5 BRAFV600E human melanoma cell lines (Combination Index: CI < 1), and, dramatically reduced colony forming ability. In addition, this drug combination was significantly anti-tumorigenic in vivo in a melanoma xenograft mouse model. The combination of vemurafenib and C012 markedly increased expression of TRIM16 protein, and knockdown of TRIM16 significantly reduced the growth inhibitory effects of the vemurafenib and C012 combination. These findings suggest that the combination of C012 and vemurafenib may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of melanoma, and, that reactivation of TRIM16 may be an effective strategy for patients with this disease. PMID:27447557

  4. Quantitative Proteomics Identifies Activation of Hallmark Pathways of Cancer in Patient Melanoma.

    PubMed

    Byrum, Stephanie D; Larson, Signe K; Avaritt, Nathan L; Moreland, Linley E; Mackintosh, Samuel G; Cheung, Wang L; Tackett, Alan J

    2013-03-01

    Molecular pathways regulating melanoma initiation and progression are potential targets of therapeutic development for this aggressive cancer. Identification and molecular analysis of these pathways in patients has been primarily restricted to targeted studies on individual proteins. Here, we report the most comprehensive analysis of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded human melanoma tissues using quantitative proteomics. From 61 patient samples, we identified 171 proteins varying in abundance among benign nevi, primary melanoma, and metastatic melanoma. Seventy-three percent of these proteins were validated by immunohistochemistry staining of malignant melanoma tissues from the Human Protein Atlas database. Our results reveal that molecular pathways involved with tumor cell proliferation, motility, and apoptosis are mis-regulated in melanoma. These data provide the most comprehensive proteome resource on patient melanoma and reveal insight into the molecular mechanisms driving melanoma progression.

  5. Differential response of human melanoma and Ehrlich ascites cells in vitro to the ribosome-inactivating protein luffin.

    PubMed

    Poma, A; Miranda, M; Spanò, L

    1998-10-01

    The cytotoxicity and inhibitory effect on proliferation of the type 1 ribosome-inactivating protein luffin purified from the seeds of Luffa aegyptiaca were investigated both in human metastatic melanoma cells and in murine Ehrlich ascites tumour cells. Results indicate that luffin from the seeds of Luffa aegyptiaca is cytotoxic to the cell lines tested, with approximately 10 times greater potency in Ehrlich cells. Luffin was found to induce an increase in cytosolic oligonucleosome-bound DNA in both melanoma and Ehrlich ascites tumour cells, the level of DNA fragmentation in the former cell line being higher than in the latter. Experiments with melanoma cells indicate that an increase in cytosolic nucleosomes could be supportive of apoptosis as the type of cell death induced by luffin.

  6. A challenging case of ocular melanoma.

    PubMed

    Costache, Mariana; Dumitru, Adrian Vasile; Pătraşcu, Oana Maria; Popa-Cherecheanu, Daniela Alina; Bădilă, Patricia; Miu, Jeni Cătălina; Procop, Alexandru; Popa, Manuela; Tampa, Mircea Ştefan; Sajin, Maria; Simionescu, Olga; Cîrstoiu, Monica Mihaela

    2015-01-01

    Ocular melanoma is a rare malignancy found in clinical practice. In this paper, we present a case of highly aggressive ocular melanoma, which was surgically removed at the Department of Ophthalmology and diagnosed at the Department of Pathology, Emergency University Hospital, Bucharest, Romania, using conventional histopathological techniques. Uveal melanoma, a subset of ocular melanoma, has a distinct behavior in comparison to cutaneous melanoma and has a widely divergent prognosis. Approximately half of patients with ocular melanoma will develop metastatic disease, predominantly with hepatic, pulmonary or cerebral location, over a 10 to 15 years period. No systemic therapy was associated with an evident clinical outcome for patients with advanced disease and overall survival rate remains poor.

  7. [Soft tissue melanoma: a clinical case].

    PubMed

    Frikh, Rachid; Oumakhir, Siham; Chahdi, Hafsa; Oukabli, Mohammed; Albouzidi, Abderrahmane; Baba, Noureddine; Hjira, Naoufal; Boui, Mohammed

    2017-01-01

    Soft tissue melanoma was first described by Enzinger in 1965 under the name of clear cell sarcoma. In 1983, Chung and Enzinger renamed it soft tissue melanoma due to its immunohistochemical similarities with melanoma. We here report the case of a 22-year old young man with this rare type of melanoma, presenting with molluscoid lesion on his ankle without any clinical sign of malignancy. Histology examination confirmed the diagnosis of soft tissue melanoma.

  8. Synergistic targeted inhibition of MEK and dual PI3K/mTOR diminishes viability and inhibits tumor growth of canine melanoma underscoring its utility as a preclinical model for human mucosal melanoma.

    PubMed

    Wei, Bih-Rong; Michael, Helen T; Halsey, Charles H C; Peer, Cody J; Adhikari, Amit; Dwyer, Jennifer E; Hoover, Shelley B; El Meskini, Rajaa; Kozlov, Serguei; Weaver Ohler, Zoe; Figg, William D; Merlino, Glenn; Simpson, R Mark

    2016-11-01

    Human mucosal melanoma (MM), an uncommon, aggressive and diverse subtype, shares characteristics with spontaneous MM in dogs. Although BRAF and N-RAS mutations are uncommon in MM in both species, the majority of human and canine MM evaluated exhibited RAS/ERK and/or PI3K/mTOR signaling pathway activation. Canine MM cell lines, with varying ERK and AKT/mTOR activation levels reflective of naturally occurring differences in dogs, were sensitive to the MEK inhibitor GSK1120212 and dual PI3K/mTOR inhibitor NVP-BEZ235. The two-drug combination synergistically decreased cell survival in association with caspase 3/7 activation, as well as altered expression of cell cycle regulatory proteins and Bcl-2 family proteins. In combination, the two drugs targeted their respective signaling pathways, potentiating reduction of pathway mediators p-ERK, p-AKT, p-S6, and 4E-BP1 in vitro, and in association with significantly inhibited solid tumor growth in MM xenografts in mice. These findings provide evidence of synergistic therapeutic efficacy when simultaneously targeting multiple mediators in melanoma with Ras/ERK and PI3K/mTOR pathway activation. Published 2016. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA. Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Genetic and environmental melanoma models in fish

    PubMed Central

    Patton, E Elizabeth; Mitchell, David L; Nairn, Rodney S

    2010-01-01

    Experimental animal models are extremely valuable for the study of human diseases, especially those with underlying genetic components. The exploitation of various animal models, from fruitflies to mice, has led to major advances in our understanding of the etiologies of many diseases, including cancer. Cutaneous malignant melanoma is a form of cancer for which both environmental insult (i.e., UV) and hereditary predisposition are major causative factors. Fish melanoma models have been used in studies of both spontaneous and induced melanoma formation. Genetic hybrids between platyfish and swordtails, different species of the genus Xiphophorus, have been studied since the 1920s to identify genetic determinants of pigmentation and melanoma formation. Recently, transgenesis has been used to develop zebrafish and medaka models for melanoma research. This review will provide a historical perspective on the use of fish models in melanoma research, and an updated summary of current and prospective studies using these unique experimental systems. PMID:20230482

  10. Primary mucosal melanomas: a comprehensive review

    PubMed Central

    Mihajlovic, Marija; Vlajkovic, Slobodan; Jovanovic, Predrag; Stefanovic, Vladisav

    2012-01-01

    Primary mucosal melanomas arise from melanocytes located in mucosal membranes lining respiratory, gastrointestinal and urogenital tract. Although a majority of mucosal melanomas originate from the mucosa of the nasal cavity and accessory sinuses, oral cavity, anorectum, vulva and vagina, they can arise in almost any part of mucosal membranes. Most of mucosal melanomas occur in occult sites, which together with the lack of early and specific signs contribute to late diagnosis, and poor prognosis. Because of their rareness the knowledge about their pathogenesis and risk factors is insufficient, and also there are not well established protocols for staging and treatment of mucosal melanomas. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment, with trends toward more conservative treatment since radical surgery did not show an advantage for survival. Radiotherapy can provide better local control in some locations, but did not show improvement in survival. There is no effective systemic therapy for these aggressive tumors. Compared with cutaneous and ocular melanoma, mucosal melanomas have lowest percent of five-year survival. Recently revealed molecular changes underlying mucosal melanomas offer new hope for development of more effective systemic therapy for mucosal melanomas. Herein we presented a comprehensive review of various locations of primary melanoma along mucosal membranes, their epidemiological and clinical features, and treatment options. We also gave a short comparison of some characteristics of cutaneous and mucosal melanomas. PMID:23071856

  11. Primary mucosal melanomas: a comprehensive review.

    PubMed

    Mihajlovic, Marija; Vlajkovic, Slobodan; Jovanovic, Predrag; Stefanovic, Vladisav

    2012-01-01

    Primary mucosal melanomas arise from melanocytes located in mucosal membranes lining respiratory, gastrointestinal and urogenital tract. Although a majority of mucosal melanomas originate from the mucosa of the nasal cavity and accessory sinuses, oral cavity, anorectum, vulva and vagina, they can arise in almost any part of mucosal membranes. Most of mucosal melanomas occur in occult sites, which together with the lack of early and specific signs contribute to late diagnosis, and poor prognosis. Because of their rareness the knowledge about their pathogenesis and risk factors is insufficient, and also there are not well established protocols for staging and treatment of mucosal melanomas. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment, with trends toward more conservative treatment since radical surgery did not show an advantage for survival. Radiotherapy can provide better local control in some locations, but did not show improvement in survival. There is no effective systemic therapy for these aggressive tumors. Compared with cutaneous and ocular melanoma, mucosal melanomas have lowest percent of five-year survival. Recently revealed molecular changes underlying mucosal melanomas offer new hope for development of more effective systemic therapy for mucosal melanomas. Herein we presented a comprehensive review of various locations of primary melanoma along mucosal membranes, their epidemiological and clinical features, and treatment options. We also gave a short comparison of some characteristics of cutaneous and mucosal melanomas.

  12. Tumor-line specific causes of intertumor heterogeneity in blood supply in human melanoma xenografts.

    PubMed

    Simonsen, Trude G; Gaustad, Jon-Vidar; Leinaas, Marit N; Rofstad, Einar K

    2013-01-01

    The efficacy of most cancer treatments is strongly influenced by the tumor blood supply. The results of experimental studies using xenografted tumors to evaluate novel cancer treatments may therefore vary considerably depending on the blood supply of the specific tumor model being used. Mechanisms underlying intertumor heterogeneity in the blood supply of xenografted tumors derived from same tumor line are poorly understood, and were investigated here by using intravital microscopy to assess tumor blood supply and vascular morphology in human melanomas growing in dorsal window chambers in BALB/c nu/nu mice. Two melanoma lines, A-07 and R-18, were included in the study. These lines differed substantially in angiogenic profiles. Thus, when the expression of 84 angiogenesis-related genes was investigated with a quantitative PCR array, 25% of these genes showed more than a 10-fold difference in expression. Furthermore, A-07 tumors showed higher vascular density, higher vessel tortuosity, higher vessel diameters, shorter vessel segments, and more chaotic vascular architecture than R-18 tumors. Both lines showed large intertumor heterogeneity in blood supply. In the A-07 line, tumors with low microvascular density, long vessel segment, and high vessel tortuosity showed poor blood supply, whereas in the R-18 line, poor tumor blood supply was associated with low tumor arteriolar diameters. Thus, tumor-line specific causes of intertumor heterogeneity in blood supply were identified in human melanoma xenografts, and these tumor-line specific mechanisms were possibly a result of tumor-line specific angiogenic profiles. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. The combination of vemurafenib and procaspase-3 activation is synergistic in mutant BRAF melanomas

    PubMed Central

    Peh, Jessie; Fan, Timothy M.; Wycislo, Kathryn L.; Roth, Howard S.; Hergenrother, Paul J.

    2016-01-01

    The development of vemurafenib resistance limits the long-term efficacy of this drug for treatment of metastatic melanomas with the V600EBRAF mutation. Inhibition of downstream MAPK signaling with vemurafenib induces apoptotic cell death mediated by caspase-3, suggesting that addition of a procaspase-3 activator could enhance anticancer effects. Here we show that the combination of PAC-1, a procaspase-activating compound, and vemurafenib is highly synergistic in enhancing caspase-3 activity and apoptotic cell death in melanoma cell lines harboring the V600EBRAF mutation. In vivo, the combination displays a favorable safety profile in mice, and exerts significant antitumor effects. We further demonstrate that addition of PAC-1 to the clinically useful combination of vemurafenib and a MEK inhibitor, trametinib, starkly enhances the caspase-3 activity and proapoptotic effect of the combination. Moreover, addition of low concentration PAC-1 also delays the regrowth of cells following treatment with vemurafenib. Finally, PAC-1 remains potent against vemurafenib-resistant A375VR cells in cell culture and synergizes with vemurafenib to exert antitumor effects on A375VR cell growth in vivo. Collectively, our data suggest that inhibition of MAPK signaling combined with concurrent procaspase-3 activation is an effective strategy to enhance the antitumor activity of vemurafenib and mitigate the development of resistance. PMID:27297867

  14. PIM kinases as therapeutic targets against advanced melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Shannan, Batool; Watters, Andrea; Chen, Quan; Mollin, Stefan; Dörr, Markus; Meggers, Eric; Xu, Xiaowei; Gimotty, Phyllis A.; Perego, Michela; Li, Ling; Benci, Joseph; Krepler, Clemens; Brafford, Patricia; Zhang, Jie; Wei, Zhi; Zhang, Gao; Liu, Qin; Yin, Xiangfan; Nathanson, Katherine L.; Herlyn, Meenhard; Vultur, Adina

    2016-01-01

    Therapeutic strategies for the treatment of metastatic melanoma show encouraging results in the clinic; however, not all patients respond equally and tumor resistance still poses a challenge. To identify novel therapeutic targets for melanoma, we screened a panel of structurally diverse organometallic inhibitors against human-derived normal and melanoma cells. We observed that a compound that targets PIM kinases (a family of Ser/Thr kinases) preferentially inhibited melanoma cell proliferation, invasion, and viability in adherent and three-dimensional (3D) melanoma models. Assessment of tumor tissue from melanoma patients showed that PIM kinases are expressed in pre- and post-treatment tumors, suggesting PIM kinases as promising targets in the clinic. Using knockdown studies, we showed that PIM1 contributes to melanoma cell proliferation and tumor growth in vivo; however, the presence of PIM2 and PIM3 could also influence the outcome. The inhibition of all PIM isoforms using SGI-1776 (a clinically-available PIM inhibitor) reduced melanoma proliferation and survival in preclinical models of melanoma. This was potentiated in the presence of the BRAF inhibitor PLX4720 and in the presence of PI3K inhibitors. Our findings suggest that PIM inhibitors provide promising additions to the targeted therapies available to melanoma patients. PMID:27448973

  15. Evaluation of phototoxic potential of aerial components of the fig tree against human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Conforti, F; Menichini, G; Zanfini, L; Tundis, R; Statti, G A; Provenzano, E; Menichini, F; Somma, F; Alfano, C

    2012-06-01

    To date, Ficus carica L. cultivar Dottato (F. carica) has not been studied from a phototoxic point of view. In the present work, aerial components of F. carica from Italy, were examined to assess their antioxidant and phototoxic activity on human melanoma cells. A relationship between antioxidant, phototoxic activities and chemical composition has also been investigated. Coumarin and fatty acid content in F. carica leaves, bark and woody parts were examined and compared by capillary GC and GC/MS. Polyphenolic content was also determined. Linoleic acid peroxidation and DPPH test were used to assess antioxidant activities, and MTT assay was used to evaluate anti-proliferative activity, on C32 human melanoma cells, after irradiation with a UVA dose of 1.08 J/cm(2). Leaves demonstrated the best antioxidant and anti-proliferative activity in comparison to bark and wood. In particular, leaves were shown to possess the highest anti-radical activity and inhibition of peroxidation, with IC(50) values of 64 and 1.48 μg/ml respectively. The leaves had highest anti-proliferative activity with IC(50) value of 3.92 μg/ml. The phytochemical investigation revealed different composition between the coumarins, psoralen and bergapten, fatty acids, polyphenols and flavonoid content among plant parts. Data obtained indicate that this type of fig tree may constitute an excellent source of bioactive compounds, such as phenolics, coumarins and fatty acids. This study offers a new perspective in developing others formulations potentially useful in photodynamic therapy for treatment of non-melanoma skin cancers. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  16. 31 CFR 375.11 - Who may participate in a redemption operation?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Bank of New York has approved to conduct open market transactions with the Bank. (b) Others. A person... operation? 375.11 Section 375.11 Money and Finance: Treasury Regulations Relating to Money and Finance... SECURITIES REDEMPTION OPERATIONS Offering, Certifications, and Delivery § 375.11 Who may participate in a...

  17. NRAS-mutant melanoma: current challenges and future prospect

    PubMed Central

    Muñoz-Couselo, Eva; Adelantado, Ester Zamora; Ortiz, Carolina; García, Jesús Soberino; Perez-Garcia, José

    2017-01-01

    Melanoma is one of the most common cutaneous cancers worldwide. Activating mutations in RAS oncogenes are found in a third of all human cancers and NRAS mutations are found in 15%–20% of melanomas. The NRAS-mutant subset of melanoma is more aggressive and associated with poorer outcomes, compared to non-NRAS-mutant melanoma. Although immune checkpoint inhibitors and targeted therapies for BRAF-mutant melanoma are transforming the treatment of metastatic melanoma, the ideal treatment for NRAS-mutant melanoma remains unknown. Despite promising preclinical data, current therapies for NRAS-mutant melanoma remain limited, showing a modest increase in progression-free survival but without any benefit in overall survival. Combining MEK inhibitors with agents inhibiting cell cycling and the PI3K–AKT pathway appears to provide additional benefit; in particular, a strategy of MEK inhibition and CDK4/6 inhibition is likely to be a viable treatment option in the future. Patients whose tumors had NRAS mutations had better response to immunotherapy and better outcomes than patients whose tumors had other genetic subtypes, suggesting that immune therapies – especially immune checkpoint inhibitors – may be particularly effective as treatment options for NRAS-mutant melanoma. Improved understanding of NRAS-mutant melanoma will be essential to develop new treatment strategies for this subset of patients with melanoma. PMID:28860801

  18. Microsomal PGE2 synthase-1 regulates melanoma cell survival and associates with melanoma disease progression.

    PubMed

    Kim, Sun-Hee; Hashimoto, Yuuri; Cho, Sung-Nam; Roszik, Jason; Milton, Denái R; Dal, Fulya; Kim, Sangwon F; Menter, David G; Yang, Peiying; Ekmekcioglu, Suhendan; Grimm, Elizabeth A

    2016-05-01

    COX-2 and its product PGE2 enhance carcinogenesis and tumor progression, which has been previously reported in melanoma. As most COX inhibitors cause much toxicity, the downstream microsomal PGE2 synthase-1 (mPGES1) is a consideration for targeting. Human melanoma TMAs were employed for testing mPGES1 protein staining intensity and percentage levels, and both increased with clinical stage; employing a different Stage III TMA, mPGES1 intensity (not percentage) associated with reduced patient survival. Our results further show that iNOS was also highly expressed in melanoma tissues with high mPGES1 levels, and iNOS-mediated NO promoted mPGES1 expression and PGE2 production. An mPGES1-specific inhibitor (CAY10526) as well as siRNA attenuated cell survival and increased apoptosis. CAY10526 significantly suppressed tumor growth and increased apoptosis in melanoma xenografts. Our findings support the value of a prognostic and predictive role for mPGES1, and suggest targeting this molecule in the PGE2 pathway as another avenue toward improving melanoma therapy. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. p54nrb is a new regulator of progression of malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Schiffner, Susanne; Zimara, Nicole; Schmid, Rainer; Bosserhoff, Anja-Katrin

    2011-08-01

    Nuclear RNA-binding protein p54(nrb) and its murine homolog NonO are known to be involved in a variety of nuclear processes including transcription and RNA processing. Melanoma inhibitory activity (MIA) has been shown to play an essential role in the progression of malignant melanoma and to influence melanoma-associated molecules and pathways in the early tumor formation steps. Interestingly, recent studies suggest that MIA is a regulator of p54(nrb). Here, we show that p54(nrb) is strongly expressed and localized in the nucleus of both melanoma cell lines and melanoma tissue samples compared with normal human melanocytes or normal skin, respectively. Furthermore, all tested melanoma cell lines revealed strong p54(nrb) promoter activity. Treatment with MIA-specific small interfering RNAs showed an influence of MIA on p54(nrb) expression on both messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein level. Knockdown of p54(nrb) protein in melanoma cell lines led to reduced proliferation rates and to a strong decrease in their migratory potential. In addition, attachment to laminin and poly-l-lysine was significantly increased. We could identify Connexin-43 (Cx-43) as a downstream target molecule of p54(nrb) as knockdown of p54(nrb) resulted in enhanced Cx-43 mRNA and protein levels. As a confirmation of these findings, melanoma cell lines showed very low Cx-43 expression levels compared with melanocytes. Our results demonstrate that p54(nrb) is highly expressed in malignant melanoma and, as a MIA target molecule, it seems to be involved in the development and progression of malignant melanoma.

  20. Regulation of NADPH-dependent Nitric Oxide and reactive oxygen species signalling in endothelial and melanoma cells by a photoactive NADPH analogue

    PubMed Central

    Rouaud, Florian; Romero-Perez, Miguel; Wang, Huan; Lobysheva, Irina; Ramassamy, Booma; Henry, Etienne; Tauc, Patrick; Giacchero, Damien; Boucher, Jean-Luc; Deprez, Eric; Rocchi, Stéphane; Slama-Schwok, Anny

    2014-01-01

    Nitric Oxide (NO) and Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are endogenous regulators of angiogenesis-related events as endothelial cell proliferation and survival, but NO/ROS defect or unbalance contribute to cancers. We recently designed a novel photoactive inhibitor of NO-Synthases (NOS) called NS1, which binds their NADPH site in vitro. Here, we show that NS1 inhibited NO formed in aortic rings. NS1-induced NO decrease led to an inhibition of angiogenesis in a model of VEGF-induced endothelial tubes formation. Beside this effect, NS1 reduced ROS levels in endothelial and melanoma A375 cells and in aorta. In metastatic melanoma cells, NS1 first induced a strong decrease of VEGF and blocked melanoma cell cycle at G2/M. NS1 decreased NOX4 and ROS levels that could lead to a specific proliferation arrest and cell death. In contrast, NS1 did not perturb melanocytes growth. Altogether, NS1 revealed a possible cross-talk between eNOS- and NOX4 –associated pathways in melanoma cells via VEGF, Erk and Akt modulation by NS1 that could be targeted to stop proliferation. NS1 thus constitutes a promising tool that modulates NO and redox stresses by targeting and directly inhibiting eNOS and, at least indirectly, NADPH oxidase(s), with great potential to control angiogenesis. PMID:25296975

  1. Human melanomas and ovarian cancers overexpressing mechanical barrier molecule genes lack immune signatures and have increased patient mortality risk

    PubMed Central

    Salerno, Elise P.; Bedognetti, Davide; Mauldin, Ileana S.; Deacon, Donna H.; Shea, Sofia M.; Obeid, Joseph M.; Coukos, George; Gajewski, Thomas F.; Marincola, Francesco M.; Slingluff, Craig L.

    2016-01-01

    ABSTRACT We have identified eight genes whose expression in human melanoma metastases and ovarian cancers is associated with a lack of Th1 immune signatures. They encode molecules with mechanical barrier function in the skin and other normal tissues and include filaggrin (FLG), tumor-associated calcium signal transducer 2 (TACSTD2), and six desmosomal proteins (DST, DSC3, DSP, PPL, PKP3, and JUP). This association has been validated in an independent series of 114 melanoma metastases. In these, DST expression alone is sufficient to identify melanomas without immune signatures, while FLG and the other six putative barrier molecules are overexpressed in a different subset of melanomas lacking immune signatures. Similar associations have been identified in a set of 186 ovarian cancers. RNA-seq data from 471 melanomas and 307 ovarian cancers in the TCGA database further support these findings and also reveal that overexpression of barrier molecules is strongly associated with early patient mortality for melanoma (p = 0.0002) and for ovarian cancer (p < 0.01). Interestingly, this association persists for FLG for melanoma (p = 0.012) and ovarian cancer (p = 0.006), whereas DST overexpression is negatively associated with CD8+ gene expression, but not with patient survival. Thus, overexpression of FLG or DST identifies two distinct patient populations with low immune cell infiltration in these cancers, but with different prognostic implications for each. These data raise the possibility that molecules with mechanical barrier function in skin and other tissues may be used by cancer cells to protect them from immune cell infiltration and immune-mediated destruction. PMID:28123876

  2. Efficient TGF-β/SMAD signaling in human melanoma cells associated with high c-SKI/SnoN expression

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background SKI and SnoN proteins have been shown to inhibit TGF-β signaling, acting both as transcriptional co-repressors in the cell nucleus, and as sequestrators of SMAD proteins in the cytoplasm. TGF-β, on the other hand, induces rapid, proteasome-mediated, degradation of both proteins. How elevated SKI and SnoN protein levels co-exist with active autocrine TGF-β signaling in cancer cells is yet to be understood. Results In this study, we found elevated SKI and SnoN protein levels in a panel of melanoma cell lines, as compared to normal melanocytes. There was no correlation between SKI protein content and the capacity of melanoma cells to invade Matrigel™, to form subcutaneous tumors, or to metastasize to bone after intracardiac inoculation into nude mice. Nor did we find a correlation between SKI expression and histopathological staging of human melanoma. TGF-β induced a rapid and dose-dependent degradation of SKI protein, associated with SMAD3/4 specific transcriptional response and induction of pro-metastatic target genes, partially prevented by pharmacologic blockade of proteasome activity. SKI knockdown in 1205Lu melanoma cells did not alter their invasive capacity or transcriptional responses to TGF-β, and did not allow p21 expression in response to TGF-β or reveal any growth inhibitory activity of TGF-β. Conclusions Despite high expression in melanoma cells, the role of SKI in melanoma remains elusive: SKI does not efficiently interfere with the pro-oncogenic activities of TGF-β, unless stabilized by proteasome blockade. Its highly labile nature makes it an unlikely target for therapeutic intervention. PMID:21211030

  3. Nodular melanoma is less likely than superficial spreading melanoma to be histologically associated with a naevus.

    PubMed

    Pan, Yan; Adler, Nikki R; Wolfe, Rory; McLean, Catriona A; Kelly, John W

    2017-10-16

    To determine the frequency of naevus-associated melanoma among superficial spreading and nodular subtypes; and to investigate associations between naevus-associated melanoma and other clinico-pathological characteristics. Cross-sectional study of all patients with nodular and superficial spreading melanomas diagnosed between 1994 and 2015 at the Victorian Melanoma Service, Melbourne. Clinical and pathological characteristics of naevus-associated and de novo melanomas were assessed in univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses. Of 3678 primary melanomas, 1360 (37.0%) were histologically associated with a naevus and 2318 (63.0%) were de novo melanomas; 71 of 621 nodular (11.4%) and 1289 of 3057 superficial spreading melanomas (42.2%) were histologically associated with a naevus. In multivariable analyses, the odds of being associated with a naevus were higher for melanomas located on the trunk (v head and neck: adjusted odds ratio [OR], 2.27; 95% CI, 1.73-2.96; P < 0.001), while the odds were lower for thicker tumours (adjusted OR, 0.75 per millimetre increase in Breslow thickness; 95% CI, 0.69-0.81; P < 0.001), amelanotic/hypomelanotic melanomas (adjusted OR, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.48-0.97; P = 0.035), and older age (patients 70 years or older v patients under 30 at diagnosis: adjusted OR, 0.28; 95% CI, 0.20-0.40; P < 0.001). After adjusting for confounders, the odds of an associated naevus was three times as high for superficial spreading melanomas as for nodular melanomas (adjusted OR, 3.05; 95% CI, 2.24-4.17; P < 0.001). Melanomas are most likely to arise in the absence of a pre-existing naevus, particularly nodular melanomas. Public health campaigns should therefore emphasise the detection of suspicious de novo lesions, as well as of changing lesions.

  4. BRAF and MEK inhibitor therapy eliminates nestin expressing melanoma cells in human tumors.

    PubMed

    Doxie, Deon B; Greenplate, Allison R; Gandelman, Jocelyn S; Diggins, Kirsten E; Roe, Caroline E; Dahlman, Kimberly B; Sosman, Jeffrey A; Kelley, Mark C; Irish, Jonathan M

    2018-05-19

    Little is known about the in vivo impacts of targeted therapy on melanoma cell abundance and protein expression. Here, 21 antibodies were added to an established melanoma mass cytometry panel to measure 32 cellular features, distinguish malignant cells, and characterize dabrafenib and trametinib responses in BRAF V 600mut melanoma. Tumor cells were biopsied before neoadjuvant therapy and compared to cells surgically resected from the same site after 4 weeks of therapy. Approximately 50,000 cells per tumor were characterized by mass cytometry and computational tools t-SNE/viSNE, FlowSOM, and MEM. The resulting single cell view of melanoma treatment response revealed initially heterogeneous melanoma tumors were consistently cleared of Nestin expressing melanoma cells. Melanoma cells subsets that persisted to week 4 were heterogeneous but expressed SOX2 or SOX10 proteins and specifically lacked surface expression of MHC I proteins by MEM analysis. Traditional histology imaging of tissue microarrays from the same tumors confirmed mass cytometry results, including persistence of NES- SOX10+ S100β+ melanoma cells. This quantitative single cell view of melanoma treatment response revealed protein features of malignant cells that are not eliminated by targeted therapy. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  5. Modelling vemurafenib resistance in melanoma reveals a strategy to forestall drug resistance

    PubMed Central

    Thakur, Meghna Das; Salangsang, Fernando; Landman, Allison S.; Sellers, William R.; Pryer, Nancy K.; Levesque, Mitchell P.; Dummer, Reinhard; McMahon, Martin; Stuart, Darrin D.

    2014-01-01

    Mutational activation of BRAF is the most prevalent genetic alteration in human melanoma, with ≥ 50% of tumours expressing the BRAF(V600E) oncoprotein1,2. Moreover, the marked tumour regression and improved survival of late-stage BRAF-mutated melanoma patients in response to treatment with vemurafenib demonstrates the essential role of oncogenic BRAF in melanoma maintenance3,4. However, as most patients relapse with lethal drug-resistant disease, understanding and preventing mechanism(s) of resistance is critical to providing improved therapy5. Here we investigate the cause and consequences of vemurafenib resistance using two independently derived primary human melanoma xeno-graft models in which drugresistanceisselected by continuous vemurafenib administration. In one of these models, resistant tumours show continued dependency on BRAF(V600E) → MEK → ERK signalling owing to elevated BRAF(V600E) expression. Most importantly, we demonstrate that vemurafenib-resistant melanomas become drug dependent for their continued proliferation, such that cessation of drug administration leads to regression of established drug-resistant tumours. We further demonstrate that a discontinuous dosing strategy, which exploits the fitness disadvantage displayed by drug-resistant cells in the absence of the drug, forestalls the onset of lethal drug-resistant disease. These data highlight the concept that drug-resistant cells may also display drug dependency, such that altered dosing may prevent the emergence of lethal drug resistance. Such observations may contribute to sustaining the durability of the vemurafenib response with the ultimate goal of curative therapy for the subset of melanoma patients with BRAF mutations. PMID:23302800

  6. Fisetin induces apoptosis through mitochondrial apoptosis pathway in human uveal melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Wang, Kai; Hu, Dan-Ning; Lin, Hui-Wen; Yang, Wei-En; Hsieh, Yi-Hsien; Chien, Hsiang-Wen; Yang, Shun-Fa

    2018-05-01

    Fisetin, a diatery flavonoid, been reported that possess anticancer effects in various cancers. The purpose of the study was to investigate the antitumor effects of fisetin in cultured uveal melanoma cell lines and compared with normal retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. MTT assay was used for evaluating cytotoxic effects of fisetin. Flow cytometry study was used for the determination of apoptosis. JC-1 fluorescent reader was used to determine mitochondrial transmembrane potential changes. The results shown that fisetin dose-dependently decreased the cell viability of uveal melanoma cells but not influenced the cell viability of RPE cells. Apoptosis of uveal melanoma cells was induced by fisetin efficiently. Fisetin inhibited antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins and damaged the mitochondrial transmembrane potential. The levels of proapoptotic Bcl-2 proteins, cytochrome c, and various caspase activities were increased by fisetin. In conclusion, fisetin induces apoptosis of uveal melanoma cells selectively and may be a promising agent to be explored for the treatment of uveal melanoma. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  7. Spectrophotometric Method for Differentiation of Human Skin Melanoma. II. Diagnostic Characteristics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Petruk, V. G.; Ivanov, A. P.; Kvaternyuk, S. M.; Barunb, V. V.

    2016-05-01

    Experimental data on the spectral dependences of the optical diffuse reflection coefficient for skin from different people with melanoma or nevus are presented in the form of the probability density of the diffuse reflection coefficient for the corresponding pigmented lesions. We propose a noninvasive technique for differentiating between malignant and benign tumors, based on measuring the diffuse reflection coefficient for a specific patient and comparing the value obtained with a pre-set threshold. If the experimental result is below the threshold, then it is concluded that the person has melanoma; otherwise, no melanoma is present. As an example, we consider the wavelength 870 nm. We determine the risk of malignant transformation of a nevus (its transition to melanoma) for different measured diffuse reflection coefficients. We have studied the errors in the method, its operating characteristics and probability characteristics as the threshold diffuse reflection coefficient is varied. We find that the diagnostic confidence, sensitivity, specificity, and effectiveness (accuracy) parameters are maximum (>0.82) for a threshold of 0.45-0.47. The operating characteristics for the proposed technique exceed the corresponding parameters for other familiar optical approaches to melanoma diagnosis. Its distinguishing feature is operation at only one wavelength, and consequently implementation of the experimental technique is simplified and made less expensive.

  8. Melanoma of the Skin in the Danish Cancer Registry and the Danish Melanoma Database: A Validation Study.

    PubMed

    Pedersen, Sidsel Arnspang; Schmidt, Sigrun Alba Johannesdottir; Klausen, Siri; Pottegård, Anton; Friis, Søren; Hölmich, Lisbet Rosenkrantz; Gaist, David

    2018-05-01

    The nationwide Danish Cancer Registry and the Danish Melanoma Database both record data on melanoma for purposes of monitoring, quality assurance, and research. However, the data quality of the Cancer Registry and the Melanoma Database has not been formally evaluated. We estimated the positive predictive value (PPV) of melanoma diagnosis for random samples of 200 patients from the Cancer Registry (n = 200) and the Melanoma Database (n = 200) during 2004-2014, using the Danish Pathology Registry as "gold standard" reference. We further validated tumor characteristics in the Cancer Registry and the Melanoma Database. Additionally, we estimated the PPV of in situ melanoma diagnoses in the Melanoma Database, and the sensitivity of melanoma diagnoses in 2004-2014. The PPVs of melanoma in the Cancer Registry and the Melanoma Database were 97% (95% CI = 94, 99) and 100%. The sensitivity was 90% in the Cancer Registry and 77% in the Melanoma Database. The PPV of in situ melanomas in the Melanoma Database was 97% and the sensitivity was 56%. In the Melanoma Database, we observed PPVs of ulceration of 75% and Breslow thickness of 96%. The PPV of histologic subtypes varied between 87% and 100% in the Cancer Registry and 93% and 100% in the Melanoma Database. The PPVs for anatomical localization were 83%-95% in the Cancer Registry and 93%-100% in the Melanoma Database. The data quality in both the Cancer Registry and the Melanoma Database is high, supporting their use in epidemiologic studies.

  9. Communication about melanoma and risk reduction after melanoma diagnosis.

    PubMed

    Rodríguez, Vivian M; Berwick, Marianne; Hay, Jennifer L

    2017-12-01

    Melanoma patients are advised to perform regular risk-reduction practices, including sun protection as well as skin self-examinations (SSEs) and physician-led examinations. Melanoma-specific communication regarding family risk and screening may promote such behaviors. To this end, associations between patients' melanoma-specific communication and risk reduction were examined. Melanoma patients (N = 169) drawn from a population-based cancer registry reported their current risk-reduction practices, perceived risk of future melanoma, and communication with physicians and relatives about melanoma risk and screening. Patients were, on average, 56 years old and 6.7 years' post diagnosis; 51% were male, 93% reported "fair/very fair" skin color, 75% completed at least some college, and 22% reported a family history of melanoma. Patients reported varying levels of regular (always/nearly always) sun protection: sunscreen use (79%), shade seeking (60%), hat use (54%), and long-sleeve shirt use (30%). Only 28% performed thorough SSE regularly, whereas 92% reported undergoing physician-led skin examinations within the past year. Participants who were female, younger, and had a higher perceived risk of future melanoma were more likely to report past communication. In adjusted analyses, communication remained uniquely associated with increased sunscreen use and SSE. Encouraging melanoma patients to have a more active role in discussions concerning melanoma risk and screening with relatives and physicians alike may be a useful strategy to promote 2 key risk-reduction practices post melanoma diagnosis and treatment. Future research is needed to identify additional strategies to improve comprehensive risk reduction in long-term melanoma patients. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  10. Repression of TGF-beta signaling by the oncogenic protein SKI in human melanomas: consequences for proliferation, survival, and metastasis.

    PubMed

    Medrano, Estela E

    2003-05-19

    Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta ) has dual and paradoxical functions as a tumor suppressor and promoter of tumor progression and metastasis. TGF-Ji-mediated growth inhibition is gradually lost during melanoma tumor progression, but there are no measurable defects at the receptor level. Furthermore, melanoma cells release high levels of TGF-beta to the microenvironment, which upon activation induces matrix deposition, angiogenesis, survival, and transition to more aggressive phenotypes. The SKI and SnoN protein family associate with and repress the activity of Smad2, Smad3, and Smad4, three members of the TGF-fl signaling pathway. SKI also facilitates cell-cycle progression by targeting the RB pathway by at least two ways: it directly associates with RB and represses its activity when expressed at high levels, and indirectly, it represses Smad-mediated induction of p21(Waf-1) This results in increased CDK2 activity, RB phosphorylation,and inactivation. Therefore, high levels of SKI result in lesions to the RB pathway in a manner similar to p16 (INK4a) loss. SKI mRNA and protein levels dramatically increase during human melanoma tumor progression. In addition,the SKI protein shifts from nuclear localization in intraepidermal melanoma cells to nuclear and cytoplasmic in invasive and metastatic melanomas. Here, I discuss the basis for repression of intracellular TGF-beta signaling by SKI, some additional activities of this protein, and propose that by disrupting multiple tumor suppressor pathways, SKI functions as a melanoma oncogene.

  11. 49 CFR 192.375 - Service lines: Plastic.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Service lines: Plastic. 192.375 Section 192.375... § 192.375 Service lines: Plastic. (a) Each plastic service line outside a building must be installed... terminate above ground level and outside the building, if— (i) The above ground level part of the plastic...

  12. 49 CFR 192.375 - Service lines: Plastic.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Service lines: Plastic. 192.375 Section 192.375... § 192.375 Service lines: Plastic. (a) Each plastic service line outside a building must be installed... terminate above ground level and outside the building, if— (i) The above ground level part of the plastic...

  13. 49 CFR 192.375 - Service lines: Plastic.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Service lines: Plastic. 192.375 Section 192.375... § 192.375 Service lines: Plastic. (a) Each plastic service line outside a building must be installed... terminate above ground level and outside the building, if— (i) The above ground level part of the plastic...

  14. 49 CFR 192.375 - Service lines: Plastic.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Service lines: Plastic. 192.375 Section 192.375... § 192.375 Service lines: Plastic. (a) Each plastic service line outside a building must be installed... terminate above ground level and outside the building, if— (i) The above ground level part of the plastic...

  15. 49 CFR 192.375 - Service lines: Plastic.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Service lines: Plastic. 192.375 Section 192.375... § 192.375 Service lines: Plastic. (a) Each plastic service line outside a building must be installed... terminate above ground level and outside the building, if— (i) The above ground level part of the plastic...

  16. 18 CFR 375.204 - Notice of meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Notice of meetings. 375... § 375.204 Notice of meetings. (a) Public announcements of meetings—1) General rule. Except to the extent that information described in § 375.205(a) (involving closed meetings) is exempt from disclosure, the...

  17. Dermoscopic features of thin melanomas: a comparative study of melanoma in situ and invasive melanomas smaller than or equal to 1mm*

    PubMed Central

    da Silva, Vanessa Priscilla Martins; Ikino, Juliana Kida; Sens, Mariana Mazzochi; Nunes, Daniel Holthausen; Di Giunta, Gabriella

    2013-01-01

    BACKGROUND Dermoscopy allows the early detection of melanomas. The preoperative determination of Breslow index by dermoscopy could be useful in planning the surgical approach and in selecting patients for sentinel lymph node biopsy. OBJECTIVES This study aims at describing the dermoscopic features of thin melanomas and comparing melanomas in situ with invasive melanomas less than or equal to 1 mm thick. METHODS This was an observational retrospective study in which the dermoscopy photographs of 41 thin melanomas were evaluated. Three observers evaluated together 14 dermoscopic criteria. RESULTS Among thin melanomas, the most frequent criteria were presence of asymmetry in two axes in 95% of cases (39 cases), 3 or more colors in 80.4% of cases (33 cases), atypical dots or globules in 58.5% of cases (24 cases) and atypical network or streaks in 53.6% of cases (22 cases). The group of invasive melanomas presented with a higher frequency and statistical significance (p <0.05) 3 or more colors (OR: 16.1), milky red areas (OR: 4.8) and blue-white veil (OR: 20.4), and a greater tendency to have streaks or atypical network (OR: 3.66). CONCLUSIONS Thin melanomas tend to have asymmetry in the two axes, 3 or more colors, atypical dots or globules and atypical network or streaks. Melanomas in situ tend to have up to 2 colors, no blue-white veil and no milky red area. Invasive melanomas tend to have 3 or more colors, a milky red area, blue-white veil, and atypical network or streaks. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings. PMID:24173175

  18. Human melanoma cells resistant to MAPK inhibitors can be effectively targeted by inhibition of the p90 ribosomal S6 kinase

    PubMed Central

    Kosnopfel, Corinna; Sinnberg, Tobias; Sauer, Birgit; Niessner, Heike; Schmitt, Anja; Makino, Elena; Forschner, Andrea; Hailfinger, Stephan; Garbe, Claus; Schittek, Birgit

    2017-01-01

    The clinical availability of small molecule inhibitors specifically targeting mutated BRAF marked a significant breakthrough in melanoma therapy. Despite a dramatic anti-tumour activity and improved patient survival, rapidly emerging resistance, however, greatly limits the clinical benefit. The majority of the already described resistance mechanisms involve a reactivation of the MAPK signalling pathway. The p90 ribosomal S6 kinase (RSK), a downstream effector of the MAPK signalling cascade, has been reported to enhance survival of melanoma cells in response to chemotherapy. Here, we can show that RSK activity is significantly increased in human melanoma cells with acquired resistance to the BRAFV600E/K inhibitor vemurafenib. Interestingly, inhibition of RSK signalling markedly impairs the viability of vemurafenib resistant melanoma cells and is effective both in two-dimensional and in three-dimensional culture systems, especially in a chronic, long-term application. The effect of RSK inhibition can be partly replicated by downregulation of the well-known RSK target, Y-box binding protein 1 (YB-1). Intriguingly, RSK inhibition also retains its efficacy in melanoma cells with combined resistance to vemurafenib and the MEK inhibitor trametinib. These data suggest that active RSK signalling might be an attractive novel therapeutic target in melanoma with acquired resistance to MAPK pathway inhibitors. PMID:28415756

  19. Targeting human apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1) in phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) deficient melanoma cells for personalized therapy.

    PubMed

    Abbotts, Rachel; Jewell, Rosalyn; Nsengimana, Jérémie; Maloney, David J; Simeonov, Anton; Seedhouse, Claire; Elliott, Faye; Laye, Jon; Walker, Christy; Jadhav, Ajit; Grabowska, Anna; Ball, Graham; Patel, Poulam M; Newton-Bishop, Julia; Wilson, David M; Madhusudan, Srinivasan

    2014-05-30

    Phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) loss is associated with genomic instability. APE1 is a key player in DNA base excision repair (BER) and an emerging drug target in cancer. We have developed small molecule inhibitors against APE1 repair nuclease activity. In the current study we explored a synthetic lethal relationship between PTEN and APE1 in melanoma. Clinicopathological significance of PTEN mRNA and APE1 mRNA expression was investigated in 191 human melanomas. Preclinically, PTEN-deficient BRAF-mutated (UACC62, HT144, and SKMel28), PTEN-proficient BRAF-wildtype (MeWo), and doxycycline-inducible PTEN-knockout BRAF-wildtype MeWo melanoma cells were DNA repair expression profiled and investigated for synthetic lethality using a panel of four prototypical APE1 inhibitors. In human tumours, low PTEN mRNA and high APE1 mRNA was significantly associated with reduced relapse free and overall survival. Pre-clinically, compared to PTEN-proficient cells, PTEN-deficient cells displayed impaired expression of genes involved in DNA double strand break (DSB) repair. Synthetic lethality in PTEN-deficient cells was evidenced by increased sensitivity, accumulation of DSBs and induction of apoptosis following treatment with APE1 inhibitors. We conclude that PTEN deficiency is not only a promising biomarker in melanoma, but can also be targeted by a synthetic lethality strategy using inhibitors of BER, such as those targeting APE1.

  20. Berberine-induced AMPK activation inhibits the metastatic potential of melanoma cells via reduction of ERK activity and COX-2 protein expression.

    PubMed

    Kim, Hak-Su; Kim, Myung-Jin; Kim, Eun Ju; Yang, Young; Lee, Myeong-Sok; Lim, Jong-Seok

    2012-02-01

    Berberine is clinically important natural isoquinoline alkaloid that affects various biological functions, such as cell proliferation, migration and survival. The activation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) regulates tumor cell migration. However, the specific role of AMPK on the metastatic potential of cancer cells remains largely unknown. The present study investigated whether berberine induces AMPK activation and whether this induction directly affects mouse melanoma cell migration, adhesion and invasion. Berberine strongly increased AMPK phosphorylation via reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. 5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-β-D-ribofuranoside (AICAR), a well-known AMPK activator, also inhibited tumor cell adhesion and invasion and reduced the expression of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related genes. Knockdown of AMPKα subunits using siRNAs significantly abated the berberine-induced inhibition of tumor cell invasion. Furthermore, berberine inhibited the metastatic potential of melanoma cells through a decrease in ERK activity and protein levels of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) by a berberine-induced AMPK activation. These data were confirmed using specific MEK inhibitor, PD98059, and a COX-2 inhibitor, celecoxib. Berberine- and AICAR-treated groups demonstrated significantly decreased lung metastases in the pulmonary metastasis model in vivo. Treatment with berberine also decreased the metastatic potential of A375 human melanoma cells. Collectively, our results suggest that berberine-induced AMPK activation inhibits the metastatic potential of tumor cells through a reduction in the activity of the ERK signaling pathway and COX-2 protein levels. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Proapoptotic signaling induced by RIG-I and MDA-5 results in type I interferon–independent apoptosis in human melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Besch, Robert; Poeck, Hendrik; Hohenauer, Tobias; Senft, Daniela; Häcker, Georg; Berking, Carola; Hornung, Veit; Endres, Stefan; Ruzicka, Thomas; Rothenfusser, Simon; Hartmann, Gunther

    2009-01-01

    The retinoic acid–inducible gene I (RIG-I) and melanoma differentiation–associated antigen 5 (MDA-5) helicases sense viral RNA in infected cells and initiate antiviral responses such as the production of type I IFNs. Here we have shown that RIG-I and MDA-5 also initiate a proapoptotic signaling pathway that is independent of type I IFNs. In human melanoma cells, this signaling pathway required the mitochondrial adapter Cardif (also known as IPS-1) and induced the proapoptotic BH3-only proteins Puma and Noxa. RIG-I– and MDA-5–initiated apoptosis required Noxa but was independent of the tumor suppressor p53. Triggering this pathway led to efficient activation of mitochondrial apoptosis, requiring caspase-9 and Apaf-1. Surprisingly, this proapoptotic signaling pathway was also active in nonmalignant cells, but these cells were much less sensitive to apoptosis than melanoma cells. Endogenous Bcl-xL rescued nonmalignant, but not melanoma, cells from RIG-I– and MDA-5–mediated apoptosis. In addition, we confirmed the results of the in vitro studies, demonstrating that RIG-I and MDA-5 ligands both reduced human tumor lung metastasis in immunodeficient NOD/SCID mice. These results identify an IFN-independent antiviral signaling pathway initiated by RIG-I and MDA-5 that activates proapoptotic signaling and, unless blocked by Bcl-xL, results in apoptosis. Due to their immunostimulatory and proapoptotic activity, RIG-I and MDA-5 ligands have therapeutic potential due to their ability to overcome the characteristic resistance of melanoma cells to apoptosis. PMID:19620789

  2. The Combination of Vemurafenib and Procaspase-3 Activation Is Synergistic in Mutant BRAF Melanomas.

    PubMed

    Peh, Jessie; Fan, Timothy M; Wycislo, Kathryn L; Roth, Howard S; Hergenrother, Paul J

    2016-08-01

    The development of vemurafenib resistance limits the long-term efficacy of this drug for treatment of metastatic melanomas with the (V600E)BRAF mutation. Inhibition of downstream MAPK signaling with vemurafenib induces apoptotic cell death mediated by caspase-3, suggesting that addition of a procaspase-3 activator could enhance anticancer effects. Here, we show that the combination of PAC-1, a procaspase-activating compound, and vemurafenib is highly synergistic in enhancing caspase-3 activity and apoptotic cell death in melanoma cell lines harboring the (V600E)BRAF mutation. In vivo, the combination displays a favorable safety profile in mice and exerts significant antitumor effects. We further demonstrate that addition of PAC-1 to the clinically useful combination of vemurafenib and a MEK inhibitor, trametinib, starkly enhances the caspase-3 activity and proapoptotic effect of the combination. Moreover, addition of low concentration PAC-1 also delays the regrowth of cells following treatment with vemurafenib. Finally, PAC-1 remains potent against vemurafenib-resistant A375VR cells in cell culture and synergizes with vemurafenib to exert antitumor effects on A375VR cell growth in vivo Collectively, our data suggest that inhibition of MAPK signaling combined with concurrent procaspase-3 activation is an effective strategy to enhance the antitumor activity of vemurafenib and mitigate the development of resistance. Mol Cancer Ther; 15(8); 1859-69. ©2016 AACR. ©2016 American Association for Cancer Research.

  3. Synergistic anti-tumor effect of 17AAG with the PI3K/mTOR inhibitor NVP-BEZ235 on human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Calero, R; Morchon, E; Martinez-Argudo, I; Serrano, R

    2017-10-10

    Drug resistance by MAPK signaling recovery or activation of alternative signaling pathways, such as PI3K/AKT/mTOR, is an important factor that limits the long-term efficacy of targeted therapies in melanoma patients. In the present study, we investigated the phospho-proteomic profile of RTKs and its correlation with downstream signaling pathways in human melanoma. We found that tyrosine kinase receptors expression correlated with the expression of pivotal downstream components of the RAS/RAF/MAPK and PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways in melanoma cell lines and tumors. We also found high expression of HSP90 and the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway proteins, 4EBP1 and AKT compared with healthy tissue and this correlated with poor overall survival of melanoma patients. The combination of the HSP90 inhibitor 17AAG with the PI3K/mTOR inhibitor NVP-BEZ235 showed a synergistic activity decreasing melanoma cell growth, inducing apoptosis and targeting simultaneously the MAPK and PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways. These results demonstrate that the combination of HSP90 and PI3K/mTOR inhibitors could be an effective therapeutic strategy that target the main survival pathways in melanoma and must be considered to overcome resistance to BRAF inhibitors in melanoma patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Melanoma-Derived Conditioned Media Efficiently Induce the Differentiation of Monocytes to Macrophages that Display a Highly Invasive Gene Signature

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Tao; Ge, Yingbin; Xiao, Min; Lopez-Coral, Alfonso; Azuma, Rikka; Somasundaram, Rajasekharan; Zhang, Gao; Wei, Zhi; Xu, Xiaowei; Rauscher, Frank J.; Herlyn, Meenhard; Kaufman, Russel E.

    2013-01-01

    Summary The presence of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in melanomas is correlated with a poor clinical prognosis. However, there is limited information on the characteristics and biological activities of human TAMs in melanomas. In this study, we developed an in vitro method to differentiate human monocytes to macrophages using modified melanoma-conditioned medium (MCM). We demonstrate that factors from MCM-induced macrophages (MCMI-Mϕ) express both M1-Mϕ and M2-Mϕ markers, and inhibit melanoma-specific T cell proliferation. Furthermore, microarray analyses reveal that the majority of genes up-regulated in MCMI-Mϕ are associated with tumor invasion. The most strikingly up-regulated genes are CCL2 and MMP-9. Consistent with this, blockade of both CCL-2 and MMPs diminish MCMI-Mϕ-induced melanoma invasion. Finally, we demonstrate that both MCMI-Mϕ and in vivo TAMs express the pro-invasive, melanoma-associated gene, GPMNB. Our study provides a framework for understanding the mechanisms of crosstalk between TAMs and melanoma cells within the tumor microenvironment. PMID:22498258

  5. Everolimus selectively targets vemurafenib resistant BRAFV600E melanoma cells adapted to low pH.

    PubMed

    Ruzzolini, Jessica; Peppicelli, Silvia; Andreucci, Elena; Bianchini, Francesca; Margheri, Francesca; Laurenzana, Anna; Fibbi, Gabriella; Pimpinelli, Nicola; Calorini, Lido

    2017-11-01

    Vemurafenib, a BRAF inhibitor, elicits in ∼80% of BRAF V600E -mutant melanoma patients a transient anti-tumor response which precedes the emergence of resistance. We tested whether an acidic tumor microenvironment may favor a BRAF inhibitor resistance. A375M6 BRAF V600E melanoma cells, either exposed for a short period or chronically adapted to an acidic medium, showed traits compatible with an epithelial-mesenchymal transition, reduced proliferation and high resistance to apoptosis. Both types of acidic cells treated with vemurafenib did not change their proliferation, distribution in cell cycle and level of p-AKT, in contrast to cells grown at standard pH, which showed reduced proliferation, cell cycle arrest and ERK/AKT inhibition. Even after treatment with trametinib (MEK inhibitor) acidic cell features did not change. Then, since both types of acidic cells exhibited high p-p70S6K, i.e. active mTOR signaling, we tested everolimus, an mTOR inhibitor, which was efficient in inducing apoptosis in acidic cells without affecting melanoma cells grown at standard pH. Our results indicate that an acidic microenvironment may cooperate in inducing a BRAF inhibitor resistance in melanoma cells and a combined therapy with everolimus could be used to overcome that resistance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Anorectal melanoma: not a haemorrhoid.

    PubMed

    Turner, Greg; Abbott, Sarah; Eglinton, Tim; Wakeman, Chris; Frizelle, Frank

    2014-06-06

    Melanoma of the anorectum is a rare malignancy which is particularly aggressive compared to cutaneous melanoma. Due to its presenting symptoms, location and rarity there is often a delay in diagnosis. The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness of anorectal melanoma in New Zealand by presenting our institution's experience of four cases. The presentation, management and outcomes of four cases are described. A review of the literature surrounding anorectal melanoma was also carried out. The four cases (3 male, 1 female, aged 30-87 years) all presented with haemorrhoidal symptoms of anal discomfort and/or outlet rectal bleeding. Three patients had metastatic disease at presentation, and the remaining patient was found to have a concurrent lymphoma which was treated with chemotherapy before he underwent excision of the melanoma. Surgical excision is the mainstay of treatment and recent literature suggests transanal excision of the primary tumour to have equivalent overall survival to abdominoperineal resection. Anorectal melanoma is rare tumour with a poor prognosis. Patients are commonly misdiagnosed as having haemorrhoids; therefore a high index of suspicion is needed to enable early diagnosis. Metastatic disease is common at presentation, and the key prognostic indicator. Local control can be obtained with transanal excision, avoiding the morbidity of abdominoperineal resection. Adjuvant therapies available at present provide little survival advantage.

  7. Eradication of Human Hepatic and Pulmonary Melanoma Metastases in SCID Mice by Antibody--Interleukin 2 Fusion Proteins

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Becker, Jurgen C.; Pancook, James D.; Gillies, Stephen D.; Mendelsohn, John; Reisfeld, Ralph A.

    1996-04-01

    Antibody--cytokine fusion proteins combine the unique targeting ability of antibodies with the multifunctional activity of cytokines. Here, we demonstrate the therapeutic efficacy of such constructs for the treatment of hepatic and pulmonary metastases of different melanoma cell lines. Two antibody--interleukin 2 (IL-2) fusion proteins, ch225-IL2 and ch14.18-IL2, constructed by fusion of a synthetic sequence coding for human IL-2 to the carboxyl end of the Cγ 1 gene of the corresponding antibodies, were tested for their therapeutic efficacy against xenografted human melanoma in vivo. Tumorspecific fusion proteins completely inhibited the growth of hepatic and pulmonary metastases in C.B-17 scid/scid mice previously reconstituted with human lymphokine-activated killer cells, whereas treatment with combinations of the corresponding antibodies plus recombinant IL-2 only reduced the tumor load. Even when treatment with fusion proteins was delayed up to 8 days after inoculation of tumor cells, it still resulted in complete eradication of micrometastases that were established at that time point. Selection of tumor cell lines expressing or lacking the targeted antigen of the administered fusion protein proved the specificity of the observed antitumor effect. Biodistribution analysis demonstrated that the tumorspecific fusion protein accumulated not only in subcutaneous tumors but also in lungs and livers affected with micrometastases. Survival times of animals treated with the fusion protein were more than doubled as compared to those treated with the combination of the corresponding antibody plus IL-2. Our data demonstrate that an immunotherapeutic approach using cytokines targeted by antibodies to tumor sites has potent effects against disseminated human melanoma.

  8. A novel immune resistance mechanism of melanoma cells controlled by the ADAR1 enzyme

    PubMed Central

    Galore-Haskel, Gilli; Nemlich, Yael; Greenberg, Eyal; Ashkenazi, Shira; Hakim, Motti; Itzhaki, Orit; Shoshani, Noa; Shapira-Fromer, Ronnie; Ben-Ami, Eytan; Ofek, Efrat; Anafi, Liat; Besser, Michal J.

    2015-01-01

    The blossom of immunotherapy in melanoma highlights the need to delineate mechanisms of immune resistance. Recently, we have demonstrated that the RNA editing protein, adenosine deaminase acting on RNA-1 (ADAR1) is down-regulated during metastatic transition of melanoma, which enhances melanoma cell proliferation and tumorigenicity. Here we investigate the role of ADAR1 in melanoma immune resistance. Importantly, knockdown of ADAR1 in human melanoma cells induces resistance to tumor infiltrating lymphocytes in a cell contact-dependent mechanism. We show that ADAR1, in an editing-independent manner, regulates the biogenesis of miR-222 at the transcription level and thereby Intercellular Adhesion Molecule 1 (ICAM1) expression, which consequently affects melanoma immune resistance. ADAR1 thus has a novel, pivotal, role in cancer immune resistance. Corroborating with these results, the expression of miR-222 in melanoma tissue specimens was significantly higher in patients who had no clinical benefit from treatment with ipilimumab as compared to patients that responded clinically, suggesting that miR-222 could function as a biomarker for the prediction of response to ipilimumab. These results provide not only novel insights on melanoma immune resistance, but also pave the way to the development of innovative personalized tools to enable optimal drug selection and treatment. PMID:26338962

  9. The value of cyclooxygenase-2 expression in differentiating between early melanomas and histopathologically difficult types of benign human skin lesions.

    PubMed

    Kuźbicki, Łukasz; Lange, Dariusz; Strączyńska-Niemiec, Anita; Chwirot, Barbara W

    2012-02-01

    Early cutaneous melanomas may present a substantial diagnostic challenge. We have already reported that expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) may be useful for differentiating between cutaneous melanomas and naevi. The purpose of this study was to examine the value of COX-2 in a challenging task of differential diagnosis of early melanomas and melanocytic naevi considered by histopathologists as morphologically difficult to unequivocally diagnose as benign lesions. The material for the study comprised formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples of 46 naevi (including 27 cases of dysplastic, Spitz and Reed naevi) and 30 early human cutaneous melanomas. The expression of COX-2 was detected immunohistochemically. Melanomas expressed COX-2 significantly more strongly compared with naevi. The test, on the basis of determination of the percentage fractions of COX-2-positive cells, allows for differentiation of early skin melanomas and naevi with high sensitivity and specificity. Receiver operating characteristic analysis of the test results yielded areas under receiver operating characteristics curves (AUC)=0.946±0.030 for central regions and AUC=0.941±0.031 for the peripheries of the lesions. The performance of the test in differentiating between melanomas and the naevi group comprising dysplastic, Spitz and Reed naevi was also good, with AUC=0.933±0.034 and 0.923±0.037 for the central and the border regions of the lesions, respectively. Using a more complex diagnostic algorithm also accounting for the staining intensity did not result in an improvement in the resolving power of the assay. A diagnostic algorithm using differences in the percentage fractions of cells expressing COX-2 may serve as a useful tool in aiding the differential diagnosis of 'histopathologically difficult' benign melanocytic skin lesions and early melanomas.

  10. Osteoinvasive subungual melanoma: a case and review.

    PubMed

    Kleinerman, Rebecca; Kriegel, David; Amir, Imran; Emanuel, Patrick O; Markinson, Bryan C

    2010-02-01

    Subungual melanoma is a relatively rare variant of melanoma, accounting for 0.7-3.5% of all melanoma cases in the Caucasian population. Curiously, it occurs in 8-33% of cases in black, Asian, Native American and Hispanic populations, which generally face a substantially lower risk of melanoma. Herein the authors report the case of a 69-year-old Hispanic female with a subungual melanoma of the acral lentiginous type that directly invaded the periosteum, cortex and medulla of the distal phalanx. In addition, we review published reports of acral lentiginous melanoma with osseous invasion and discuss the evidence, on a molecular level, for this entity's aggressive pattern of invasion. The review of cases is limited to those found through the PubMed search engine.

  11. GNAQ mutation in a patient with metastatic mucosal melanoma.

    PubMed

    Kim, Chung-Young; Kim, Dae Won; Kim, Kevin; Curry, Jonathan; Torres-Cabala, Carlos; Patel, Sapna

    2014-07-16

    Mucosal melanomas represent about 1% of all melanoma cases and classically have a worse prognosis than cutaneous melanomas. Due to the rarity of mucosal melanomas, only limited clinical studies with metastatic mucosal melanoma are available. Mucosal melanomas most commonly contain mutations in the gene CKIT, and treatments have been investigated using targeted therapy for this gene. Mutations in mucosal melanoma are less common than in cutaneous or uveal melanomas and occur in descending order of frequency as: CKIT (20%), NRAS (5%) or BRAF (3%). Mutations in G-alpha proteins, which are associated with activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, have not been reported in mucosal melanomas. These G-alpha protein mutations occur in the genes GNAQ and GNA11 and are seen at a high frequency in uveal melanomas, those melanomas that begin in the eye. A 59-year old Caucasian male was diagnosed with a mucosal melanoma after evaluation for what was thought to be a hemorrhoid. Molecular analysis of the tumor revealed a GNAQ mutation. Ophthalmologic exam did not disclose a uveal melanoma. Here we report, to our knowledge, the first known case of GNAQ mutation in a patient with metastatic mucosal melanoma.

  12. Melanoma exosomes educate bone marrow progenitor cells toward a pro-metastatic phenotype through MET

    PubMed Central

    Peinado, Héctor; Alečković, Maša; Lavotshkin, Simon; Matei, Irina; Costa-Silva, Bruno; Moreno-Bueno, Gema; Hergueta-Redondo, Marta; Williams, Caitlin; García-Santos, Guillermo; Nitadori-Hoshino, Ayuko; Hoffman, Caitlin; Badal, Karen; Garcia, Benjamin A.; Callahan, Margaret K.; Yuan, Jianda; Martins, Vilma R.; Skog, Johan; Kaplan, Rosandra N.; Brady, Mary S.; Wolchok, Jedd D.; Chapman, Paul B.; Kang, Yibin; Bromberg, Jacqueline; Lyden, David

    2013-01-01

    Tumor-derived exosomes are emerging mediators of tumorigenesis with tissue-specific addresses and messages. We explored the function of melanoma-derived exosomes in the formation of primary tumor and metastases in mouse and human subjects. Exosomes from highly metastatic melanoma increased the metastatic behavior of primary tumors by permanently “educating” bone marrow (BM) progenitors via the MET receptor. Melanoma-derived exosomes also induced vascular leakiness at pre-metastatic sites, and reprogrammed BM progenitors towards a c-Kit+Tie2+Met+ pro-vasculogenic phenotype. Reducing Met expression in exosomes diminished the pro-metastatic behavior of BM cells. Importantly, MET expression was elevated in circulating CD45−C-KITlow/+TIE2+ BM progenitors from metastatic melanoma subjects. RAB1a, RAB5b, RAB7, and RAB27a were highly expressed in melanoma cells and Rab27a RNA interference decreased exosome production, preventing BM education, tumor growth and metastasis. Finally, we identified an exosome-specific “melanoma signature” with prognostic and therapeutic potential, comprised of TYRP2, VLA-4, HSP70, an HSP90 isoform and the MET oncoprotein. PMID:22635005

  13. Periostin Is a Key Niche Component for Wound Metastasis of Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Fukuda, Keitaro; Sugihara, Eiji; Ohta, Shoichiro; Izuhara, Kenji; Funakoshi, Takeru; Amagai, Masayuki; Saya, Hideyuki

    2015-01-01

    Tissue injury promotes metastasis of several human cancers, although factors associated with wound healing that attract circulating tumor cells have remained unknown. Here, we examined the primary and metastatic lesions that appeared 1 month after trauma in a patient with acral lentiginous melanoma. The levels of mRNA for periostin (POSTN), type 1 collagen, and fibronectin were significantly increased in the metastatic lesion relative to the primary lesion. The increase of these extracellular matrix proteins at the wound site was reproduced in a mouse model of wound healing, with the upregulation of Postn mRNA persisting the longest. POSTN was expressed in the region surrounding melanoma cell nests in metastatic lesions of both wounded mice and the patient. POSTN attenuated the cell adhesion and promoted the migration of melanoma cells without affecting their proliferation in vitro. In the mouse model, the wound site as well as subcutaneously injected osteoblasts that secrete large amounts of POSTN invited the metastasis of remotely-transplanted melanoma cells on the sites. Osteoblasts with suppression of POSTN by shRNA showed a greatly reduced ability to promote such metastasis. Our results suggest that POSTN is a key factor in promoting melanoma cell metastasis to wound sites by providing a premetastatic niche. PMID:26083413

  14. Periostin Is a Key Niche Component for Wound Metastasis of Melanoma.

    PubMed

    Fukuda, Keitaro; Sugihara, Eiji; Ohta, Shoichiro; Izuhara, Kenji; Funakoshi, Takeru; Amagai, Masayuki; Saya, Hideyuki

    2015-01-01

    Tissue injury promotes metastasis of several human cancers, although factors associated with wound healing that attract circulating tumor cells have remained unknown. Here, we examined the primary and metastatic lesions that appeared 1 month after trauma in a patient with acral lentiginous melanoma. The levels of mRNA for periostin (POSTN), type 1 collagen, and fibronectin were significantly increased in the metastatic lesion relative to the primary lesion. The increase of these extracellular matrix proteins at the wound site was reproduced in a mouse model of wound healing, with the upregulation of Postn mRNA persisting the longest. POSTN was expressed in the region surrounding melanoma cell nests in metastatic lesions of both wounded mice and the patient. POSTN attenuated the cell adhesion and promoted the migration of melanoma cells without affecting their proliferation in vitro. In the mouse model, the wound site as well as subcutaneously injected osteoblasts that secrete large amounts of POSTN invited the metastasis of remotely-transplanted melanoma cells on the sites. Osteoblasts with suppression of POSTN by shRNA showed a greatly reduced ability to promote such metastasis. Our results suggest that POSTN is a key factor in promoting melanoma cell metastasis to wound sites by providing a premetastatic niche.

  15. Melanoma Arising in a Melanocytic Nevus.

    PubMed

    Martín-Gorgojo, A; Nagore, E

    2018-03-01

    The association of melanoma with a preexisting melanocytic nevus varies considerably between series, depending on whether the association is based on histological signs (4%-72%) or a clinically evident lesion (42%-85%). Histological association with a nevus correlates with favorable prognostic factors, whereas a clinical association correlates with unfavorable factors. In this review, we discuss the characteristics of nevus-associated melanoma from different perspectives: Whiteman's divergent pathway hypothesis for the development of cutaneous melanoma; and the factors involved in nevogenicity, including both the genetic and molecular factors involved in the development of the melanoma and its precursor lesions. Finally, a cumulative analysis of the 16 162 cases reported in the literature revealed that 29.8% of melanomas are histologically associated with a melanocytic nevus. Copyright © 2017 AEDV. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  16. 14 CFR 375.1 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Definitions. 375.1 Section 375.1 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... mail by aircraft in interstate, overseas, or foreign commerce (see section 101 (10) and (23) of the...

  17. 14 CFR 375.1 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Definitions. 375.1 Section 375.1 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... mail by aircraft in interstate, overseas, or foreign commerce (see section 101 (10) and (23) of the...

  18. 14 CFR 375.1 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Definitions. 375.1 Section 375.1 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... mail by aircraft in interstate, overseas, or foreign commerce (see section 101 (10) and (23) of the...

  19. 14 CFR 375.1 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Definitions. 375.1 Section 375.1 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... mail by aircraft in interstate, overseas, or foreign commerce (see section 101 (10) and (23) of the...

  20. 14 CFR 375.1 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Definitions. 375.1 Section 375.1 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... mail by aircraft in interstate, overseas, or foreign commerce (see section 101 (10) and (23) of the...

  1. Assessment of the presence of mucosal human papillomaviruses in malignant melanomas using combined fluorescent in situ hybridization and chemiluminescent immunohistochemistry.

    PubMed

    Ambretti, S; Venturoli, S; Mirasoli, M; La Placa, M; Bonvicini, F; Cricca, M; Zerbini, M; Roda, A; Musiani, M

    2007-01-01

    The vast majority of studies aimed at detecting human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA in skin cancer have used sensitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods but the PCR technique, despite its high sensitivity, is not suitable to ascertain whether (i) the presence of HPV can be related only to few cells harbouring the virus, (ii) the presence of HPV is due to a tumour surface contamination and (iii) the presence of HPV is localized in cancer cells, rather than in normal keratinocytes present in the tumour biopsy. In a recent work we have found mucosal high-risk (HR) HPV genotypes in primary melanoma by PCR. To localize mucosal HR-HPV nucleic acids and tumoural melanocytic marker in the same sections of primary melanoma samples in order to understand the relationship between HPVs and melanoma cells. We have developed a very sensitive method that combines an enzyme-amplified fluorescent in situ hybridization (ISH) for the detection of HPV nucleic acids (types 16 and 18) with a chemiluminescent immunohistochemistry (IHC) method for the detection of the tumoural melanocytic marker HMB-45 sequentially in the same section. Digital images of fluorescent ISH and chemiluminescent IHC were separately recorded, assigned different colours and merged using specific software for image analysis. The combined fluorescent ISH and chemiluminescent IHC demonstrated a sharp colocalization (in the range 60-80%) of HPV nucleic acids and melanoma marker inside the same sections of melanoma biopsies, with a strong specificity and sensitivity. The strong colocalization of mucosal HR-HPV nucleic acids and HMB-45 melanocytic marker emphasized that viral nucleic acids were specifically present in melanoma cells and supported a possible active role of HPV in malignant melanoma.

  2. GNAQ mutation in a patient with metastatic mucosal melanoma

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Mucosal melanomas represent about 1% of all melanoma cases and classically have a worse prognosis than cutaneous melanomas. Due to the rarity of mucosal melanomas, only limited clinical studies with metastatic mucosal melanoma are available. Mucosal melanomas most commonly contain mutations in the gene CKIT, and treatments have been investigated using targeted therapy for this gene. Mutations in mucosal melanoma are less common than in cutaneous or uveal melanomas and occur in descending order of frequency as: CKIT (20%), NRAS (5%) or BRAF (3%). Mutations in G-alpha proteins, which are associated with activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, have not been reported in mucosal melanomas. These G-alpha protein mutations occur in the genes GNAQ and GNA11 and are seen at a high frequency in uveal melanomas, those melanomas that begin in the eye. Case presentation A 59-year old Caucasian male was diagnosed with a mucosal melanoma after evaluation for what was thought to be a hemorrhoid. Molecular analysis of the tumor revealed a GNAQ mutation. Ophthalmologic exam did not disclose a uveal melanoma. Conclusion Here we report, to our knowledge, the first known case of GNAQ mutation in a patient with metastatic mucosal melanoma. PMID:25030020

  3. 42 CFR 405.375 - Time limits for, and notification of, administrative determination after receipt of rebuttal...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Time limits for, and notification of, administrative determination after receipt of rebuttal statement. 405.375 Section 405.375 Public Health CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES MEDICARE PROGRAM FEDERAL...

  4. 42 CFR 405.375 - Time limits for, and notification of, administrative determination after receipt of rebuttal...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Time limits for, and notification of, administrative determination after receipt of rebuttal statement. 405.375 Section 405.375 Public Health CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES MEDICARE PROGRAM FEDERAL...

  5. Inhibitory effect of six green tea catechins and caffeine on the growth of four selected human tumor cell lines.

    PubMed

    Valcic, S; Timmermann, B N; Alberts, D S; Wächter, G A; Krutzsch, M; Wymer, J; Guillén, J M

    1996-06-01

    Green tea is an aqueous infusion of dried unfermented leaves of Camellia sinensis (family Theaceae) from which numerous biological activities have been reported including antimutagenic, antibacterial, hypocholesterolemic, antioxidant, antitumor and cancer preventive activities. From the aqueous-alcoholic extract of green tea leaves, six compounds (+)-gallocatechin (GC), (-)-epicatechin (EC), (-)-epigallocatechin (EGC), (-)-epicatechin gallate (ECG), (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and caffeine, were isolated and purified. Together with (+)-catechin, these compounds were tested against each of four human tumor cells lines (MCF-7 breast carcinoma, HT-29 colon carcinoma, A-427 lung carcinoma and UACC-375 melanoma). The three most potent green tea components against all four tumor cell lines were EGCG, GC and EGC. EGCG was the most potent of the seven green tea components against three out of the four cell lines (i.e. MCF-7 breast cancer, HT-29 colon cancer and UACC-375 melanoma). On the basis of these extensive in vitro studies, it would be of considerable interest to evaluate all three of these components in comparative preclinical in vivo animal tumor model systems before final decisions are made concerning which of these potential chemopreventive drugs should be taken into broad clinical trials.

  6. Molecular pathogenesis of malignant melanoma: a different perspective from the studies of melanocytic nevus and acral melanoma.

    PubMed

    Takata, Minoru; Murata, Hiroshi; Saida, Toshiaki

    2010-02-01

    The Clark model for melanoma progression emphasizes a series of histopathological changes beginning from benign melanocytic nevus to melanoma via dysplastic nevus. Several models of the genetic basis of melanoma development and progression are based on this Clark's multi-step model, and predict that the acquisition of a BRAF mutation can be a founder event in melanocytic neoplasia. However, our recent investigations have challenged this view, showing the polyclonality of BRAF mutations in melanocytic nevi. Furthermore, it is suggested that many melanomas, including acral and mucosal melanomas, arise de novo, not from melanocytic nevus. While mutations of the BRAF gene are frequent in melanomas on non-chronic sun damaged skin which are prevalent in Caucasians, acral and mucosal melanomas harbor mutations of the KIT gene as well as the amplifications of cyclin D1 or cyclin-dependent kinase 4 gene. Amplifications of the cyclin D1 gene are detected in normal-looking 'field melanocytes', which represent a latent progression phase of acral melanoma that precedes the stage of atypical melanocyte proliferation in the epidermis. Based on these observations, we propose an alternative genetic progression model for melanoma.

  7. Roles of different IRES-dependent FGF2 isoforms in the acquisition of the major aggressive features of human metastatic melanoma.

    PubMed

    Andreucci, Elena; Bianchini, Francesca; Biagioni, Alessio; Del Rosso, Mario; Papucci, Laura; Schiavone, Nicola; Magnelli, Lucia

    2017-01-01

    Fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2) is involved in many physiological and pathological processes. Fgf2 deregulation contributes to the acquisition of malignant features of melanoma and other cancers. FGF2 is an alternative translation product expressed as five isoforms, a low-molecular-weight (18 KDa) and four high-molecular-weight (22, 22.5, 24, 34 KDa) isoforms, with different subcellular distributions. An internal ribosomal entry site (IRES) in its mRNA controls the translation of all the isoforms with the exception for the cap-dependent 34 KDa. The 18-KDa isoform has been extensively studied, while very few is known about the roles of high molecular weight isoforms. FGF2 is known to promote melanoma development and progression. To disclose the differential contribution of FGF2 isoforms in melanoma, we forced the expression of IRES-dependent low-molecular-weight (LMW, 18 KDa) and high-molecular-weight (HMW, 22, 22.5, 24 KDa) isoforms in a human metastatic melanoma cell line. This comparative study highlights that, while LMW isoform confers stem-like features to melanoma cells and promotes angiogenesis, HMW isoforms induce higher migratory ability and contribute to tumor perfusion by promoting vasculogenic mimicry (VM) when endothelial cell-driven angiogenesis is lacking. To conclude, FGF2 isoforms mainly behave in specific, antithetical manners, but can cooperate in different steps of tumor progression, providing melanoma cells with major malignant features. FGF2 is an alternative translation product expressed as different isoforms termed LMW and HMW. FGF2 is involved in melanoma development and progression. HMW FGF2 isoforms enhance in vitro motility of melanoma cells. LMW FGF2 confers stem-like features and increases in vivo metastasization. LMW FGF2 promotes angiogenesis while HMW FGF2 induces vasculogenic mimicry.

  8. Data-Derived Modeling Characterizes Plasticity of MAPK Signaling in Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Bernardo-Faura, Marti; Massen, Stefan; Falk, Christine S.; Brady, Nathan R.; Eils, Roland

    2014-01-01

    The majority of melanomas have been shown to harbor somatic mutations in the RAS-RAF-MEK-MAPK and PI3K-AKT pathways, which play a major role in regulation of proliferation and survival. The prevalence of these mutations makes these kinase signal transduction pathways an attractive target for cancer therapy. However, tumors have generally shown adaptive resistance to treatment. This adaptation is achieved in melanoma through its ability to undergo neovascularization, migration and rearrangement of signaling pathways. To understand the dynamic, nonlinear behavior of signaling pathways in cancer, several computational modeling approaches have been suggested. Most of those models require that the pathway topology remains constant over the entire observation period. However, changes in topology might underlie adaptive behavior to drug treatment. To study signaling rearrangements, here we present a new approach based on Fuzzy Logic (FL) that predicts changes in network architecture over time. This adaptive modeling approach was used to investigate pathway dynamics in a newly acquired experimental dataset describing total and phosphorylated protein signaling over four days in A375 melanoma cell line exposed to different kinase inhibitors. First, a generalized strategy was established to implement a parameter-reduced FL model encoding non-linear activity of a signaling network in response to perturbation. Next, a literature-based topology was generated and parameters of the FL model were derived from the full experimental dataset. Subsequently, the temporal evolution of model performance was evaluated by leaving time-defined data points out of training. Emerging discrepancies between model predictions and experimental data at specific time points allowed the characterization of potential network rearrangement. We demonstrate that this adaptive FL modeling approach helps to enhance our mechanistic understanding of the molecular plasticity of melanoma. PMID:25188314

  9. Melanoma cell-intrinsic PD-1 receptor functions promote tumor growth

    PubMed Central

    Kleffel, Sonja; Posch, Christian; Barthel, Steven R.; Mueller, Hansgeorg; Schlapbach, Christoph; Guenova, Emmanuella; Elco, Christopher P.; Lee, Nayoung; Juneja, Vikram R.; Zhan, Qian; Lian, Christine G.; Thomi, Rahel; Hoetzenecker, Wolfram; Cozzio, Antonio; Dummer, Reinhard; Mihm, Martin C.; Flaherty, Keith T.; Frank, Markus H.; Murphy, George F.; Sharpe, Arlene H.; Kupper, Thomas S.; Schatton, Tobias

    2015-01-01

    SUMMARY Therapeutic antibodies targeting programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) activate tumor-specific immunity and have shown remarkable efficacy in the treatment of melanoma. Yet, little is known about tumor cell-intrinsic PD-1 pathway effects. Here we show that murine and human melanomas contain PD-1-expressing cancer subpopulations and demonstrate that melanoma cell-intrinsic PD-1 promotes tumorigenesis, even in mice lacking adaptive immunity. PD-1 inhibition on melanoma cells by RNA interference, blocking antibodies, or mutagenesis of melanoma-PD-1 signaling motifs suppresses tumor growth in immunocompetent, immunocompromised and PD-1-deficient tumor graft recipient mice. Conversely, melanoma-specific PD-1 overexpression enhances tumorigenicity, as does engagement of melanoma-PD-1 by its ligand, PD-L1, whereas melanoma-PD-L1 inhibition or knockout of host-PD-L1 attenuate growth of PD-1-positive melanomas. Mechanistically, the melanoma-PD-1 receptor modulates downstream effectors of mTOR signaling. Our results identify melanoma cell-intrinsic functions of the PD-1:PD-L1 axis in tumor growth and suggest that blocking melanoma-PD-1 might contribute to the striking clinical efficacy of anti-PD-1 therapy. PMID:26359984

  10. Effects of Malignant Melanoma Initiating Cells on T-Cell Activation

    PubMed Central

    Schatton, Tobias; Schütte, Ute; Frank, Markus H.

    2016-01-01

    Although human malignant melanoma is a highly immunogenic cancer, both the endogenous antitumor immune response and melanoma immunotherapy often fail to control neoplastic progression. Accordingly, characterizing melanoma cell subsets capable of evading antitumor immunity could unravel optimized treatment strategies that might reduce morbidity and mortality from melanoma. By virtue of their preferential capacity to modulate antitumor immune responses and drive inexorable tumor growth and progression, malignant melanoma-initiating cells (MMICs) warrant closer investigation to further elucidate the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying melanoma immune evasion and immunotherapy resistance. Here we describe methodologies that enable the characterization of immunoregulatory effects of purified MMICs versus melanoma bulk populations in coculture with syngeneic or allogeneic lymphocytes, using [3H] thymidine incorporation, enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISPOT), or ELISA assays. These assays were traditionally developed to analyze alloimmune processes and we successfully adapted them for the study of tumor-mediated immunomodulatory functions. PMID:26786883

  11. In situ photoimmunotherapy for melanoma: preliminary clinical results

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Naylor, Mark F.; Nordquist, Robert E.; Teauge, T. Kent; Perry, Lisa A.; Chen, Wei R.

    2006-02-01

    Although melanoma accounts for only 4% of skin cancer cases, it causes 79% of all skin cancer deaths. Patients with metastatic melanoma have a poor prognosis, and long term survival is only about 5% [1, 2]. Conventional therapies such as surgery and radiation therapy usually do not cure stage III or stage IV melanoma, while traditional chemotherapy is primarily palliative. Over the last decade we have been developing new methods for treating solid tumors like melanoma, first in animal models and now in humans. We present here preliminary results from a new technique that utilizes a combination of laser stimulation and drug therapy to stimulate brisk immunological responses in cases of advanced melanoma with cutaneous metastases. A high-power, near-infrared diode laser (805 nm) is used to kill tumors in situ and a topical toll-like receptor agonist (imiquimod cream, 5%) is used to intensify the resulting immunological response. This is essentially an in situ, tumor vaccine approach to treating solid tumors.

  12. The gallium complex KP46 exerts strong activity against primary explanted melanoma cells and induces apoptosis in melanoma cell lines

    PubMed Central

    Valiahdi, Seied Mojtaba; Heffeter, Petra; Jakupec, Michael A.; Marculescu, Rodrig; Berger, Walter; Rappersberger, Klemens; Keppler, Bernhard K.

    2012-01-01

    The antineoplastic properties of gallium are well documented. Owing to their robust accumulation of gallium, melanoma cells should be amenable to gallium-based anticancer drugs. With the aim of improving the disappointingly low activity of inorganic gallium salts, we have developed the orally bioavailable gallium complex KP46 [tris(8-quinolinolato)gallium(III)] that was already successfully studied in a phase I clinical trial. To assess its therapeutic potential in malignant melanoma, its antiproliferative effects were investigated in series of human cell lines and primary explanted melanoma samples by means of the MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay and the Human Tumor Cloning Assay, respectively. When compared with other cell lines, the majority of melanoma cells rank among the KP46-sensitive cell lines (50% inhibitory concentration values: 0.8–3.7 μmol/l). Clinically achievable concentrations of KP46 proved to be highly effective in melanoma cells from primary explants of cutaneous and lymph node metastases. Colony growth was inhibited in 10 of 10 specimens by 5 lmol/l KP46 (corresponding to the steady-state plasma concentration measured earlier in a study patient) and in four of 10 specimens by 0.5 μmol/l KP46. In-vitro potency of KP46 is higher than that of dacarbazine or fotemustine and comparable with that of cisplatin. The effects induced by KP46 in melanoma cell lines involve cell cycle perturbations (S-phase arrest) and apoptosis (activation of caspase-9, PARP [poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase] cleavage, formation of apoptotic bodies). No effects on DNA secondary structure could be observed in an electrophoretic mobility shift assay using double-stranded plasmid DNA. Thus, further studies on the therapeutic applicability of KP46 in malignant melanoma are warranted. PMID:19584767

  13. Filamin A Modulates Kinase Activation and Intracellular Trafficking of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptors in Human Melanoma Cells

    PubMed Central

    Fiori, Jennifer L.; Zhu, Tie-Nian; O'Connell, Michael P.; Hoek, Keith S.; Indig, Fred E.; Frank, Brittany P.; Morris, Christa; Kole, Sutapa; Hasskamp, Joanne; Elias, George; Weeraratna, Ashani T.; Bernier, Michel

    2009-01-01

    The actin-binding protein filamin A (FLNa) affects the intracellular trafficking of various classes of receptors and has a potential role in oncogenesis. However, it is unclear whether FLNa regulates the signaling capacity and/or down-regulation of the activated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Here it is shown that partial knockdown of FLNa gene expression blocked ligand-induced EGFR responses in metastatic human melanomas. To gain greater insights into the role of FLNa in EGFR activation and intracellular sorting, we used M2 melanoma cells that lack endogenous FLNa and a subclone in which human FLNa cDNA has been stably reintroduced (M2A7 cells). Both tyrosine phosphorylation and ubiquitination of EGFR were significantly lower in epidermal growth factor (EGF)-stimulated M2 cells when compared with M2A7 cells. Moreover, the lack of FLNa interfered with EGFR interaction with the ubiquitin ligase c-Cbl. M2 cells exhibited marked resistance to EGF-induced receptor degradation, which was very active in M2A7 cells. Despite comparable rates of EGF-mediated receptor endocytosis, internalized EGFR colocalized with the lysosomal marker lysosome-associated membrane protein-1 in M2A7 cells but not M2 cells, in which EGFR was found to be sequestered in large vesicles and subsequently accumulated in punctated perinuclear structures after EGF stimulation. These results suggest the requirement of FLNa for efficient EGFR kinase activation and the sorting of endocytosed receptors into the degradation pathway. PMID:19213840

  14. TRIM16 inhibits proliferation and migration through regulation of interferon beta 1 in melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Sutton, Selina K.; Koach, Jessica; Tan, Owen; Liu, Bing; Carter, Daniel R.; Wilmott, James S.; Yosufi, Benafsha; Haydu, Lauren E.; Mann, Graham J.; Thompson, John F.; Long, Georgina V.; Liu, Tao; McArthur, Grant; Zhang, Xu Dong; Scolyer, Richard A.; Cheung, Belamy B.; Marshall, Glenn M.

    2014-01-01

    High basal or induced expression of the tripartite motif protein, TRIM16, leads to reduce cell growth and migration of neuroblastoma and skin squamous cell carcinoma cells. However, the role of TRIM16 in melanoma is currently unknown. TRIM16 protein levels were markedly reduced in human melanoma cell lines, compared with normal human epidermal melanocytes due to both DNA methylation and reduced protein stability. TRIM16 knockdown strongly increased cell migration in normal human epidermal melanocytes, while TRIM16 overexpression reduced cell migration and proliferation of melanoma cells in an interferon beta 1 (IFNβ1)-dependent manner. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays revealed TRIM16 directly bound the IFNβ1 gene promoter. Low level TRIM16 expression in 91 melanoma patient samples, strongly correlated with lymph node metastasis, and, predicted poor patient prognosis in a separate cohort of 170 melanoma patients with lymph node metastasis. The BRAF inhibitor, vemurafenib, increased TRIM16 protein levels in melanoma cells in vitro, and induced growth arrest in BRAF-mutant melanoma cells in a TRIM16-dependent manner. High levels of TRIM16 in melanoma tissues from patients treated with Vemurafenib correlated with clinical response. Our data, for the first time, demonstrates TRIM16 is a marker of cell migration and metastasis, and a novel treatment target in melanoma. PMID:25333256

  15. AMPK activators inhibit the proliferation of human melanomas bearing the activated MAPK pathway.

    PubMed

    Petti, Carlotta; Vegetti, Claudia; Molla, Alessandra; Bersani, Ilaria; Cleris, Loredana; Mustard, Kirsty J; Formelli, Franca; Hardie, Grahame D; Sensi, Marialuisa; Anichini, Andrea

    2012-10-01

    Raf/MEK/ERK signaling can inhibit the liver kinase B1-AMP-activated protein kinase (LKB1-AMPK) pathway, thus rendering melanoma cells resistant to energy stress conditions. We evaluated whether pharmacological reactivation of the AMPK function could exert antitumor effects on melanoma cells bearing this pathway constitutively active because of a mutation in NRAS or BRAF genes. Nine melanoma cell lines were treated with the AMPK activators 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-ribonucleoside (AICAR) and phenformin. The activation of AMPK enzymatic activity, phosphorylation of AMPK and acetyl-CoA carboxylase kinase, in-vitro proliferation, cell cycle, and in-vivo growth of xenografts in nude mice were evaluated. AICAR and phenformin promoted phosphorylation and enzymatic activity of AMPK, as well as phosphorylation of the AMPK downstream target acetyl-CoA carboxylase. Drug treatment of either BRAF-mutant or NRAS-mutant melanomas, at doses not inducing cell death, was accompanied by a dose-dependent decrease in melanoma cell proliferation because of cell cycle arrest in either the G0/G1 or the S phase, associated with an increased expression of the p21 cell cycle inhibitor. Melanomas isolated from subcutaneously implanted mice, 25 days from treatment with AICAR, showed increased staining of the senescence-associated marker β-galactosidase, high p21 expression, and evidence of necrosis. Altogether, these results indicate that pharmacological activators of AMPK-dependent pathways inhibit the cell growth of melanoma cells with active Raf/MEK/ERK signaling and provide a rationale for further investigation on their use in combination therapies.

  16. Regulation of apoptosis in human melanoma and neuroblastoma cells by statins, sodium arsenite and TRAIL: a role of combined treatment versus monotherapy

    PubMed Central

    Ivanov, Vladimir N.; Hei, Tom K.

    2015-01-01

    Treatment of melanoma cells by sodium arsenite or statins (simvastatin and lovastatin) dramatically modified activities of the main cell signaling pathways resulting in the induction of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and in a downregulation of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) protein levels. Through heme degradation and the production of carbon monoxide and biliverdin, HO-1 plays a protective role in different scenario of oxidative stress followed by mitochondrial apoptosis. Both sodium arsenite and statins could be efficient inducers of apoptosis in some melanoma cell lines, but often exhibited only modest proapoptotic activity in others, due to numerous protective mechanisms. We demonstrated in the present study that treatment by sodium arsenite or statins with an additional inhibition of HO-1 expression (or activation) caused a substantial upregulation of apoptosis in melanoma cells. Sodium arsenite- or statin-induced apoptosis was independent of BRAF status (wild type versus V600E) in melanoma lines. Monotreatment required high doses of statins (20–40 μM) for effective induction of apoptosis. As an alternative approach, pretreatment of melanoma cells with statin at decreased doses (5–20 μM) dramatically enhanced TRAIL-induced apoptosis, due to suppression of the NF-κB and STAT3-transcriptional targets (including COX-2) and downregulation of cFLIP-L (a caspase-8 inhibitor) protein levels. Furthermore, combined treatment with sodium arsenite and TRAIL or simvastatin and TRAIL efficiently induced apoptotic commitment in human neuroblastoma cells. In summary, our findings on enhancing effects of combined treatment of cancer cells using statin and TRAIL provide the rationale for further preclinical evaluation. PMID:21910007

  17. Simulated microgravity reduces mRNA levels of multidrug resistance genes 4 and 5 in non-metastatic human melanoma cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eiermann, Peter; Tsiockas, Wasiliki; Hauslage, Jens; Hemmersbach, Ruth; Gerzer, Rupert; Ivanova, Krassimira

    Multidrug resistance proteins (MRP) are members of the ATP-binding cassette transporter superfamily that are able to export a large variety of substances into the extracellular space in-cluding nucleoside and nucleotide base analogs used in antiviral and anticancer therapy. MRP4 and 5 (MRP4/5) particularly transport cyclic nucleotides, e.g. guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophos-phate (cGMP). The second messenger cGMP, which is synthesized by the catalytic activity of the guanylyl cyclase (GC), plays an import role in vasodilatation, smooth muscle relaxation, and nitric oxide (NO)-induced perturbation of melanocyte-extracellular matrix interactions. In previous studies we have reported that different GC isoforms are responsible for cGMP synthe-sis in melanocytic cells. Normal human melanocytes and non-metastatic melanoma cell lines predominantly express the NO-sensitive soluble GC isoform (sGC), a heterodimeric protein consisting of α and β subunits. Metastatic melanoma cells lack the expression of the β sub-unit and show up-regulated activities of the particulate isoforms. We have further found that long-term exposure to hypergravity (5 g for 24 h) induced an increased cGMP export in normal human melanocytes, and non-metastatic, but not in metastatic human melanoma cells as a re-sult of up-regulated MRP4/5 expression. The aim of the present study is to investigate whether simulated microgravity may also alter the expression of MRP4/5 in non-metastatic melanoma cells. Experiments were performed using a fast-rotating clinostat (60 rpm) with one rotation axis. The non-metastatic 1F6 melanoma cells were exposed to simulated microgravity (up to 1.21x10-2 g) for 24 h. The mRNA analyses were performed by a relative calibrator-normalized and efficiency corrected quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Light Cycler R , Roche). Our data show a reduced expression of approximately 35% for MRP4 and of 50% for MRP5 in simulated microgravity in comparison to 1 g controls. Also, the

  18. The therapeutic potential of human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells producing CXCL10 in a mouse melanoma lung metastasis model.

    PubMed

    Mirzaei, Hamed; Salehi, Hossein; Oskuee, Reza Kazemi; Mohammadpour, Ali; Mirzaei, Hamid Reza; Sharifi, Mohammad Reza; Salarinia, Reza; Darani, Hossein Yousofi; Mokhtari, Mojgan; Masoudifar, Aria; Sahebkar, Amirhossein; Salehi, Rasoul; Jaafari, Mahmoud Reza

    2018-04-10

    Interferon γ-induced protein 10 kDa (IP-10) is a potent chemoattractant and has been suggested to enhance antitumor activity and mediate tumor regression through multiple mechanisms of action. Multiple lines of evidence have indicated that genetically-modified adult stem cells represent a potential source for cell-based cancer therapy. In the current study, we assessed therapeutic potential of human adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells (hADSC) genetically-modified to express IP-10 for the treatment of lung metastasis in an immunocompetent mouse model of metastatic melanoma. A Piggybac vector encoding IP-10 was employed to transfect hADSC ex vivo. Expression and bioactivity of the transgenic protein from hADSCs expressing IP-10 were confirmed prior to in vivo studies. Our results indicated that hADSCs expressing IP-10 could inhibit the growth of B16F10 melanoma cells and significantly prolonged survival. Immunohistochemistry analysis, TUNEL assay and western blot analysis indicated that hADSCs expressing IP-10 inhibited tumor cell growth, hindered tumor infiltration of Tregs, restricted angiogenesis and significantly prolonged survival. In conclusion, our results demonstrated that targeting metastatic tumor sites by hADSC expressing IP-10 could reduce melanoma tumor growth and lung metastasis. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Cytotoxic activity against human neuroblastoma and melanoma cells mediated by IgM antibodies derived from peripheral blood of healthy donors.

    PubMed

    Devarapu, Satish Kumar; Mamidi, Srinivas; Plöger, Frank; Dill, Othmar; Blixt, Ola; Kirschfink, Michael; Schwartz-Albiez, Reinhard

    2016-06-15

    A small percentage of healthy donors identified in the Western population carry antibodies in their peripheral blood which convey cytotoxic activity against certain human melanoma and neuroblastoma cell lines. We measured the cytotoxic activity of sera and plasmas from healthy donors on the human neuroblastoma cell line Kelly and various melanoma cell lines. Antibodies of IgM isotype, presumably belonging to the class of naturally occurring antibodies, exerted cytotoxic activity in a complement-dependent fashion. Apart from complement-dependent tumor cell lysis, we observed C3 opsonization in all tumor cell lines upon treatment with cytotoxic plasmas. Cell lines tested primarily expressed membrane complement regulatory proteins (mCRP) CD46, CD55 and CD59 to various extents. Blocking of mCRPs by monoclonal antibodies enhanced cell lysis and opsonization, though some melanoma cells remained resistant to complement attack. Epitopes recognized by cytotoxic antibodies were represented by gangliosides such as GD2 and GD3, as evidenced by cellular sialidase pretreatment and enhanced expression of distinct gangliosides. It remains to be clarified why only a small fraction of healthy persons carry these antitumor cytotoxic antibodies. © 2016 UICC.

  20. 14 CFR 375.35 - Free transportation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Free transportation. 375.35 Section 375.35 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... transportation. (a) Foreign civil aircraft may be navigated in the United States by a foreign air carrier for the...

  1. 14 CFR 375.35 - Free transportation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Free transportation. 375.35 Section 375.35 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... transportation. (a) Foreign civil aircraft may be navigated in the United States by a foreign air carrier for the...

  2. 14 CFR 375.35 - Free transportation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Free transportation. 375.35 Section 375.35 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... transportation. (a) Foreign civil aircraft may be navigated in the United States by a foreign air carrier for the...

  3. 14 CFR 375.35 - Free transportation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Free transportation. 375.35 Section 375.35 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... transportation. (a) Foreign civil aircraft may be navigated in the United States by a foreign air carrier for the...

  4. Urgent access to a specialty care melanoma clinic is associated with a higher rate of melanoma detection.

    PubMed

    Lipworth, Adam D; Park, Jong Min; Trefrey, Brie L; Rubin, Krista M; Geller, Alan C; Sober, Arthur J; Tsao, Hensin

    2011-06-01

    As melanoma rates increase, and the supply of dermatologists remains suboptimal to meet demand for services, detection of early melanoma has become an increasingly difficult challenge. Some authors advocate for shifting dermatologic resources from routine appointments to urgent visits for those with lesions concerning for melanoma. We sought to investigate the potential of an urgent access track (UAT) embedded within a pigmented lesion clinic to improve early melanoma detection. We conducted a retrospective review of patient records from a tertiary care hospital's pigmented lesion clinic and the associated UAT. Results of procedures for all 4495 patient visits to the routine track and all 316 visits to the UAT during the 21-month study period were included, as were detailed chart reviews of all UAT patient visits. UAT visits were more than 4 times as likely (4.1% vs 1.0%) to yield a diagnosis of melanoma as routine track visits (odds ratio 4.24; 95% confidence interval 2.28-7.88; P < .0001), and almost 25 times as likely (2.2% vs 0.1%) to yield a diagnosis of metastatic melanoma (odds ratio 25.4; 95% confidence interval 7.4-87.4; P < .0001). This was a preliminary analysis with only limited data extracted from the routine track pigmented lesion clinic patient visits. This initial analysis of UAT strategy suggests that UATs have potential to detect patients with earlier melanomas; further research is needed to specifically delineate how resources should be best allocated between routine surveillance and urgent care to maximize melanoma early detection and survival. Copyright © 2010 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Deep-proteome mapping of WM-266-4 human metastatic melanoma cells: From oncogenic addiction to druggable targets

    PubMed Central

    Litou, Zoi I.; Konstandi, Ourania A.; Giannopoulou, Aikaterini F.; Anastasiadou, Ema; Voutsinas, Gerassimos E.; Tsangaris, George Th.; Stravopodis, Dimitrios J.

    2017-01-01

    Cutaneous melanoma is a malignant tumor of skin melanocytes that are pigment-producing cells located in the basal layer (stratum basale) of epidermis. Accumulation of genetic mutations within their oncogenes or tumor-suppressor genes compels melanocytes to aberrant proliferation and spread to distant organs of the body, thereby resulting in severe and/or lethal malignancy. Metastatic melanoma’s heavy mutational load, molecular heterogeneity and resistance to therapy necessitate the development of novel biomarkers and drug-based protocols that target key proteins involved in perpetuation of the disease. To this direction, we have herein employed a nano liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (nLC-MS/MS) proteomics technology to profile the deep-proteome landscape of WM-266-4 human metastatic melanoma cells. Our advanced melanoma-specific catalogue proved to contain 6,681 unique proteins, which likely constitute the hitherto largest single cell-line-derived proteomic collection of the disease. Through engagement of UNIPROT, DAVID, KEGG, PANTHER, INTACT, CYTOSCAPE, dbEMT and GAD bioinformatics resources, WM-266-4 melanoma proteins were categorized according to their sub-cellular compartmentalization, function and tumorigenicity, and successfully reassembled in molecular networks and interactomes. The obtained data dictate the presence of plastically inter-converted sub-populations of non-cancer and cancer stem cells, and also indicate the oncoproteomic resemblance of melanoma to glioma and lung cancer. Intriguingly, WM-266-4 cells seem to be subjected to both epithelial-to-mesenchymal (EMT) and mesenchymal-to-epithelial (MET) programs, with 1433G and ADT3 proteins being identified in the EMT/MET molecular interface. Oncogenic addiction of WM-266-4 cells to autocrine/paracrine signaling of IL17-, DLL3-, FGF(2/13)- and OSTP-dependent sub-routines suggests their critical contribution to the metastatic melanoma chemotherapeutic refractoriness. Interestingly, the

  6. 18 CFR 375.206 - Procedures to close meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... meetings. 375.206 Section 375.206 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY... Sunshine Act § 375.206 Procedures to close meetings. (a) General rule. A meeting or a portion of a meeting may be closed only when the Commission votes by a majority of the membership to close the meeting. A...

  7. Adoptive Cell Therapy of Melanoma with Cytokine-induced Killer Cells.

    PubMed

    Kim, Ji Sung; Kim, Yong Guk; Pyo, Minji; Lee, Hong Kyung; Hong, Jin Tae; Kim, Youngsoo; Han, Sang-Bae

    2015-04-01

    Melanoma is the most aggressive skin cancer and its incidence is gradually increasing worldwide. Patients with metastatic melanoma have a very poor prognosis (estimated 5-year survival rate of <16%). In the last few years, several drugs have been approved for malignant melanoma, such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors and immune checkpoint blockades. Although new therapeutic agents have improved progression-free and overall survival, their use is limited by drug resistance and drug-related toxicity. At the same time, adoptive cell therapy of metastatic melanoma with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes has shown promising results in preclinical and clinical studies. In this review, we summarize the currently available drugs for treatment of malignant melanoma. In addition, we suggest cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells as another candidate approach for adoptive cell therapy of melanoma. Our preclinical study and several previous studies have shown that CIK cells have potent anti-tumor activity against melanomas in vitro and in an in vivo human tumor xenograft model without any toxicity.

  8. Adoptive Cell Therapy of Melanoma with Cytokine-induced Killer Cells

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Ji Sung; Kim, Yong Guk; Pyo, Minji; Lee, Hong Kyung; Hong, Jin Tae; Kim, Youngsoo

    2015-01-01

    Melanoma is the most aggressive skin cancer and its incidence is gradually increasing worldwide. Patients with metastatic melanoma have a very poor prognosis (estimated 5-year survival rate of <16%). In the last few years, several drugs have been approved for malignant melanoma, such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors and immune checkpoint blockades. Although new therapeutic agents have improved progression-free and overall survival, their use is limited by drug resistance and drug-related toxicity. At the same time, adoptive cell therapy of metastatic melanoma with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes has shown promising results in preclinical and clinical studies. In this review, we summarize the currently available drugs for treatment of malignant melanoma. In addition, we suggest cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells as another candidate approach for adoptive cell therapy of melanoma. Our preclinical study and several previous studies have shown that CIK cells have potent anti-tumor activity against melanomas in vitro and in an in vivo human tumor xenograft model without any toxicity. PMID:25922594

  9. Molecular Mechanism of MART-1+/A*0201+ Human Melanoma Resistance to Specific CTL-Killing Despite Functional Tumor-CTL Interaction

    PubMed Central

    Jazirehi, Ali R.; Baritaki, Stavroula; Koya, Richard C.; Bonavida, Benjamin; Economou, James S.

    2014-01-01

    Durable responses in metastatic melanoma patients remain generally difficult to achieve. Adoptive cell therapy with ex vivo engineered lymphocytes expressing high affinity T cell receptors TCRα/β for the melanoma antigen MART-127-35/HLA A*0201 (recognized by F5 cytotoxic T lymphocytes [F5 CTLs]) has been found to benefit certain patients. However, many other patients are inherently unresponsive and/or relapse for unknown reasons. To analyze the basis for the acquired-resistance and strategies to reverse it, we established F5 CTLresistant (R) human melanoma clones from relatively sensitive parental lines under selective F5 CTL pressure. Surface MART-127-35/HLA-A*0201 in these clones was unaltered and F5 CTLs recognized and interacted with them similarly to the parental lines. Nevertheless, the R clones were resistant to F5 CTL killing, exhibited hyperactivation of the NF-κB survival pathway, and overexpression of the anti-apoptotic genes Bcl-2, Bcl-xL and Mcl-1. Sensitivity to F5 CTL-killing could be increased by pharmacological inhibition of the NF-κB pathway, Bcl-2 family members, or the proteasome, the latter of which reduced NF-κB activity and diminished anti-apoptotic gene expression. Specific gene-silencing (by siRNA) confirmed the protective role of anti-apoptotic factors by reversing R clone resistance. Together, our findings suggest that long-term immunotherapy may impose a selection for the development of resistant cells that are unresponsive to highly avid and specific melanoma-reactive CTLs, despite maintaining expression of functional peptide:MHC complexes, due to activation of anti-apoptotic signaling pathways. Though unresponsive to CTL, our results argue that resistant cells can be re-sensitized to immunotherapy with co-administration of targeted inhibitors to anti-apoptotic survival pathways. PMID:21159666

  10. MelanomaDB: A Web Tool for Integrative Analysis of Melanoma Genomic Information to Identify Disease-Associated Molecular Pathways

    PubMed Central

    Trevarton, Alexander J.; Mann, Michael B.; Knapp, Christoph; Araki, Hiromitsu; Wren, Jonathan D.; Stones-Havas, Steven; Black, Michael A.; Print, Cristin G.

    2013-01-01

    Despite on-going research, metastatic melanoma survival rates remain low and treatment options are limited. Researchers can now access a rapidly growing amount of molecular and clinical information about melanoma. This information is becoming difficult to assemble and interpret due to its dispersed nature, yet as it grows it becomes increasingly valuable for understanding melanoma. Integration of this information into a comprehensive resource to aid rational experimental design and patient stratification is needed. As an initial step in this direction, we have assembled a web-accessible melanoma database, MelanomaDB, which incorporates clinical and molecular data from publically available sources, which will be regularly updated as new information becomes available. This database allows complex links to be drawn between many different aspects of melanoma biology: genetic changes (e.g., mutations) in individual melanomas revealed by DNA sequencing, associations between gene expression and patient survival, data concerning drug targets, biomarkers, druggability, and clinical trials, as well as our own statistical analysis of relationships between molecular pathways and clinical parameters that have been produced using these data sets. The database is freely available at http://genesetdb.auckland.ac.nz/melanomadb/about.html. A subset of the information in the database can also be accessed through a freely available web application in the Illumina genomic cloud computing platform BaseSpace at http://www.biomatters.com/apps/melanoma-profiler-for-research. The MelanomaDB database illustrates dysregulation of specific signaling pathways across 310 exome-sequenced melanomas and in individual tumors and identifies the distribution of somatic variants in melanoma. We suggest that MelanomaDB can provide a context in which to interpret the tumor molecular profiles of individual melanoma patients relative to biological information and available drug therapies. PMID:23875173

  11. Investigation of the phototoxic effect of ZnO nanorods on fibroblasts and melanoma human cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kishwar, S.; Siddique, M.; Israr-Qadir, M.; Nur, O.; Willander, M.; Öllinger, K.

    2014-11-01

    Photocytotoxic effects of as-grown and zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods coated with 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) have been studied on human cells, i.e. melanoma and foreskin fibroblast, under dark and ultraviolet light exposures. Zinc oxide nanorods have been grown on the very sharp tip (diameter = 700 nm) of borosilicate glass pipettes and then were coated by the photosensitizer for targeted investigations inside human cells. The coated glass pipette’s tip with photosensitizer has been inserted inside the cells with the help of a micro-manipulator and irradiated through ultraviolet light (UVA), which reduces the membrane potential of the mitochondria leading to cell death. Cell viability loss has been detected by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) reduction assay when exposed to the dissolved ZnO nanorods and the production of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been detected along with the enhanced cytotoxic effect under UVA irradiation. Additionally, the influence of the lipid soluble antioxidant vitamin E and water-soluble N-acetyl-cysteine toward the enhancement or reduction of the toxicity has been investigated. A comparative analysis of the toxic nature of ZnO nanorods has been drawn between normal human fibroblast and melanoma cells, which can be favorable for understanding the clinical setting for killing tumor cells.

  12. Unusual presentations of melanoma: melanoma of unknown primary site, melanoma arising in childhood, and melanoma arising in the eye and on mucosal surfaces.

    PubMed

    Sondak, Vernon K; Messina, Jane L

    2014-10-01

    Most melanomas present as primary tumors on the skin surface in adults; however, melanomas also arise in the eye and on the mucosal surfaces or present as apparently metastatic disease without any known history of a cutaneous primary. Melanoma is also being diagnosed during childhood more frequently than ever. Surgeons need to be aware of and understand these unusual presentations of melanoma to optimally manage their patients. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Ultraviolet-radiation-induced inflammation promotes angiotropism and metastasis in melanoma

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bald, Tobias; Quast, Thomas; Landsberg, Jennifer; Rogava, Meri; Glodde, Nicole; Lopez-Ramos, Dorys; Kohlmeyer, Judith; Riesenberg, Stefanie; van den Boorn-Konijnenberg, Debby; Hömig-Hölzel, Cornelia; Reuten, Raphael; Schadow, Benjamin; Weighardt, Heike; Wenzel, Daniela; Helfrich, Iris; Schadendorf, Dirk; Bloch, Wilhelm; Bianchi, Marco E.; Lugassy, Claire; Barnhill, Raymond L.; Koch, Manuel; Fleischmann, Bernd K.; Förster, Irmgard; Kastenmüller, Wolfgang; Kolanus, Waldemar; Hölzel, Michael; Gaffal, Evelyn; Tüting, Thomas

    2014-03-01

    Intermittent intense ultraviolet (UV) exposure represents an important aetiological factor in the development of malignant melanoma. The ability of UV radiation to cause tumour-initiating DNA mutations in melanocytes is now firmly established, but how the microenvironmental effects of UV radiation influence melanoma pathogenesis is not fully understood. Here we report that repetitive UV exposure of primary cutaneous melanomas in a genetically engineered mouse model promotes metastatic progression, independent of its tumour-initiating effects. UV irradiation enhanced the expansion of tumour cells along abluminal blood vessel surfaces and increased the number of lung metastases. This effect depended on the recruitment and activation of neutrophils, initiated by the release of high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) from UV-damaged epidermal keratinocytes and driven by Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). The UV-induced neutrophilic inflammatory response stimulated angiogenesis and promoted the ability of melanoma cells to migrate towards endothelial cells and use selective motility cues on their surfaces. Our results not only reveal how UV irradiation of epidermal keratinocytes is sensed by the innate immune system, but also show that the resulting inflammatory response catalyses reciprocal melanoma-endothelial cell interactions leading to perivascular invasion, a phenomenon originally described as angiotropism in human melanomas by histopathologists. Angiotropism represents a hitherto underappreciated mechanism of metastasis that also increases the likelihood of intravasation and haematogenous dissemination. Consistent with our findings, ulcerated primary human melanomas with abundant neutrophils and reactive angiogenesis frequently show angiotropism and a high risk for metastases. Our work indicates that targeting the inflammation-induced phenotypic plasticity of melanoma cells and their association with endothelial cells represent rational strategies to specifically interfere

  14. The fragile X mental retardation protein regulates tumor invasiveness-related pathways in melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Zalfa, Francesca; Panasiti, Vincenzo; Carotti, Simone; Zingariello, Maria; Perrone, Giuseppe; Sancillo, Laura; Pacini, Laura; Luciani, Flavie; Roberti, Vincenzo; D'Amico, Silvia; Coppola, Rosa; Abate, Simona Osella; Rana, Rosa Alba; De Luca, Anastasia; Fiers, Mark; Melocchi, Valentina; Bianchi, Fabrizio; Farace, Maria Giulia; Achsel, Tilmann; Marine, Jean-Christophe; Morini, Sergio; Bagni, Claudia

    2017-11-16

    The fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) is lacking or mutated in patients with the fragile X syndrome (FXS), the most frequent form of inherited intellectual disability. FMRP affects metastasis formation in a mouse model for breast cancer. Here we show that FMRP is overexpressed in human melanoma with high Breslow thickness and high Clark level. Furthermore, meta-analysis of the TCGA melanoma data revealed that high levels of FMRP expression correlate significantly with metastatic tumor tissues, risk of relapsing and disease-free survival. Reduction of FMRP in metastatic melanoma cell lines impinges on cell migration, invasion and adhesion. Next-generation sequencing in human melanoma cells revealed that FMRP regulates a large number of mRNAs involved in relevant processes of melanoma progression. Our findings suggest an association between FMRP levels and the invasive phenotype in melanoma and might open new avenues towards the discovery of novel therapeutic targets.

  15. The fragile X mental retardation protein regulates tumor invasiveness-related pathways in melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Zalfa, Francesca; Panasiti, Vincenzo; Carotti, Simone; Zingariello, Maria; Perrone, Giuseppe; Sancillo, Laura; Pacini, Laura; Luciani, Flavie; Roberti, Vincenzo; D'Amico, Silvia; Coppola, Rosa; Abate, Simona Osella; Rana, Rosa Alba; De Luca, Anastasia; Fiers, Mark; Melocchi, Valentina; Bianchi, Fabrizio; Farace, Maria Giulia; Achsel, Tilmann; Marine, Jean-Christophe; Morini, Sergio; Bagni, Claudia

    2017-01-01

    The fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) is lacking or mutated in patients with the fragile X syndrome (FXS), the most frequent form of inherited intellectual disability. FMRP affects metastasis formation in a mouse model for breast cancer. Here we show that FMRP is overexpressed in human melanoma with high Breslow thickness and high Clark level. Furthermore, meta-analysis of the TCGA melanoma data revealed that high levels of FMRP expression correlate significantly with metastatic tumor tissues, risk of relapsing and disease-free survival. Reduction of FMRP in metastatic melanoma cell lines impinges on cell migration, invasion and adhesion. Next-generation sequencing in human melanoma cells revealed that FMRP regulates a large number of mRNAs involved in relevant processes of melanoma progression. Our findings suggest an association between FMRP levels and the invasive phenotype in melanoma and might open new avenues towards the discovery of novel therapeutic targets. PMID:29144507

  16. Evaluation of bleaching efficacy of 37.5% hydrogen peroxide on human teeth using different modes of activations: An in vitro study

    PubMed Central

    Bhutani, Neha; Venigalla, Bhuvan Shome; Patil, Jaya Prakash; Singh, Thakur Veerandar; Jyotsna, Sistla Venkata; Jain, Abhilasha

    2016-01-01

    Introduction: The aim of this in vitro study is to evaluate the role of light and laser sources in the bleaching ability of 37.5% H2 O2 on extracted human teeth. Materials and Methods: About 30 caries-free single-rooted maxillary central incisors were used for the study. Specimens were prepared by sectioning the crown portion of teeth mesiodistally, and labial surface was used for the study. Specimens were then immersed in coffee solution for staining. Color of each tooth was analyzed using Shadestar, a digital shademeter. Specimens were then divided into three groups of 10 each and were subjected to bleaching with 37.5% H2 O2, 37.5% H2 O2 + light activation, and 37.5% H2 O2 + laser activation, respectively. Postbleaching, the color was analyzed for all the specimens immediately and then after 1, 2, and 3 weeks intervals, respectively. Results: All the statistical analyses were done using SPSS version 17. Intra- and inter-group comparisons were done with Friedman test and Kruskal–Wallis ANOVA, respectively. Statistical analysis concluded with a significant improvement in their shade values from baseline in all the three groups. Halogen light activation and laser-activated groups showed comparatively enhanced bleaching results over no-activation group, though the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion: The results of the present study show that bleaching assisted with halogen light and laser showed increased lightness than nonlight activated group. Durability of bleaching results obtained postbleaching was maintained throughout the experimental trail period of 3 weeks for both halogen light and laser activation group, whereas no-light activation group presented with shade rebound after 2 weeks postbleaching. PMID:27217641

  17. 14 CFR 375.11 - Other foreign civil aircraft.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Other foreign civil aircraft. 375.11... PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL REGULATIONS NAVIGATION OF FOREIGN CIVIL AIRCRAFT WITHIN THE UNITED STATES Authorization § 375.11 Other foreign civil aircraft. A foreign civil aircraft other than those referred to in § 375.10...

  18. 40 CFR 265.375 - Waste analysis.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 26 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Waste analysis. 265.375 Section 265... FACILITIES Thermal Treatment § 265.375 Waste analysis. In addition to the waste analyses required by § 265.13... of pollutants which might be emitted. At a minimum, the analysis must determine: (a) Heating value of...

  19. GENETIC COUNSELLING IN MELANOMA

    PubMed Central

    Badenas, Celia; Aguilera, Paula; Puig-Butillé, Joan A.; Carrera, Cristina; Malvehy, Josep; Puig, Susana

    2012-01-01

    Summary Genetic counselling may be offered to families with melanoma and to individuals with multiple melanomas to better understand the genetic susceptibility of the disease, the influence of environmental factors, the inheritance of the risk and behaviour that decreases the risk of dying from melanoma including specific dermatological follow-up such as total body photography and digital dermoscopy. Genetic testing may be offered to those individuals with more than a 10% chance of being a carrier of a mutation. This risk varies according to the incidence of melanoma in the country and sun behaviour. In countries with a low-medium incidence of melanoma, genetic testing should be offered to families with two cases of melanoma or an individual with two primary melanomas. In countries with a high incidence, families with three cases of melanoma, with two melanomas and one pancreatic adenocarcinoma, or patients with three primary melanomas may benefit from genetic testing. PMID:23046018

  20. miR-137 suppresses tumor growth of malignant melanoma by targeting aurora kinase A

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chang, Xiao; Zhang, Haiping; Lian, Shi

    2016-07-01

    As an oncogene, aurora kinase A (AURKA) is overexpressed in various types of human cancers. However, the expression and roles of AURKA in malignant melanoma are largely unknown. In this study, a miR-137-AURKA axis was revealed to regulate melanoma growth. We found a significant increase in levels of AURKA in melanoma. Both genetic knockdown and pharmacologic inhibition of AURKA decreased tumor cell growth in vitro and in vivo. Further found that miR-137 reduced AURKA expression through interaction with its 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) and that miR-137 was negatively correlated with AURKA expression in melanoma specimens. Overexpression of miR-137 decreased cell proliferation andmore » colony formation in vitro. Notably, re-expression of AURKA significantly rescued miR-137-mediated suppression of cell growth and clonality. In summary, these results reveal that miR-137 functions as a tumor suppressor by targeting AURKA, providing new insights into investigation of therapeutic strategies against malignant melanoma. -- Highlights: •First reported overexpression of AURKA in melanoma. •Targeting AURKA inhibits melanoma growth in vitro and in vivo. •Further found miR-137 suppressed cell growth by binding to AURKA 3′UTR. •Re-expression of AURKA rescued miR-137-mediated suppression. •miR-137-AURKA axis may be potential therapeutic targets of melanoma.« less

  1. Personal history of non-melanoma skin cancer diagnosis and death from melanoma in women.

    PubMed

    Chen, Steven T; Li, Xin; Han, Jiali

    2018-04-15

    Melanoma incidence is increasing. We evaluated risk of melanoma death after diagnosis of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). We followed 77,288 female American nurses from the Nurses' Health Study from 1986 to 2012. We used Cox proportional hazards models to determine the hazard ratio (HR) of lethal and non-lethal melanoma diagnosis and melanoma death, according to personal NMSC history. Among melanoma cases, we examined the HR of melanoma death and the odds ratio (OR) of melanoma with a Breslow thickness ≥0.8 mm or Clark's levels of IV and V according to history of NMSC. We documented 930 melanoma cases without NMSC history and 615 melanoma cases with NMSC history over 1.8 million person-years. The multivariate-adjusted HR (95% confidence interval) of melanoma death associated with personal history of NMSC was 2.89 (1.85-4.50). Women with history of NMSC were more likely to develop non-lethal melanoma than lethal melanoma (HR (95% CI): 2.31 (2.05-2.60) vs. 1.74 (1.05-2.87)). Among melanoma cases, women with history of NMSC had a non-significant decreased risk of melanoma deaths (0.87 (0.55-1.37)), Breslow thickness ≥0.8 mm (0.85 (0.59-1.21)) and Clark's levels IV and V (0.81(0.52-1.24)). Women with NMSC history were less likely to be diagnosed with a lethal melanoma than a non-lethal melanoma, but overall rate of melanoma diagnosis was increased in both subtypes, leading to the increased risk of melanoma death. Our findings suggest the continued need for dermatologic screening for patients after NMSC diagnosis, given increased melanoma risk. Early detection among NMSC patients may decrease deaths from melanoma. © 2017 UICC.

  2. [¹²³I]ICF01012 melanoma imaging and [¹³¹I]ICF01012 dosimetry allow adapted internal targeted radiotherapy in preclinical melanoma models.

    PubMed

    Viallard, Claire; Perrot, Yann; Boudhraa, Zied; Jouberton, Elodie; Miot-Noirault, Elisabeth; Bonnet, Mathilde; Besse, Sophie; Mishellany, Florence; Cayre, Anne; Maigne, Lydia; Rbah-Vidal, Latifa; D'Incan, Michel; Cachin, Florent; Chezal, Jean-Michel; Degoul, Françoise

    2015-01-01

    Melanin-targeting radiotracers are interesting tools for imaging and treatment of pigmented melanoma metastases. However, variation of the pigment concentration may alter the efficiency of such targeting. A clear assessment of both tumor melanin status and dosimetry are therefore prerequisites for internal radiotherapy of disseminated melanoma. The melanin tracer ICF01012 was labelled with iodine-123 for melanoma imaging in pigmented murine B16F0 and human SK-Mel 3 melanomas. In vivo imaging showed that the uptake of [(123)I]ICF01012 to melanomas correlated significantly with melanin content. Schedule treatment of 3 × 25 MBq [(131)I]ICF01012 significantly reduced SK-Mel 3 tumor growth and significantly increased the median survival in treated mice. For this protocol, the calculated delivered dose was 53.2 Gy. Radio-iodinated ICF01012 is a good candidate for both imaging and therapeutic purposes for patients with metastatic pigmented melanomas.

  3. A UV-independent pathway to melanoma carcinogenesis in the redhair-fairskin background

    PubMed Central

    Mitra, Devarati; Luo, Xi; Morgan, Ann; Wang, Jin; Hoang, Mai P.; Lo, Jennifer; Guerrero, Candace R.; Lennerz, Jochen K.; Mihm, Martin C.; Wargo, Jennifer A.; Robinson, Kathleen C.; Devi, Suprabha P.; Vanover, Jillian C.; D’Orazio, John A.; McMahon, Martin; Bosenberg, Marcus W.; Haigis, Kevin M.; Haber, Daniel A.; Wang, Yinsheng; Fisher, David E.

    2012-01-01

    People with pale skin, red hair, freckles, and an inability to tan—the “redhair/fairskin” phenotype— are at highest risk of developing melanoma, compared to all other pigmentation types1. Genetically, this phenotype is frequently the product of inactivating polymorphisms in the Melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene. MC1R encodes a cAMP stimulating G-protein coupled receptor that controls pigment production. Minimal receptor activity, as in redhair/fairskin polymorphisms, produces red/yellow pheomelanin pigment, while increasing MC1R activity stimulates production of black/brown eumelanin2. Pheomelanin has weak UV shielding capacity relative to eumelanin and has been shown to amplify UVA-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) 3–5. Several observations, however, complicate the assumption that melanoma risk is completely UV dependent. For example, unlike non-melanoma skin cancers, melanoma is not restricted to sun-exposed skin and UV signature mutations are infrequently oncogenic drivers6. While linkage of melanoma risk to UV exposure is beyond doubt, UV-independent events are also likely to play a significant role1,7. Here, we introduced into mice carrying an inactivating mutation in the Mc1r gene (who exhibit a phenotype analogous to redhair/fairskin humans), a conditional, melanocyte-targeted allele of the most commonly mutated melanoma oncogene, BRafV600E. We observed a high incidence of invasive melanomas without providing additional gene aberrations or UV exposure. To investigate the mechanism of UV-independent carcinogenesis, we introduced an albino allele, which ablates all pigment production on the Mc1r e/e background. Selective absence of pheomelanin synthesis was protective against melanoma development. In addition, normal Mc1re/e mouse skin was found to have significantly greater oxidative DNA and lipid damage than albino-Mc1re/e mouse skin. These data suggest that the pheomelanin pigment pathway produces UV-independent carcinogenic contributions to

  4. 49 CFR 375.601 - Must I transport the shipment in a timely manner?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 5 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Must I transport the shipment in a timely manner? 375.601 Section 375.601 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued... Transportation of Shipments § 375.601 Must I transport the shipment in a timely manner? Yes. Transportation in a...

  5. 49 CFR 375.601 - Must I transport the shipment in a timely manner?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Must I transport the shipment in a timely manner? 375.601 Section 375.601 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued... Transportation of Shipments § 375.601 Must I transport the shipment in a timely manner? Yes. Transportation in a...

  6. Ocular melanoma metastatic to skin: the value of HMB-45 staining.

    PubMed

    Schwartz, Robert A; Kist, Joseph M; Thomas, Isabelle; Fernández, Geover; Cruz, Manuel A; Koziorynska, Ewa I; Lambert, W Clark

    2004-06-01

    Cutaneous metastatic disease is an important finding that may represent the first sign of systemic cancer, or, if already known, that may change tumor staging and thus dramatically altered therapeutic plans. Although cutaneous metastases are relatively frequent in patients with cutaneous melanoma, they are less so from ocular melanoma. To demonstrate the value of HMB-45, staining in the detection of ocular melanoma metastatic to skin. The immunohistochemical stain HMB-45 a monoclonal antibody directed against intact human melanoma cells, was employed on a skin biopsy specimen from a cutaneous tumor. HMB-45 staining was positive in the atypical hyperchromatic cells of the deep dermis. HMB-45 may be of value in the detection of ocular melanoma metastatic to skin. Cutaneous metastatic disease is a somewhat common and extremely important diagnosis. Although cutaneous metastases from cutaneous melanoma are relatively frequent, those from ocular melanomas are less so. Use of histochemical staining, especially the HMB-45 stain, allows confirmation of the diagnosis.

  7. Mucosal malignant melanoma - a clinical, oncological, pathological and genetic survey.

    PubMed

    Mikkelsen, Lauge H; Larsen, Ann-Cathrine; von Buchwald, Christian; Drzewiecki, Krzysztof T; Prause, Jan U; Heegaard, Steffen

    2016-06-01

    Mucosal melanomas constitute 1.3% of all melanomas and they may develop in any mucosal membrane. Conjunctival melanomas (0.5/million/year) and melanomas in the sinonasal cavity (0.5/million/year) are the most common, followed by anorectal melanomas (0.4/million/year) and melanomas in the oral cavity (0.2/million/year). Anorectal melanoma occurs slightly more often in females, whereas oral melanoma has a male predilection. Mucosal melanoma most commonly develops in a patient's sixth or seventh decade of life, and no differences between races have been found except for sinonasal melanoma and conjunctival melanoma, which are very rare in Black people. The symptoms are not tumour-specific and are related to the organ system affected, and the disease is most often diagnosed at an advanced clinical stage. The diagnosis of a primary tumour is difficult, and metastatic cutaneous melanoma and choroidal melanoma must be excluded. Mutations in KIT are frequently found, while BRAF and NRAS mutations are rarely found - except in conjunctival melanomas that carry BRAF mutations. Mutations in the TERT promotor region are also found in mucosal melanomas. Complete surgical resection with free margins is the treatment of choice. The prognosis is poor, with the 5-year survival rate ranging from 0% (gastric melanoma) to 80% (conjunctival melanoma). © 2016 APMIS. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  8. 18 CFR 375.101 - The Commission.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false The Commission. 375.101 Section 375.101 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT...:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (d) Sessions. The Commission may meet and exercise its powers at any place in...

  9. 18 CFR 375.101 - The Commission.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false The Commission. 375.101 Section 375.101 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT...:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (d) Sessions. The Commission may meet and exercise its powers at any place in...

  10. 18 CFR 375.101 - The Commission.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false The Commission. 375.101 Section 375.101 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT...:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (d) Sessions. The Commission may meet and exercise its powers at any place in...

  11. 18 CFR 375.101 - The Commission.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false The Commission. 375.101 Section 375.101 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT...:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (d) Sessions. The Commission may meet and exercise its powers at any place in...

  12. DNA from human polyomaviruses, TSPyV, MWPyV, HPyV6, 7 and 9 was not detected in primary mucosal melanomas.

    PubMed

    Ramqvist, Torbjörn; Nordfors, Cecilia; Dalianis, Tina; Ragnarsson-Olding, Boel

    2014-02-01

    Mucosal melanomas arise in non UV-light exposed areas and causative factors are yet unknown. Human polyomaviruses (HPyVs) are rapidly increasing in numbers and are potentially oncogenic, as has been established for MCPyV in Merkel cell carcinoma, an unusual skin cancer type. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between TSPyV, MWPyV, HPyV6, 7 and 9 and mucosal melanoma. Fifty-five mucosal melanomas, were analyzed by a Luminex assay, for the presence of 10 HPyVs (BKPyV, JCPyV, KIPyV, WUPyV, TSPyV, MWPyV, HPyV6, 7 and 9) and two primate viruses (SV40 and LPyV). In 37 samples the DNA quality was satisfactory for analysis. However, none of the samples analyzed were positive for any of the examined viruses. None of the above-analyzed HPyVs were detected in mucosal melanoma samples, and they are for this reason unlikely to play a major role in the development of this tumor type.

  13. miR-137 suppresses tumor growth of malignant melanoma by targeting aurora kinase A.

    PubMed

    Chang, Xiao; Zhang, Haiping; Lian, Shi; Zhu, Wei

    2016-07-01

    As an oncogene, aurora kinase A (AURKA) is overexpressed in various types of human cancers. However, the expression and roles of AURKA in malignant melanoma are largely unknown. In this study, a miR-137-AURKA axis was revealed to regulate melanoma growth. We found a significant increase in levels of AURKA in melanoma. Both genetic knockdown and pharmacologic inhibition of AURKA decreased tumor cell growth in vitro and in vivo. Further found that miR-137 reduced AURKA expression through interaction with its 3' untranslated region (3'UTR) and that miR-137 was negatively correlated with AURKA expression in melanoma specimens. Overexpression of miR-137 decreased cell proliferation and colony formation in vitro. Notably, re-expression of AURKA significantly rescued miR-137-mediated suppression of cell growth and clonality. In summary, these results reveal that miR-137 functions as a tumor suppressor by targeting AURKA, providing new insights into investigation of therapeutic strategies against malignant melanoma. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Vulvar and vaginal melanoma: A unique subclass of mucosal melanoma based on a comprehensive molecular analysis of 51 cases compared with 2253 cases of nongynecologic melanoma.

    PubMed

    Hou, June Y; Baptiste, Caitlin; Hombalegowda, Radhika Bangalore; Tergas, Ana I; Feldman, Rebecca; Jones, Nathaniel L; Chatterjee-Paer, Sudeshna; Bus-Kwolfski, Ama; Wright, Jason D; Burke, William M

    2017-04-15

    Optimal treatments for vulvar and vaginal melanomas (VVMs) have not been identified. Herein, the authors compare molecular profiles between VVM and nongynecologic melanoma (NGM) subtypes with the objective of identifying novel, targetable biomarkers. In total, 2304 samples of malignant melanoma that were submitted to Caris Life Sciences between 2009 and 2015 were reviewed. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry were used to assess copy numbers and protein expression of selected genes. Sequenced variants were analyzed using a proprietary cancer panel. In total, 51 VVMs (14 vaginal and 37 vulvar melanomas) were compared with 2253 malignant NGMs, including 2127 cutaneous, 105 mucosal, and 21 acral melanomas. In VVMs, B-Raf proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase (BRAF) was the most frequently mutated gene (26%) compared with 8.3% of mucosal NGMs (P = .008). In BRAF-mutated tumors, fewer VVMs (50%), compared with NGMs (82.1%), had a variant within the valine codon 600 (V600) domain. The KIT mutation rate was highest in VVMs (22%) compared with 3% in cutaneous (P < .001) and 8.8% in mucosal (P = .05) melanoma subtypes. NRAS mutations were rare in VVMs compared with cutaneous (25.9%; P = .009) and acral (40.6%; P = .002) melanoma subtypes. PD-L1 (56%) and PD-1 (75%) were frequently expressed in VVM, whereas PI3KCA pathway mutations and estrogen receptor/progesterone receptor expression were rare. Compared with VVMs that had KIT mutations, wild-type KIT VVMs were more likely to express molecular markers suggestive of platinum resistance (ERCC1), alkylating sensitivity (MGMT), and anthracycline sensitivity (TOP2A). The unique molecular features of VVM render this disease a distinct subtype of melanoma. Gene-based molecular therapy and immunotherapies may be promising and should be evaluated in clinical trials. Cancer 2017;123:1333-1344. © 2016 American Cancer Society. © 2016 American Cancer Society.

  15. Current State of Animal (Mouse) Modeling in Melanoma Research.

    PubMed

    Kuzu, Omer F; Nguyen, Felix D; Noory, Mohammad A; Sharma, Arati

    2015-01-01

    Despite the considerable progress in understanding the biology of human cancer and technological advancement in drug discovery, treatment failure remains an inevitable outcome for most cancer patients with advanced diseases, including melanoma. Despite FDA-approved BRAF-targeted therapies for advanced stage melanoma showed a great deal of promise, development of rapid resistance limits the success. Hence, the overall success rate of melanoma therapy still remains to be one of the worst compared to other malignancies. Advancement of next-generation sequencing technology allowed better identification of alterations that trigger melanoma development. As development of successful therapies strongly depends on clinically relevant preclinical models, together with the new findings, more advanced melanoma models have been generated. In this article, besides traditional mouse models of melanoma, we will discuss recent ones, such as patient-derived tumor xenografts, topically inducible BRAF mouse model and RCAS/TVA-based model, and their advantages as well as limitations. Although mouse models of melanoma are often criticized as poor predictors of whether an experimental drug would be an effective treatment, development of new and more relevant models could circumvent this problem in the near future.

  16. Nevus-associated melanomas: clinicopathologic features.

    PubMed

    Shitara, Danielle; Nascimento, Mauricio M; Puig, Susana; Yamada, Sérgio; Enokihara, Milvia M S S; Michalany, Nilceo; Bagatin, Ediléia

    2014-10-01

    The clinical significance of nevus-associated melanoma compared with de novo melanomas remains controversial. It has been suggested that nevus-associated melanomas have a higher Breslow thickness and therefore worse prognosis. Over a 10-year period, this study evaluated the incidence of nevus-associated melanoma and its prognostic significance related to clinicopathologic features. Cross-sectional study from 1995 through 2004 in a dermatopathology referral center. With available data, we evaluated sex, primary location, histologic subtype, Breslow thickness, Clark level, presence of ulceration, associated lesion, and histologic subtype of the associated lesion. Of 135,653 pathologic records from skin biopsy specimens over a 10-year period, 1,190 melanoma records were selected. Nevus-associated melanomas corresponded to 390 (32.8%) melanomas, with thin melanomas having a nevus 1.52 times the association observed with thick melanomas (>1.01 mm; 95% confidence interval, 1.16-1.99; P < .001). Superficial spreading melanoma was the most frequent, while no lentigo maligna melanoma was associated with nevi. The median Breslow thickness of nevus-associated melanomas was lower than that of de novo melanomas. Nevus-associated melanomas, which represent one-third of the melanomas in southeast Brazil, are associated with intermittent sun exposure, superficial spreading melanomas, and lower Breslow thickness. This is one of the largest series describing nevus-associated melanomas in Latin America. Copyright© by the American Society for Clinical Pathology.

  17. Fluorescently labeled therapeutic antibodies for detection of microscopic melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Day, Kristine E.; Beck, Lauren N.; Deep, Nicholas L.; Kovar, Joy; Zinn, Kurt R; Rosenthal, Eben L.

    2013-01-01

    Objective Detection of microscopic disease during surgical resection of melanoma remains a significant challenge. To assess real-time optical imaging for visualization of microscopic cancer, we evaluated three FDA-approved therapeutic monoclonal antibodies. Study Design Prospective, basic science Methods Melanoma cell lines (A375 and SKMEL5) were xenografted into the ears of immunodeficient mice. Bevacizumab, panitumumab, tocilizumab, or a non-specific IgG were covalently linked to a near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe (IRDye800CW) and systemically injected. Primary tumors were imaged and then resected under fluorescent guidance using the SPY, an NIR imaging system used in plastic and reconstructive surgeries to evaluate perfusion. Mice were also imaged with the Pearl Impulse small animal imager, an NIR imaging system designed for use with IRDye800CW. Post-resection, small tissue fragments were fluorescently imaged and presence of tumor subsequently confirmed by correlation with histology. Results All fluorescently-labeled therapeutic monoclonal antibodies could adequately delineate tumor from normal tissue based on tumor-to-background ratios (TBR) compared to IgG-IRDye800CW. On serial imaging, panitumumab achieved the highest TBRs with both SPY and Pearl (3.8 and 6.6). When used to guide resections, the antibody-dye conjugates generated TBRs in the range of 1.3-2.2 (average=1.6) using the SPY and 1.9-6.3 (average=2.7) using the Pearl. There was no significant difference amongst the antibodies with either imaging modality or cell line (one-way ANOVA). Conclusion Our data suggests that FDA approved antibodies may be suitable targeting agents for the intraoperative fluorescent detection of melanoma. Level of Evidence N/A PMID:23616260

  18. Deltex-3-like (DTX3L) stimulates metastasis of melanoma through FAK/PI3K/AKT but not MEK/ERK pathway

    PubMed Central

    Thang, Nguyen Dinh; Yajima, Ichiro; Kumasaka, Mayuko Y.; Iida, Machiko; Suzuki, Tamio; Kato, Masashi

    2015-01-01

    Deltex-3-like (DTX3L), an E3 ligase, is a member of the Deltex (DTX) family and is also called B-lymphoma and BAL-associated protein (BBAP). Previously, we established RFP/RET-transgenic mice, in which systemic hyperpigmented skin, benign melanocytic tumor(s) and melanoma(s) develop stepwise. Here we showed that levels of Dtx3l/DTX3L in spontaneous melanoma in RFP/RET-transgenic mice and human melanoma cell lines were significantly higher than those in benign melanocytic cells and primarily cultured normal human epithelial melanocytes, respectively. Immunohistochemical analysis of human tissues showed that more than 80% of the melanomas highly expressed DTX3L. Activity of FAK/PI3K/AKT signaling, but not that of MEK/ERK signaling, was decreased in Dtx3l/DTX3L-depleted murine and human melanoma cells. In summary, we demonstrated not only increased DTX3L level in melanoma cells but also DTX3L-mediated regulation of invasion and metastasis in melanoma through FAK/PI3K/AKT but not MEK/ERK signaling. Our analysis in human BRAFV600E inhibitor-resistant melanoma cells showed about 80% decreased invasion in the DTX3L-depleted cells compared to that in the DTX3L-intact cells. Thus, DTX3L is clinically a potential therapeutic target as well as a potential biomarker for melanoma. PMID:26033450

  19. 41 CFR 102-33.375 - What is a FSCAP Criticality Code?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What is a FSCAP Criticality Code? 102-33.375 Section 102-33.375 Public Contracts and Property Management Federal Property Management Regulations System (Continued) FEDERAL MANAGEMENT REGULATION PERSONAL PROPERTY 33-MANAGEMENT OF...

  20. Melanoma-specific mortality and competing mortality in patients with non-metastatic malignant melanoma: a population-based analysis.

    PubMed

    Shen, Weidong; Sakamoto, Naoko; Yang, Limin

    2016-07-07

    The objectives of this study were to evaluate and model the probability of melanoma-specific death and competing causes of death for patients with melanoma by competing risk analysis, and to build competing risk nomograms to provide individualized and accurate predictive tools. Melanoma data were obtained from the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results program. All patients diagnosed with primary non-metastatic melanoma during the years 2004-2007 were potentially eligible for inclusion. The cumulative incidence function (CIF) was used to describe the probability of melanoma mortality and competing risk mortality. We used Gray's test to compare differences in CIF between groups. The proportional subdistribution hazard approach by Fine and Gray was used to model CIF. We built competing risk nomograms based on the models that we developed. The 5-year cumulative incidence of melanoma death was 7.1 %, and the cumulative incidence of other causes of death was 7.4 %. We identified that variables associated with an elevated probability of melanoma-specific mortality included older age, male sex, thick melanoma, ulcerated cancer, and positive lymph nodes. The nomograms were well calibrated. C-indexes were 0.85 and 0.83 for nomograms predicting the probability of melanoma mortality and competing risk mortality, which suggests good discriminative ability. This large study cohort enabled us to build a reliable competing risk model and nomogram for predicting melanoma prognosis. Model performance proved to be good. This individualized predictive tool can be used in clinical practice to help treatment-related decision making.

  1. Wnt interaction and extracellular release of prominin-1/CD133 in human malignant melanoma cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Rappa, Germana; College of Pharmacy, Roseman University of Health Sciences, Henderson, NV 89104; Mercapide, Javier

    2013-04-01

    Prominin-1 (CD133) is the first identified gene of a novel class of pentaspan membrane glycoproteins. It is expressed by various epithelial and non-epithelial cells, and notably by stem and cancer stem cells. In non-cancerous cells such as neuro-epithelial and hematopoietic stem cells, prominin-1 is selectively concentrated in plasma membrane protrusions, and released into the extracellular milieu in association with small vesicles. Previously, we demonstrated that prominin-1 contributes to melanoma cells pro-metastatic properties and suggested that it may constitute a molecular target to prevent prominin-1-expressing melanomas from colonizing and growing in lymph nodes and distant organs. Here, we report that threemore » distinct pools of prominin-1 co-exist in cultures of human FEMX-I metastatic melanoma. Morphologically, in addition to the plasma membrane localization, prominin-1 is found within the intracellular compartments, (e.g., Golgi apparatus) and in association with extracellular membrane vesicles. The latter prominin-1–positive structures appeared in three sizes (small, ≤40 nm; intermediates ∼40–80 nm, and large, >80 nm). Functionally, the down-regulation of prominin-1 in FEMX-I cells resulted in a significant reduction of number of lipid droplets as observed by coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering image analysis and Oil red O staining, and surprisingly in a decrease in the nuclear localization of beta-catenin, a surrogate marker of Wnt activation. Moreover, the T-cell factor/lymphoid enhancer factor (TCF/LEF) promoter activity was 2 to 4 times higher in parental than in prominin-1-knockdown cells. Collectively, our results point to Wnt signaling and/or release of prominin-1–containing membrane vesicles as mediators of the pro-metastatic activity of prominin-1 in FEMX-I melanoma. - Highlights: ► First report of release of prominin-1–containing microvesicles from cancer cells. ► Pro-metastatic role of prominin-1

  2. Phase 2 study of sunitinib in patients with metastatic mucosal or acral melanoma.

    PubMed

    Buchbinder, Elizabeth I; Sosman, Jeffrey A; Lawrence, Donald P; McDermott, David F; Ramaiya, Nikhil H; Van den Abbeele, Annick D; Linette, Gerald P; Giobbie-Hurder, Anita; Hodi, F Stephen

    2015-11-15

    Patients with mucosal and acral melanomas have limited treatment options and a poor prognosis. Mutations of the KIT oncogene in these melanoma subtypes provide a potential therapeutic target. A multicenter phase 2 trial of sunitinib was conducted in patients with unresectable stage III or IV melanoma of a mucosal or acral primary origin. Patients were treated in 2 cohorts: cohort A received sunitinib at a dose of 50 mg daily for 4 weeks of a 6-week cycle, and cohort B received sunitinib at a dose of 37.5 mg daily on a continuous basis. Dose reductions were permitted for treatment-related toxicities, and tumor assessments were performed every 2 months. Fifty-two patients were enrolled: 21 in cohort A and 31 in cohort B. Four patients had confirmed partial responses, which lasted 5 to 10 months (1 with a KIT mutation). In both cohorts, the proportion of patients alive and progression-free at 2 months was 52% (95% confidence interval, 38%-66%); this was significantly larger than the hypothesized null of 5%. There was no significant difference in response or overall survival between the 25% of patients with a KIT mutation and those without one (response rate, 7.7% vs 9.7%; overall survival, 6.4 vs 8.6 months). The overall disease control rate was 44%, and a high rate of toxicity was associated with the treatment. Sunitinib showed activity in the treatment of mucosal and acral melanoma that was not dependent on the presence of a KIT mutation. However, the medication was poorly tolerated, and there were no prolonged responses. Cancer 2015;121:4007-4015. © 2015 American Cancer Society. © 2015 American Cancer Society.

  3. 14 CFR 375.22 - Flight operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Flight operations. 375.22 Section 375.22 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... Flight operations. Flights of foreign civil aircraft in the United States shall be conducted in...

  4. 14 CFR 375.22 - Flight operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Flight operations. 375.22 Section 375.22 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... Flight operations. Flights of foreign civil aircraft in the United States shall be conducted in...

  5. 14 CFR 375.22 - Flight operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Flight operations. 375.22 Section 375.22 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... Flight operations. Flights of foreign civil aircraft in the United States shall be conducted in...

  6. 14 CFR 375.22 - Flight operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Flight operations. 375.22 Section 375.22 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... Flight operations. Flights of foreign civil aircraft in the United States shall be conducted in...

  7. 14 CFR 375.22 - Flight operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Flight operations. 375.22 Section 375.22 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION PROCEEDINGS) SPECIAL... Flight operations. Flights of foreign civil aircraft in the United States shall be conducted in...

  8. The presence of dysplastic nevus remnants in malignant melanomas. A population-based study of 551 malignant melanomas.

    PubMed

    Hastrup, N; Osterlind, A; Drzewiecki, K T; Hou-Jensen, K

    1991-08-01

    We examined 512 malignant melanomas, representing all newly diagnosed cutaneous malignant melanomas, excluding lentigo maligna melanomas, from the period October 1, 1982 to March 31, 1985 occurring in the region of eastern Denmark in patients aged 20-79 years for the presence of dysplastic nevus remnants. Criteria for the diagnosis of a dysplastic nevus remnant include all the following changes (a) lentiginous or epithelioid melanocyte hyperplasia, (b) cytologic melanocyte atypia, (c) eosinophilic fibroplasia, (d) lamellar fibroplasia, and (e) lymphocytic infiltration in the dermis. Dysplastic nevus remnants were found in association with 34 (7%) of the evaluable 512 malignant melanomas. Fourteen (41%) of the remnants were of compound nevus type. In nine (27%) of the remnants, atypia was pronounced. Most (62%) dysplastic nevus remnants were contiguous to thin superficial spreading melanomas. We conclude from this population-based study that about 7% of malignant melanomas arise in prior dysplastic nevi.

  9. Interferon Alpha Signalling and Its Relevance for the Upregulatory Effect of Transporter Proteins Associated with Antigen Processing (TAP) in Patients with Malignant Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Ensslen, Silke; Marquardt, Yvonne; Czaja, Katharina; Joussen, Sylvia; Beer, Daniel; Abele, Rupert; Plewnia, Gabriele; Tampé, Robert; Merk, Hans F.; Hermanns, Heike M.; Baron, Jens M.

    2016-01-01

    Introduction Interferon alpha (IFNα) is routinely used in the clinical practice for adjuvant systemic melanoma therapy. Understanding the molecular mechanism of IFNα effects and prediction of response in the IFNα therapy regime allows initiation and continuation of IFNα treatment for responder and exclusion of non-responder to avoid therapy inefficacy and side-effects. The transporter protein associated with antigen processing-1 (TAP1) is part of the MHC class I peptide-loading complex, and important for antigen presentation in tumor and antigen presenting cells. In the context of personalized medicine, we address this potential biomarker TAP1 as a target of IFNα signalling. Results We could show that IFNα upregulates TAP1 expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with malignant melanoma receiving adjuvant high-dose immunotherapy. IFNα also induced expression of TAP1 in mouse blood and tumor tissue and suppressed the formation of melanoma metastasis in an in vivo B16 tumor model. Besides its expression, TAP binding affinity and transport activity is induced by IFNα in human monocytic THP1 cells. Furthermore, our data revealed that IFNα clearly activates phosphorylation of STAT1 and STAT3 in THP1 and A375 melanoma cells. Inhibition of Janus kinases abrogates the IFNα-induced TAP1 expression. These results suggest that the JAK/STAT pathway is a crucial mediator for TAP1 expression elicited by IFNα treatment. Conclusion We suppose that silencing of TAP1 expression provides tumor cells with a mechanism to escape cytotoxic T-lymphocyte recognition. The observed benefit of IFNα treatment could be mediated by the shown dual effect of TAP1 upregulation in antigen presenting cells on the one hand, and of TAP1 upregulation in ‘silent’ metastatic melanoma cells on the other hand. In conclusion, this work contributes to a better understanding of the mode of action of IFNα which is essential to identify markers to predict, assess and

  10. CDKN2B loss promotes progression from benign melanocytic nevus to melanoma

    PubMed Central

    McNeal, Andrew S.; Liu, Kevin; Nakhate, Vihang; Natale, Christopher A.; Duperret, Elizabeth K.; Capell, Brian C.; Dentchev, Tzvete; Berger, Shelley L.; Herlyn, Meenhard; Seykora, John T.; Ridky, Todd W.

    2015-01-01

    Deletion of the entire CDKN2B-CDKN2A gene cluster is among the most common genetic events in cancer. The tumor-promoting effects are generally attributed to loss of CDKN2A-encoded p16 and p14ARF tumor suppressors. The degree to which the associated CDKN2B-encoded p15 loss contributes to human tumorigenesis is unclear. Here we show that CDKN2B is highly upregulated in benign melanocytic nevi, contributes to maintaining nevus melanocytes in a growth-arrested premalignant state, and is commonly lost in melanoma. Using primary melanocytes isolated directly from freshly excised human nevi naturally expressing the common BRAF(V600E) activating mutation, nevi progressing to melanoma, and normal melanocytes engineered to inducibly express BRAF(V600E), we show that BRAF activation results in reversible, TGFβ-dependent, p15 induction that halts proliferation. Further, we engineer human skin grafts containing nevus-derived melanocytes to establish a new, architecturally faithful, in vivo melanoma model, and demonstrate that p15 loss promotes the transition from benign nevus to melanoma. PMID:26183406

  11. Role of β-catenin signaling in the anti-invasive effect of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA in human melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Serini, Simona; Zinzi, Antonio; Ottes Vasconcelos, Renata; Fasano, Elena; Riillo, Maria Greca; Celleno, Leonardo; Trombino, Sonia; Cassano, Roberta; Calviello, Gabriella

    2016-11-01

    We previously found that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a dietary polyunsaturated fatty acid present at high level in fatty fish, inhibited cell growth and induced differentiation of melanoma cells in vitro by increasing nuclear β-catenin content. An anti-neoplastic role of nuclear β-catenin was suggested in melanoma, and related to the presence in the melanocyte lineage of the microphtalmia transcription factor (MITF), which interferes with the transcription of β-catenin/TCF/LEF pro-invasive target genes. In the present work we investigated if DHA could inhibit the invasive potential of melanoma cells, and if this effect could be related to DHA-induced alterations of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling, including changes in MITF expression. WM115 and WM266-4 human melanoma, and B16-F10 murine melanoma cell lines were used. Cell invasion was evaluated by Wound Healing and Matrigel transwell assays. Protein expression was analyzed by Western Blotting and β-catenin phosphorylation by immunoprecipitation. The role of MITF in the anti-invasive effect of DHA was analyzed by siRNA gene silencing. We found that DHA inhibited anchorage-independent cell growth, reduced their migration/invasion in vitro and down-regulated several Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMP: MMP-2, MT1-MMP and MMP-13), known to be involved in melanoma invasion. We related these effects to the β-catenin increased nuclear expression and PKA-dependent phosphorylation, as well as to the increased expression of MITF. The data obtained further support the potential role of dietary DHA as suppressor of melanoma progression to invasive malignancy through its ability to enhance MITF expression and PKA-dependent nuclear β-catenin phosphorylation. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  12. Monoclonal Antibody and an Antibody-Toxin Conjugate to a Cell Surface Proteoglycan of Melanoma Cells Suppress in vivo Tumor Growth

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bumol, T. F.; Wang, Q. C.; Reisfeld, R. A.; Kaplan, N. O.

    1983-01-01

    A monoclonal antibody directed against a cell surface chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan of human melanoma cells, 9.2.27, and its diphtheria toxin A chain (DTA) conjugate were investigated for their effects on in vitro protein synthesis and in vivo tumor growth of human melanoma cells. The 9.2.27 IgG and its DTA conjugate display similar serological activities against melanoma target cells but only the conjugate can induce consistent in vitro inhibition of protein synthesis and toxicity in M21 melanoma cells. However, both 9.2.27 IgG and its DTA conjugate effect significant suppression of M21 tumor growth in vivo in an immunotherapy model of a rapidly growing tumor in athymic nu/nu mice, suggesting that other host mechanisms may mediate monoclonal antibody-induced tumor suppression.

  13. Melanoma.

    PubMed

    Gershenwald, J E

    2001-01-01

    The presentations at the American Society of Clinical Oncology 2001 meeting reported or updated the results of phase I, II, and III randomized trials and also reported important meta-analyses and retrospective studies impacting on the management of patients with melanoma. In the treatment of early stage melanoma, the prognostic significance of pathologic status of sentinel lymph nodes was affirmed. With respect to regional nodal involvement (American Joint Committee on Cancer [AJCC] stage III), investigators presented the interim results of the United Kingdom randomized low-dose interferon (IFN) trial, and up-to-date meta-analyses of several IFN trials including a pooled analysis of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group trials evaluating interferon in the adjuvant setting. In the advanced disease setting (AJCC stage IV), several studies elucidated the pros and cons of biochemotherapy in patients with metastatic melanoma, with an emphasis on seeking to improve response in the central nervous system and durability of response in general. Thought provoking was new data regarding the potential for lovastatin to act as a chemopreventive agent for melanoma. Translational studies were presented, one supporting the importance of HLA-typing in developing targeted vaccine therapy. Finally, the results of a novel experimental melanoma vaccine were presented using autologous tumor-derived heat-shock protein peptide complex-96 (HSPPC-96).

  14. 47 CFR 36.375 - Published directory listing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Published directory listing. 36.375 Section 36... Customer Operations Expenses § 36.375 Published directory listing. (a) This classification includes expenses for preparing or purchasing, compiling and disseminating directory listings. (b) Published...

  15. A case-control study: occupational cooking and the risk of uveal melanoma

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background A European-wide population based case-control study (European rare cancer study) undertaken in nine European countries examined risk factors for uveal melanoma. They found a positive association between cooks and the risk of uveal melanoma. In our study we examine whether cooks or people who worked in cook related jobs have an increased uveal melanoma risk. Methods We conducted a case-control study during 2002 and 2005. Overall, 1653 eligible subjects (age range: 20-74 years, living in Germany) participated. Interviews were conducted with 459 incident uveal melanoma cases, 827 population controls, 180 ophthalmologist controls and 187 sibling controls. Data on occupational exposure were obtained from a self-administered postal questionnaire and a computer-assisted telephone interview. We used conditional logistic regression to estimate odds ratios adjusting for the matching factors. Results Overall, we did not observe an increased risk of uveal melanoma among people who worked as cooks or who worked in cook related jobs. When we restricted the source population of our study to the population of the Federal State of Northrhine-Westphalia, we observed an increased risk among subjects who were categorized as cooks in the cases-control analysis. Conclusion Our results are in conflict with former results of the European rare cancer study. Considering the rarity of the disease laboratory in vitro studies of human uveal melanoma cell lines should be done to analyze potential exposure risk factors like radiation from microwaves, strong light from incandescent ovens, or infrared radiation. PMID:20969762

  16. 18 CFR 375.305 - Delegations to the Solicitor.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Delegations to the Solicitor. 375.305 Section 375.305 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REVISED GENERAL RULES THE COMMISSION Delegations § 375.305 Delegations to...

  17. Potent Antitumor Effects of Combination Therapy With IFNs and Monocytes in Mouse Models of Established Human Ovarian and Melanoma Tumors

    PubMed Central

    Nakashima, Hideyuki; Miyake, Kotaro; Clark, Christopher R; Bekisz, Joseph; Finbloom, Joel; Husain, Syed R.; Baron, Samuel; Puri, Raj K.; Zoon, Kathryn C.

    2012-01-01

    Interferon-activated monocytes are known to exert cytocidal activity against tumor cells in vitro. Here, we have examined whether a combination of IFN-α2a and IFN-γ and human monocytes mediate significant antitumor effects against human ovarian and melanoma tumor xenografts in mouse models. OVCAR-3 tumors were treated i.t. with monocytes alone, IFN-α2a and IFN-γ alone or combination of all three on day 0, 15 or 30 post-tumor implantation. Mice receiving combination therapy beginning day 15 showed significantly reduced tumor growth and prolonged survival including complete regression in 40% mice., Tumor volumes measured on day 80 in mice receiving combination therapy (206 mm3) were significantly smaller than those of mice receiving the IFNs alone (1041 mm3), monocytes alone (1111 mm3) or untreated controls (1728 mm3). Similarly, combination therapy with monocytes and IFNs of much larger tumor also inhibited OVCAR-3 tumor growth. Immunohistochemistry studies showed a large number of activated macrophages (CD31+/CD68+) infiltrating into OVCAR-3 tumors and higher densities of IL-12, IP10 and NOS2, markers of M1 (classical) macrophages in tumors treated with combination therapy compared to the controls. Interestingly, IFNs activated macrophages induced apoptosis of OVCAR-3 tumor cells as monocytes alone or IFNs alone did not mediate significant apoptosis. Similar antitumor activity was observed in the LOX melanoma mouse model, but not as profound as seen with the OVCAR-3 tumors. Administration of either mixture of monocytes and IFN-α2a or monocytes and IFN-γ did not inhibit Lox melanoma growth; however a significant inhibition was observed when tumors were treated with a mixture of monocytes, IFN-α2a and IFN-γ. These results indicate that monocytes and both IFN-α2a and IFN-γ may be required to mediate profound antitumor effect against human ovarian and melanoma tumors in mouse models. PMID:22159517

  18. Personal attributions for melanoma risk in melanoma-affected patients and family members

    PubMed Central

    Hay, Jennifer; DiBonaventura, Marco; Baser, Raymond; Press, Nancy; Shoveller, Jeanne; Bowen, Deborah

    2010-01-01

    Personal attributions for cancer risk involve factors that individuals believe contribute to their risk for developing cancer. Understanding personal risk attributions for melanoma may dictate gene-environment melanoma risk communication strategies. We examined attributions for melanoma risk in a population-based sample of melanoma survivors, first degree family members, and family members who are also parents (N=939). We conducted qualitative examination of open-ended risk attributions and logistic regression examining predictors (demographics, family member type, perceived risk) of the attributions reported (ultraviolet radiation [UVR] exposure, heredity/genetics, phenotype, personal melanoma history, miscellaneous). We found a predominance of risk attributions to UVR and heredity/genetics (80% and 45% of the sample, respectively). Those reporting higher education levels were more likely to endorse attributions to heredity/genetics, as well as to phenotype, than those of lower education levels. First-degree relatives and parent family members were more likely to endorse heredity/genetic attributions than melanoma survivors; melanoma survivors were more likely to endorse personal history of melanoma attributions compared to first-degree relatives and parent family members. These findings inform the development of risk communication interventions for melanoma families. PMID:20809355

  19. 40 CFR 265.375 - Waste analysis.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... each waste analysis, or the documented information, in the operating record of the facility.] ... 40 Protection of Environment 27 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Waste analysis. 265.375 Section 265... FACILITIES Thermal Treatment § 265.375 Waste analysis. In addition to the waste analyses required by § 265.13...

  20. 40 CFR 265.375 - Waste analysis.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... each waste analysis, or the documented information, in the operating record of the facility.] ... 40 Protection of Environment 25 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Waste analysis. 265.375 Section 265... FACILITIES Thermal Treatment § 265.375 Waste analysis. In addition to the waste analyses required by § 265.13...

  1. 18 CFR 375.203 - Open meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Open meetings. 375.203 Section 375.203 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT... photographing of Commission meetings by still or movie camera, or by video taping without lighting aids, is...

  2. 18 CFR 375.203 - Open meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Open meetings. 375.203 Section 375.203 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT... photographing of Commission meetings by still or movie camera, or by video taping without lighting aids, is...

  3. 18 CFR 375.203 - Open meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Open meetings. 375.203 Section 375.203 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT... photographing of Commission meetings by still or movie camera, or by video taping without lighting aids, is...

  4. 18 CFR 375.203 - Open meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Open meetings. 375.203 Section 375.203 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT... photographing of Commission meetings by still or movie camera, or by video taping without lighting aids, is...

  5. 18 CFR 375.203 - Open meetings.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Open meetings. 375.203 Section 375.203 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT... photographing of Commission meetings by still or movie camera, or by video taping without lighting aids, is...

  6. Selenium for the Prevention of Cutaneous Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Cassidy, Pamela B.; Fain, Heidi D.; Cassidy, James P.; Tran, Sally M.; Moos, Philip J.; Boucher, Kenneth M.; Gerads, Russell; Florell, Scott R.; Grossman, Douglas; Leachman, Sancy A.

    2013-01-01

    The role of selenium (Se) supplementation in cancer prevention is controversial; effects often depend on the nutritional status of the subject and on the chemical form in which Se is provided. We used a combination of in vitro and in vivo models to study two unique therapeutic windows for intervention in the process of cutaneous melanomagenisis, and to examine the utility of two different chemical forms of Se for prevention and treatment of melanoma. We studied the effects of Se in vitro on UV-induced oxidative stress in melanocytes, and on apoptosis and cell cycle progression in melanoma cells. In vivo, we used the HGF transgenic mouse model of UV-induced melanoma to demonstrate that topical treatment with l-selenomethionine results in a significant delay in the time required for UV-induced melanoma development, but also increases the rate of growth of those tumors once they appear. In a second mouse model, we found that oral administration of high dose methylseleninic acid significantly decreases the size of human melanoma xenografts. Our findings suggest that modestly elevation of selenium levels in the skin might risk acceleration of growth of incipient tumors. Additionally, certain Se compounds administered at very high doses could have utility for the treatment of fully-malignant tumors or prevention of recurrence. PMID:23470450

  7. 14 CFR 375.19 - Nature of privilege conferred.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Nature of privilege conferred. 375.19 Section 375.19 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION... Applicable § 375.19 Nature of privilege conferred. The provisions of this part, and of any permit issued...

  8. 14 CFR 375.19 - Nature of privilege conferred.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Nature of privilege conferred. 375.19 Section 375.19 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION... Applicable § 375.19 Nature of privilege conferred. The provisions of this part, and of any permit issued...

  9. 14 CFR 375.19 - Nature of privilege conferred.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Nature of privilege conferred. 375.19 Section 375.19 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION... Applicable § 375.19 Nature of privilege conferred. The provisions of this part, and of any permit issued...

  10. 14 CFR 375.19 - Nature of privilege conferred.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Nature of privilege conferred. 375.19 Section 375.19 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION... Applicable § 375.19 Nature of privilege conferred. The provisions of this part, and of any permit issued...

  11. 14 CFR 375.19 - Nature of privilege conferred.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Nature of privilege conferred. 375.19 Section 375.19 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (AVIATION... Applicable § 375.19 Nature of privilege conferred. The provisions of this part, and of any permit issued...

  12. 20 CFR 375.6 - Personnel, fiscal, and service functions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... her respective geographic area. (b) Fiscal. (1) In a national emergency, as defined in § 375.2, the... OPERATION DURING A NATIONAL EMERGENCY § 375.6 Personnel, fiscal, and service functions. (a) Personnel. In a national emergency as defined in § 375.2, when it is no longer possible for a regional director to...

  13. 20 CFR 375.6 - Personnel, fiscal, and service functions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... her respective geographic area. (b) Fiscal. (1) In a national emergency, as defined in § 375.2, the... OPERATION DURING A NATIONAL EMERGENCY § 375.6 Personnel, fiscal, and service functions. (a) Personnel. In a national emergency as defined in § 375.2, when it is no longer possible for a regional director to...

  14. New imaging-based biomarkers for melanoma diagnosis using coherent Raman Scattering microscopy (Conference Presentation)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Hequn; Osseiran, Sam; Roider, Elisabeth; Fisher, David E.; Evans, Conor L.

    2016-02-01

    Recently, pheomelanin has been found to play a critical role in melanoma progression given its pro-oxidant chemical properties as well as its marked presence in pre-cancerous and malignant melanoma lesions, even in the absence of ultraviolet radiation. In addition, epidemiological evidence indicates a strong correlation between melanoma incidence and skin type, with the highest incidence occurring in individuals of the red-haired/fair-skinned phenotype. Interestingly, nevus count correlates well with melanoma incidence and skin type, except in the population most prone to developing melanoma, where nevus count strikingly drops. As such, a current hypothesis proposes that fair-skinned red-haired individuals, who are unable to stimulate production of eumelanin due to a mutation in MC1R in melanocytes, may actually harbor numerous "invisible", pheomelanin-rich nevi that evade clinical detection, supporting the high incidence of melanoma in that population. Here, we show for the very first time that melanocytes extracted from genetically modified MC1R-mutant, red-haired mice displayed bright perinuclear distributions of signal within the cells under coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) microscopy. Changes in pheomelanin production in siRNA knockdowns of cultured human melanoma cells were also sensed. We then successfully imaged pheomelanin distributions in both ex vivo and in vivo mouse ear skin. Finally, melanosomes within amelanotic melanoma patient tissue sections were found to show bright pheomelanin signals. This is the first time, to our knowledge, that pheomelanin has been found spatially localized in a human amelanotic melanoma sample. These pheomelanotic CARS features may be used as potential biomarkers for melanoma detection, especially for amelanotic melanomas.

  15. Enhanced anti-tumor activity by the combination of a conditionally replicating adenovirus mediated interleukin-24 and dacarbazine against melanoma cells via induction of apoptosis.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Guan; Liu, Yan-Qun; Wei, Zhi-Ping; Pei, Dong-Sheng; Mao, Li-Jun; Zheng, Jun-Nian

    2010-08-28

    Malignant melanoma is one of the most lethal and aggressive human malignancies. It is notoriously resistant to all of the current therapeutic modalities, including chemotherapy. Suppressed apoptosis and extraordinary invasiveness are the distinctive features that contribute to the malignancy of melanoma. Dacarbazine (DTIC) has been considered as the gold standard for melanoma treatment with a response rate of 15-20%. Unfortunately, the resistance to this chemotherapeutic agent occurs frequently. ZD55-IL-24 is a selective conditionally replicating adenovirus that can mediate the expression of interleukin-24 (IL-24) gene, which has a strong anti-tumor effect. In this study, we hypothesized that a combination of ZD55-IL-24-mediated gene virotherapy and chemotherapy using DTIC would produce an increased cytotoxicity against human melanoma cells in comparison with these agents alone. Our results showed that the combination of ZD55-IL-24 and DTIC significantly enhanced the anti-tumor activity by more effectively inducing apoptosis in melanoma cells than either agent used alone without any overlapping toxicity against normal cells. This additive or synergistic effect of ZD55-IL-24 in combination with DTIC in killing human malignant melanoma cells implies a promising novel approach for melanoma therapy. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. The effect of Taurolidine on adherent and floating subpopulations of melanoma cells.

    PubMed

    Shrayer, D P; Lukoff, H; King, T; Calabresi, P

    2003-04-01

    The annual incidence of malignant melanoma is estimated at 10-12 per 100000 inhabitants in countries of Central Europe and the US, with more recent estimates showing a dramatic upward trend. Taurolidine (Carter/Wallace, Cranberry, NJ) is a novel, potentially effective, antitumor chemotherapeutic agent. We hypothesized that Taurolidine could inhibit the growth, induce apoptosis, affect the cell cycle and change morphology of melanoma cells. We expected this process to be different in adherent and floating subpopulations that may be reflective of solid tumors and their metastases. Analysis of MNT-1 human and B16F10 murine melanoma cells showed that at 72 h the IC(50) of Taurolidine was 25.4+/-3.3 microM for MNT-1 human melanoma cells and 30.9+/-3.6 microM for B16F10 murine melanoma cells. Taurolidine induced DNA fragmentation of melanoma cells in a dose-dependent manner. Taurolidine (75 and 100 microM) induced 52-97% Annexin-V binding (apoptosis), respectively. Evaluation of cell cycle after 72 h exposure to Taurolidine (0-100 microM) revealed that the percentage of melanoma cells in S phase increased from 27 to 40% in the adherent subpopulation and from 33 to 49% in the floating subpopulation. Phase contrast microscopy revealed a marked swelling of melanoma cells and decreasing cell numbers in adherent subpopulation starting at 24 h with 25 microM Taurolidine. Shrinkage of cells dominated at 75-100 microM Taurolidine. Using Cytospin assay in the floating population, we observed swelling of melanoma cells induced by 25-100 micro Taurolidine and appearance of giant (multinuclear) forms resulting from exposure to 75-100 micro Taurolidine. Some floating cells with normal morphology were observed with low concentrations of Taurolidine (0-25 microM). These data show that effects of Taurolidine may be different in adherent and floating subpopulations of melanoma cells. More importantly, floating subpopulations that may contain some viable melanoma cells, may be reflective

  17. Comparing the efficacy of photodynamic and sonodynamic therapy in non-melanoma and melanoma skin cancer.

    PubMed

    McEwan, Conor; Nesbitt, Heather; Nicholas, Dean; Kavanagh, Oisin N; McKenna, Kevin; Loan, Philip; Jack, Iain G; McHale, Anthony P; Callan, John F

    2016-07-01

    Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) involves the activation of a non-toxic sensitiser drug using low-intensity ultrasound to produce cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS). Given the low tissue attenuation of ultrasound, SDT provides a significant benefit over the more established photodynamic therapy (PDT) as it enables activation of sensitisers at a greater depth within human tissue. In this manuscript, we compare the efficacy of aminolevulinic acid (ALA) mediated PDT and SDT in a squamous cell carcinoma (A431) cell line as well as the ability of these treatments to reduce the size of A431 ectopic tumours in mice. Similarly, the relative cytotoxic ability of Rose Bengal mediated PDT and SDT was investigated in a B16-melanoma cell line and also in a B16 ectopic tumour model. The results reveal no statistically significant difference in efficacy between ALA mediated PDT or SDT in the non-melanoma model while Rose Bengal mediated SDT was significantly more efficacious than PDT in the melanoma model. This difference in efficacy was, at least in part, attributed to the dark pigmentation of the melanoma cells that effectively filtered the excitation light preventing it from activating the sensitiser while the use of ultrasound circumvented this problem. These results suggest SDT may provide a better outcome than PDT when treating highly pigmented cancerous skin lesions. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  18. Antitumoral, antioxidant, and antimelanogenesis potencies of Hawthorn, a potential natural agent in the treatment of melanoma.

    PubMed

    Mustapha, Nadia; Mokdad-Bzéouich, Imèn; Maatouk, Mouna; Ghedira, Kamel; Hennebelle, Thierry; Chekir-Ghedira, Leila

    2016-06-01

    The lack of an efficient agent that does not have the disadvantage of low activity (kojic acid), high cytotoxicity, and mutagenicity (hydroquinone), poor skin penetration (arbutin), or low stability in formulation (glabridin) led us to continue our research on new antipigmentation/skin-lightening agents. Therefore, research of natural products that can modulate the metabolism of pigmentation is of great interest. Otherwise, malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive forms of skin cancer, with high metastatic potential, and currently, there is no effective chemotherapy against invasive melanoma. Therefore, it is necessary to develop new drugs with potent activity and weak side effects against melanoma. The in-vitro anticancer effect of hawthorn was analyzed against B16F10 melanoma cells using a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. The effect of isolated compounds from hawthorn on melanogenesis in B16F10 melanoma cells was investigated by measuring the amounts of melanin and tyrosinase spectrophotometrically at 475 nm. Balb/c mice models inoculated with B16F10 mouse tumor cells were used to evaluate the in-vivo antitumoral potential of hawthorn by assessing its effect on the growth of transplanted tumors. The antioxidant potential of tested samples was evaluated in B16F10 and primary human keratinocyte cells using a cellular antioxidant activity assay. Hawthorn tested samples inhibited effectively the growth of melanoma cells in vitro. Furthermore, it appears that tested samples from hawthorn reduced melanogenesis by inhibiting the tyrosinase activity of B16F10 cells in a dose-dependent manner. In-vivo studies showed that hawthorn total oligomer flavonoids extract treatment at a dose of 150 mg/kg body weight for 21 days in implanted tumor mice resulted in significant inhibition of the tumor growth volume and weight. In addition, tested samples showed significant cellular antioxidant capacity against the reactive oxygen species

  19. Fear of new or recurrent melanoma after treatment for localised melanoma.

    PubMed

    Bell, Katy J L; Mehta, Yachna; Turner, Robin M; Morton, Rachael L; Dieng, Mbathio; Saw, Robyn; Guitera, Pascale; McCaffery, Kirsten; Low, Donald; Low, Cynthia; Jenkins, Marisa; Irwig, Les; Webster, Angela C

    2017-11-01

    To estimate the amount of fear of new or recurrent melanoma among people treated for localised melanoma in an Australian specialist centre. We randomly selected 400 potential participants from all those treated for localised melanoma at the Melanoma Institute Australia during 2014 (n = 902). They were asked to complete an adapted version of the Fear of Cancer Recurrence Inventory (FCRI). We calculated summary statistics for demographics, clinical variables and total FCRI and subscale scores. Two hundred fifteen people (54%) completed the FCRI questionnaire. The overall mean severity subscale score was 15.0 (95% CI 14.0-16.1). A high proportion of participants had scores above a proposed threshold to screen for clinical fear of cancer recurrence (77% and 63% of participants with and without new or recurrent melanoma had severity subscale scores ≥13). Most participants also had scores above a threshold found to have high specificity for clinical fear of cancer recurrence (65% and 48% of participants with and without new or recurrent melanoma had severity subscale scores ≥16). The severity subscale appeared to discriminate well between groups with differing levels of risk of new or recurrent melanoma. There is a substantial amount of fear of new or recurrent melanoma among this population, despite most having a very good prognosis. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  20. Overexpression of connexin 43 reduces melanoma proliferative and metastatic capacity

    PubMed Central

    Tittarelli, A; Guerrero, I; Tempio, F; Gleisner, M A; Avalos, I; Sabanegh, S; Ortíz, C; Michea, L; López, M N; Mendoza-Naranjo, A; Salazar-Onfray, F

    2015-01-01

    Background: Alterations in connexin 43 (Cx43) expression and/or gap junction (GJ)-mediated intercellular communication are implicated in cancer pathogenesis. Herein, we have investigated the role of Cx43 in melanoma cell proliferation and apoptosis sensitivity in vitro, as well as metastatic capability and tumour growth in vivo. Methods: Connexin 43 expression levels, GJ coupling and proliferation rates were analysed in four different human melanoma cell lines. Furthermore, tumour growth and lung metastasis of high compared with low Cx43-expressing FMS cells were evaluated in vivo using a melanoma xenograft model. Results: Specific inhibition of Cx43 channel activity accelerated melanoma cell proliferation, whereas overexpression of Cx43 increased GJ coupling and reduced cell growth. Moreover, Cx43 overexpression in FMS cells increased basal and tumour necrosis factor-α-induced apoptosis and resulted in decreased melanoma tumour growth and lower number and size of metastatic foci in vivo. Conclusions: Our findings reveal an important role for Cx43 in intrinsically controlling melanoma growth, death and metastasis, and emphasise the potential use of compounds that selectively enhance Cx43 expression on melanoma in the future chemotherapy and/or immunotherapy protocols. PMID:26135897

  1. CD200 is induced by ERK and is a potential therapeutic target in melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Petermann, Kimberly B.; Rozenberg, Gabriela I.; Zedek, Daniel; Groben, Pamela; McKinnon, Karen; Buehler, Christin; Kim, William Y.; Shields, Janiel M.; Penland, Shannon; Bear, James E.; Thomas, Nancy E.; Serody, Jonathan S.; Sharpless, Norman E.

    2007-01-01

    Immune-mediated antitumor responses occur in patients with metastatic melanoma (MM), and therapies designed to augment such responses are clinically beneficial. Despite the immunogenicity of melanoma, immunomodulatory therapies fail in the majority of patients with MM. An inability of DCs to sufficiently activate effector cells may, in part, underlie this failure of the antitumor response seen in most patients. In this work, we show that mutation of N-RAS or B-RAF, signature genetic lesions present in most MMs, potently induced the expression of cell-surface CD200, a repressor of DC function. Employing 2 independent, genome-wide microarray analyses, we identified CD200 as a highly dynamic, downstream target of RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK activation in melanoma. CD200 protein was similarly overexpressed in human melanoma cell lines and primary tumors. CD200 mRNA expression correlated with progression and was higher in melanoma than in other solid tumors or acute leukemia. Melanoma cell lines expressing endogenous CD200 repressed primary T cell activation by DCs, while knockdown of CD200 by shRNA abrogated this immunosuppressive effect. These data indicate that in addition to its effects on growth, survival, and motility, ERK activation in MM attenuates a host antitumor immune response, implicating CD200 and its interaction with the CD200 receptor as a potential therapeutic target for MM. PMID:18008004

  2. Genomic alterations in spontaneous and carcinogen-induced murine melanoma cell lines.

    PubMed

    Melnikova, Vladislava O; Bolshakov, Svetlana V; Walker, Christopher; Ananthaswamy, Honnavara N

    2004-03-25

    We have conducted an analysis of genetic alterations in spontaneous murine melanoma cell line B16F0 and its two metastatic clones, B16F1 and B16F10 and the carcinogen-induced murine melanoma cell lines CM519, CM3205, and K1735. We found that unlike human melanomas, the murine melanoma cell lines did not have activating mutations in the Braf oncogene at exon 11 or 15. However, there were distinct patterns of alterations in the ras, Ink4a/Arf, and p53 genes in the two melanoma groups. In the spontaneous B16 melanoma cell lines, expression of p16Ink4a and p19Arf tumor suppressor proteins was lost as a consequence of a large deletion spanning Ink4a/Arf exons 1alpha, 1beta, and 2. In contrast, the carcinogen-induced melanoma cell lines expressed p16Ink4a but had inactivating mutations in either p19Arf (K1735) or p53 (CM519 and CM3205). Inactivation of p19Arf or p53 in carcinogen-induced melanomas was accompanied by constitutive activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and/or mutation-associated activation of N-ras. These results indicate that genetic alterations in p16Ink4a/p19Arf, p53 and ras-MAPK pathways can cooperate in the development of murine melanoma.

  3. Poliosis circumscripta unmasking a scalp melanoma.

    PubMed

    Yeo, L; Husain, E; Rajpara, S

    2015-12-01

    A 28-year-old man presented with a 1-year history of a localized patch of grey hair and an underlying darkly pigmented lesion on his right occipital area. Clinical appearance revealed poliosis overlying an asymmetrical plaque with variable degrees of brown pigmentation and white discolouration. Owing to the suspicious nature of the lesion, excision with a 2 mm margin was performed. Histology revealed an invasive melanoma with extensive regression and prominent involvement of multiple hair follicles. Scalp melanoma with associated poliosis is extremely rare, and has only been reported once in the literature to date. There have been two reports in the opthalmology literature regarding eyelash poliosis associated with orbital melanoma. The pathogenesis of poliosis still remains unclear. This is the second reported case of poliosis circmscripta unmasking a scalp melanoma, and highlights the importance of being vigilant when examining patients with poliosis of the scalp. © 2014 British Association of Dermatologists.

  4. Comparative preclinical evaluation of 68Ga-NODAGA and 68Ga-HBED-CC conjugated procainamide in melanoma imaging.

    PubMed

    Trencsényi, György; Dénes, Noémi; Nagy, Gábor; Kis, Adrienn; Vida, András; Farkas, Flóra; Szabó, Judit P; Kovács, Tünde; Berényi, Ervin; Garai, Ildikó; Bai, Péter; Hunyadi, János; Kertész, István

    2017-05-30

    Malignant melanoma is the most aggressive form of skin cancer. The early detection of primary melanoma tumors and metastases using non-invasive PET imaging determines the outcome of this disease. Previous studies have shown that benzamide derivatives (e.g. procainamide) conjugated with PET radionuclides specifically bind to melanin pigment of melanoma tumors. 68 Ga chelating agents can have high influence on physiological properties of 68 Ga labeled bioactive molecules, as was experienced during the application of HBED-CC on PSMA ligand. The aim of this study was to assess this concept in the case of the melanin specific procaindamide (PCA) and to compare the melanin specificity of 68 Ga-labeled PCA using HBED-CC and NODAGA chelators under in vitro and in vivo conditions. Procainamide (PCA) was conjugated with HBED-CC and NODAGA chelators and was labeled with Ga-68. The melanin specificity of 68 Ga-HBED-CC-PCA and 68 Ga-NODAGA-PCA was investigated in vitro and in vivo using amelanotic (MELUR and A375) and melanin containing (B16-F10) melanoma cell lines. Tumor-bearing mice were prepared by subcutaneous injection of B16-F10, MELUR and A375 melanoma cells into C57BL/6 and SCID mice. 21±2days after tumor cell inoculation and 90min after intravenous injection of the 68 Ga-labelledlabeled radiopharmacons whole body PET/MRI scans were performed. 68 Ga-NODAGA-PCA and 68 Ga-HBED-CC-PCA were produced with excellent radiochemical purity (98%). In vitro experiments demonstrated that after 30 and 90min incubation time 68 Ga-NODAGA-PCA uptake of B16-F10 cells was significantly (p≤0.01) higher than the 68 Ga-HBED-CC-conjugated PCA accumulation in the same cell line. Furthermore, significant difference (p≤0.01 and 0.05) was found between the uptake of melanin negative and positive cell lines using 68 Ga-NODAGA-PCA and 68 Ga-HBED-CC-PCA. In vivo PET/MRI studies using tumor models revealed significantly (p≤0.01) higher 68 Ga-NODAGA-PCA uptake (SUVmean: 0.46±0.05, SUVmax: 1

  5. Efficient isolation of human metapneumovirus using MNT-1, a human malignant melanoma cell line with early and distinct cytopathic effects.

    PubMed

    Sato, Ko; Watanabe, Oshi; Ohmiya, Suguru; Chiba, Fumiko; Suzuki, Akira; Okamoto, Michiko; Younghuang, Jiang; Hata, Akihiro; Nonaka, Hiroyuki; Kitaoka, Setsuko; Nagai, Yukio; Kawamura, Kazuhisa; Hayashi, Masahiro; Kumaki, Satoru; Suzuki, Tamio; Kawakami, Kazuyoshi; Nishimura, Hidekazu

    2017-11-01

    Isolation of human metapneumovirus (HMPV) from clinical specimens is currently inefficient because of the lack of a cell culture system in which a distinct cytopathic effect (CPE) occurs. The cell lines LLC-MK2, Vero and Vero E6 are used for isolation of HMPV; however, the CPE in these cell lines is subtle and usually requires a long observation period and sometimes blind passages. Thus, a cell line in which an early and distinct CPE occurs following HMPV inoculation is highly desired by clinical virology laboratories. In this study, it was demonstrated that, in the human malignant melanoma cell line MNT-1, obvious syncytium formation occurs shortly after inoculation with HMPV-positive clinical specimens. In addition, the growth and efficiency of isolation of HMPV were greater using MNT-1 than using any other conventional cell line. Addition of this cell line to our routine viral isolation system for clinical specimens markedly enhanced isolation frequency, allowing isolation-based surveillance. MNT-1 has the potential to facilitate clinical and epidemiological studies of HMPV. © 2017 The Societies and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  6. Up-Regulated Dicer Expression in Patients with Cutaneous Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Ma, Zhihai; Swede, Helen; Cassarino, David; Fleming, Elizabeth; Fire, Andrew; Dadras, Soheil S.

    2011-01-01

    Background MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs (18–24 nucleotides) that have recently been shown to regulate gene expression during cancer progression. Dicer, a central enzyme in the multi-component miRNA biogenesis pathway, is involved in cutting precursor miRNAs to functionally mature forms. Emerging evidence shows that Dicer expression is deregulated in some human malignancies and it correlates with tumor progression, yet this role has not yet been investigated in skin cancers. Methods and Findings Using an anti-human monoclonal antibody against Dicer and immunohistochemistry, we compared the expression of Dicer protein among 404 clinically annotated controls and skin tumors consisting of melanocytic nevi (n = 71), a variety of melanomas (n = 223), carcinomas (n = 73) and sarcomas (n = 12). Results showed a cell-specific up-regulated Dicer in 81% of cutaneous, 80% of acrolentiginous and 96% of metastatic melanoma specimens compared to carcinoma or sarcoma specimens (P<0.0001). The expression of Dicer was significantly higher in melanomas compared to benign melanocytic nevi (P<0.0001). In patients with cutaneous melanomas, Dicer up-regulation was found to be significantly associated with an increased tumor mitotic index (P = 0.04), Breslow's depth of invasion (P = 0.03), nodal metastasis (P = 0.04) and a higher American Joint Committee on Caner (AJCC) clinical stage (P = 0.009). Using western blot analysis, we confirmed the cell-specific up-regulation of Dicer protein in vitro. A pooled-analysis on mRNA profiling in cutaneous tumors showed up-regulation of Dicer at the RNA level in cutaneous melanoma, also showing deregulation of other enzymes that participate in the biogenesis and maturation of canonical miRNAs. Conclusions Increased Dicer expression may be a clinically useful biomarker for patients with cutaneous melanoma. Understanding deregulation of Dicer and its influence on miRNA maturation is needed to predict

  7. The BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib activates mitochondrial metabolism and inhibits hyperpolarized pyruvate-lactate exchange in BRAF mutant human melanoma cells

    PubMed Central

    Delgado-Goni, Teresa; Falck Miniotis, Maria; Wantuch, Slawomir; Parkes, Harold G.; Marais, Richard; Workman, Paul; Leach, Martin O.; Beloueche-Babari, Mounia

    2016-01-01

    Understanding the impact of BRAF signaling inhibition in human melanoma on key disease mechanisms is important for developing biomarkers of therapeutic response and combination strategies to improve long term disease control. This work investigates the downstream metabolic consequences of BRAF inhibition with vemurafenib, the molecular and biochemical processes that underpin them, their significance for antineoplastic activity and potential as non-invasive imaging response biomarkers.1H NMR spectroscopy showed that vemurafenib decreases the glycolytic activity of BRAF mutant (WM266.4 and SKMEL28) but not BRAFWT (CHL-1 and D04) human melanoma cells. In WM266.4 cells, this was associated with increased acetate, glycine and myo-inositol levels and decreased fatty acyl signals, while the bioenergetic status was maintained. 13C NMR metabolic flux analysis of treated WM266.4 cells revealed inhibition of de novo lactate synthesis and glucose utilization, associated with increased oxidative and anaplerotic pyruvate carboxylase mitochondrial metabolism and decreased lipid synthesis. This metabolic shift was associated with depletion of HKII, acyl-CoA dehydrogenase 9, 3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase and monocarboxylate transporter (MCT) 1 and 4 in BRAF mutant but not BRAFWT cells and, interestingly, decreased BRAF mutant cell dependency on glucose and glutamine for growth. Further, the reduction in MCT1 expression observed led to inhibition of hyperpolarized 13C-pyruvate-lactate exchange, a parameter that is translatable to in vivo imaging studies, in live WM266.4 cells. In conclusion, our data provide new insights into the molecular and metabolic consequences of BRAF inhibition in BRAF-driven human melanoma cells that may have potential for combinatorial therapeutic targeting as well as non-invasive imaging of response. PMID:27765851

  8. NFATc2 is an intrinsic regulator of melanoma dedifferentiation.

    PubMed

    Perotti, V; Baldassari, P; Molla, A; Vegetti, C; Bersani, I; Maurichi, A; Santinami, M; Anichini, A; Mortarini, R

    2016-06-02

    Melanoma dedifferentiation, characterized by the loss of MITF and MITF regulated genes and by upregulation of stemness markers as CD271, is implicated in resistance to chemotherapy, target therapy and immunotherapy. The identification of intrinsic mechanisms fostering melanoma dedifferentiation may provide actionable therapeutic targets to improve current treatments. Here, we identify NFATc2 transcription factor as an intrinsic regulator of human melanoma dedifferentiation. In panels of melanoma cell lines, NFATc2 expression correlated inversely with MITF at both mRNA and protein levels. NFATc2(+/Hi) melanoma cell lines were CD271(+) and deficient for expression of melanocyte differentiation antigens (MDAs) MART-1, gp100, tyrosinase and of GPNMB, PGC1-α and Rab27a, all regulated by MITF. Targeting of NFATc2 by small interfering RNA, short hairpin RNA and by an NFATc2 inhibitor upregulated MITF, MDAs, GPNMB, PGC-1α, tyrosinase activity and pigmentation and suppressed CD271. Mechanistically, we found that NFATc2 controls melanoma dedifferentiation by inducing expression in neoplastic cells of membrane-bound tumor necrosis factor-α (mTNF-α) and that melanoma-expressed TNF-α regulates a c-myc-Brn2 axis. Specifically, NFATc2, mTNF-α and expression of TNF receptors were significantly correlated in panels of cell lines. NFATc2 silencing suppressed TNF-α expression, and neutralization of melanoma-expressed TNF-α promoted melanoma differentiation. Moreover, silencing of NFATc2 and TNF-α neutralization downmodulated c-myc and POU3F2/Brn2. Brn2 was strongly expressed in NFATc2(+/Hi) MITF(Lo) cell lines and its silencing upregulated MITF. Targeting of c-myc, by silencing or by a c-myc inhibitor, suppressed Brn2 and upregulated MITF and MART-1 in melanoma cells. The relevance of NFATc2-dependent melanoma dedifferentiation for immune escape was shown by cytolytic T-cell assays. NFATc2(Hi) MITF(Lo) MDA(Lo) HLA-A2.1(+) melanoma cells were poorly recognized by MDA

  9. Differential Regulation of cGMP Signaling in Human Melanoma Cells at Altered Gravity: Simulated Microgravity Down-Regulates Cancer-Related Gene Expression and Motility

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ivanova, Krassimira; Eiermann, Peter; Tsiockas, Wasiliki; Hemmersbach, Ruth; Gerzer, Rupert

    2018-03-01

    Altered gravity is known to affect cellular function by changes in gene expression and cellular signaling. The intracellular signaling molecule cyclic guanosine-3',5'-monophosphate (cGMP), a product of guanylyl cyclases (GC), e.g., the nitric oxide (NO)-sensitive soluble GC (sGC) or natriuretic peptide-activated GC (GC-A/GC-B), is involved in melanocyte response to environmental stress. NO-sGC-cGMP signaling is operational in human melanocytes and non-metastatic melanoma cells, whereas up-regulated expression of GC-A/GC-B and inducible NO synthase (iNOS) are found in metastatic melanoma cells, the deadliest skin cancer. Here, we investigated the effects of altered gravity on the mRNA expression of NOS isoforms, sGC, GC-A/GC-B and multidrug resistance-associated proteins 4/5 (MRP4/MRP5) as selective cGMP exporters in human melanoma cells with different metastatic potential and pigmentation. A specific centrifuge (DLR, Cologne Germany) was used to generate hypergravity (5 g for 24 h) and a fast-rotating 2-D clinostat (60 rpm) to simulate microgravity values ≤ 0.012 g for 24 h. The results demonstrate that hypergravity up-regulates the endothelial NOS-sGC-MRP4/MRP5 pathway in non-metastatic melanoma cells, but down-regulates it in simulated microgravity when compared to 1 g. Additionally, the suppression of sGC expression and activity has been suggested to correlate inversely to tumor aggressiveness. Finally, hypergravity is ineffective in highly metastatic melanoma cells, whereas simulated microgravity down-regulates predominantly the expression of the cancer-related genes iNOS and GC-A/GC-B (shown additionally on protein levels) as well as motility in comparison to 1 g. The results suggest that future studies in real microgravity can benefit from considering GC-cGMP signaling as possible factor for melanocyte transformation.

  10. Melanoma: a global perspective.

    PubMed

    Ossio, Raul; Roldán-Marín, Rodrigo; Martínez-Said, Héctor; Adams, David J; Robles-Espinoza, Carla Daniela

    2017-07-01

    Most of our current knowledge of melanoma is derived from the study of patients from populations of European descent, for whom public health, sun protection initiatives and screening measures have appreciably decreased disease mortality. Notably, some melanoma subtypes that most commonly develop in other populations are not associated with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, suggesting a different disease aetiology. Further study of these subtypes is necessary to understand their risk factors and genomic architecture, and to tailor therapies and public health campaigns to benefit patients of all ethnic groups.

  11. Melanoma Diagnosis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Horsch, Alexander

    The chapter deals with the diagnosis of the malignant melanoma of the skin. This aggressive type of cancer with steadily growing incidence in white populations can hundred percent be cured if it is detected in an early stage. Imaging techniques, in particular dermoscopy, have contributed significantly to improvement of diagnostic accuracy in clinical settings, achieving sensitivities for melanoma experts of beyond 95% at specificities of 90% and more. Automatic computer analysis of dermoscopy images has, in preliminary studies, achieved classification rates comparable to those of experts. However, the diagnosis of melanoma requires a lot of training and experience, and at the time being, average numbers of lesions excised per histology-proven melanoma are around 30, a number which clearly is too high. Further improvements in computer dermoscopy systems and their competent use in clinical settings certainly have the potential to support efforts of improving this situation. In the chapter, medical basics, current state of melanoma diagnosis, image analysis methods, commercial dermoscopy systems, evaluation of systems, and methods and future directions are presented.

  12. Costimulation through the CD137/4-1BB pathway protects human melanoma tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes from activation-induced cell death and enhances antitumor effector function.

    PubMed

    Hernandez-Chacon, Jessica Ann; Li, Yufeng; Wu, Richard C; Bernatchez, Chantale; Wang, Yijun; Weber, Jeffrey S; Hwu, Patrick; Radvanyi, Laszlo G

    2011-04-01

    Adoptive T-cell therapy (ACT) using expanded tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) with high-dose interleukin-2 is a promising form of immunotherapy for stage IV melanoma having clinical response rates of 50% or more. One of the major problems preventing further success of this therapy is that the current protocols used to highly expand TIL for infusion drive CD8(+) T cells to differentiate into effector cells losing key costimulatory molecules such as CD28 and CD27. This has been associated with a lack of persistence in vivo for reasons not entirely clear. In this study, we demonstrate that while human melanoma CD8(+) TIL lost CD27 and CD28 expression during the rapid expansion for ACT, they gained expression of the alternative costimulatory molecule CD137/4-1BB, and to a lesser extent CD134/OX40. Postrapid expansion protocol (REP) TIL were found to be highly sensitive to activation-induced cell death when reactivated through the T-cell receptor with low levels of OKT3 antibody. However, coligation of 4-1BB using 2 different agonistic anti-4-1BB antibodies potently prevented activation-induced cell death of post-REP CD8(+) TIL, including those specific for melanoma antigen recognized by T cells, and facilitated even further cell expansion. This was correlated with increased levels of bcl-2 and bcl-xL together with decreased bim expression. 4-1BB costimulated post-REP TIL also expressed increased levels of the cytolytic granule proteins and exhibited enhanced cytotoxic T-cell activity against melanoma cells. Lastly, post-REP CD8(+) TIL were protected from cell death by anti-4-1BB ligation when exposed to human leukocyte antigen-matched melanoma cells. Our results indicate that 4-1BB costimulation may significantly improve TIL survival during melanoma ACT and boost antitumor cytolytic activity.

  13. Rare Presentations of Primary Melanoma and Special Populations: A Systematic Review

    PubMed Central

    Kottschade, Lisa A.; Grotz, Travis E.; Dronca, Roxana S.; Salomao, Diva R.; Pulido, Jose S.; Wasif, Nabil; Jakub, James W.; Bagaria, Sanjay P.; Kumar, Riten; Kaur, Judith S.; Morita, Shane Y.; Moran, Steven L.; Nguyen, Jesse T.; Nguyen, Emily C.; Hand, Jennifer L.; Erickson, Lori A.; Brewer, Jerry D.; Baum, Christian L.; Miller, Robert C.; Swanson, David L.; Lowe, Val; Markovic, Svetomir N.

    2013-01-01

    A subset of patients with melanoma present in rare and unique clinical circumstances requiring specific considerations with respect to diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. Herein we present our review of patients with: (1) primary mucosal melanoma of the head and neck, gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts; (2) primary melanoma of the eye; (3) desmoplastic melanoma; (4) subungual melanoma; (5) melanoma in special populations: children, non-Caucasians, as well as a discussion of familial melanoma. PMID:23563206

  14. Specific c-Jun target genes in malignant melanoma.

    PubMed

    Schummer, Patrick; Kuphal, Silke; Vardimon, Lily; Bosserhoff, Anja K; Kappelmann, Melanie

    2016-05-03

    A fundamental event in the development and progression of malignant melanoma is the de-regulation of cancer-relevant transcription factors. We recently showed that c-Jun is a main regulator of melanoma progression and, thus, is the most important member of the AP-1 transcription factor family in this disease. Surprisingly, no cancer-related specific c-Jun target genes in melanoma were described in the literature, so far. Therefore, we focused on pre-existing ChIP-Seq data (Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) of 3 different non-melanoma cell lines to screen direct c-Jun target genes. Here, a specific c-Jun antibody to immunoprecipitate the associated promoter DNA was used. Consequently, we identified 44 direct c-Jun targets and a detailed analysis of 6 selected genes confirmed their deregulation in malignant melanoma. The identified genes were differentially regulated comparing 4 melanoma cell lines and normal human melanocytes and we confirmed their c-Jun dependency. Direct interaction between c-Jun and the promoter/enhancer regions of the identified genes was confirmed by us via ChIP experiments. Interestingly, we revealed that the direct regulation of target gene expression via c-Jun can be independent of the existence of the classical AP-1 (5´-TGA(C/G)TCA-3´) consensus sequence allowing for the subsequent down- or up-regulation of the expression of these cancer-relevant genes. In summary, the results of this study indicate that c-Jun plays a crucial role in the development and progression of malignant melanoma via direct regulation of cancer-relevant target genes and that inhibition of direct c-Jun targets through inhibition of c-Jun is a potential novel therapeutic option for treatment of malignant melanoma.

  15. THAP5 is a DNA-binding transcriptional repressor that is regulated in melanoma cells during DNA damage-induced cell death

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Balakrishnan, Meenakshi P.; Cilenti, Lucia; Ambivero, Camilla

    2011-01-07

    Research highlights: {yields} THAP5 is a DNA-binding protein and a transcriptional repressor. {yields} THAP5 is induced in melanoma cells upon exposure to UV or treatment with cisplatin. {yields} THAP5 induction correlates with the degree of apoptosis in melanoma cell population. {yields} THAP5 is a pro-apoptotic protein involved in melanoma cell death. -- Abstract: THAP5 was originally isolated as a specific interactor and substrate of the mitochondrial pro-apoptotic Omi/HtrA2 protease. It is a human zinc finger protein characterized by a restricted pattern of expression and the lack of orthologs in mouse and rat. The biological function of THAP5 is unknown butmore » our previous studies suggest it could regulate G2/M transition in kidney cells and could be involved in human cardiomyocyte cell death associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). In this report, we expanded our studies on the properties and function of THAP5 in human melanoma cells. THAP5 was expressed in primary human melanocytes as well as in all melanoma cell lines that were tested. THAP5 protein level was significantly induced by UV irradiation or cisplatin treatment, conditions known to cause DNA damage. The induction of THAP5 correlated with a significant increase in apoptotic cell death. In addition, we show that THAP5 is a nuclear protein that could recognize and bind a specific DNA motif. THAP5 could also repress the transcription of a reporter gene in a heterologous system. Our work suggests that THAP5 is a DNA-binding protein and a transcriptional repressor. Furthermore, THAP5 has a pro-apoptotic function and it was induced in melanoma cells under conditions that promoted cell death.« less

  16. Antitumoral effect of vanadium compounds in malignant melanoma cell lines.

    PubMed

    Rozzo, Carla; Sanna, Daniele; Garribba, Eugenio; Serra, Maria; Cantara, Alessio; Palmieri, Giuseppe; Pisano, Marina

    2017-09-01

    In this study we evaluated the anticancer activity against malignant melanoma (MM) of four different vanadium species: the inorganic anion vanadate(V) (indicated with VN), and three oxidovanadium(IV) complexes, [V IV O(dhp) 2 ] where dhp - is the anion 1,2-dimethyl-3-hydroxy-4(1H)-pyridinonate (indicated with VS2), [V IV O(mpp) 2 ] where mpp - is 1-methyl-3-hydroxy-4(1H)-pyridinonate (indicated with VS3), and [V IV O(ppp) 2 ] where ppp - is 1-phenyl-2-methyl-3-hydroxy-4(1H)-pyridinonate (indicated with VS4). The antitumor effects of these compounds were studied against two different MM cell lines (A375 and CN-mel) and a fibroblast cell line (BJ) as normal control. All tested V compounds exert antiproliferative activity on MM cells in a dose dependent manner (IC 50 ranges from 2.4μM up to 14μM) being A375 the most sensitive cell line. VN and VS2 were the two most active compounds against A375 (IC 50 of 4.7 and 2.6μM, respectively), causing apoptosis and cell cycle block. The experimental data indicate that the cell cycle arrest occurs at different phases for the two V species analyzed (G2 checkpoint for VN and G0/G1 for VS2), showing the importance of the chemical form in determining their mechanism of action. These results add more insights into the landscape of vanadium versatility in biological systems and into its role as a potential cancer therapeutic agent. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Cancer stem cell as therapeutic target for melanoma treatment.

    PubMed

    Alamodi, Abdulhadi A; Eshaq, Abdulaziz M; Hassan, Sofie-Yasmin; Al Hmada, Youssef; El Jamal, Siraj M; Fothan, Ahmed M; Arain, Omair M; Hassan, Sarah-Lilly; Haikel, Youssef; Megahed, Mosaad; Hassan, Mohamed

    2016-12-01

    Human malignant melanoma is a highly aggressive skin tumor that is characterized by its extraordinary heterogeneity, propensity for dissemination to distant organs and resistance to cytotoxic agents. Although chemo- and immune-based therapies have been evaluated in clinical trials, most of these therapeutics do not show significant benefit for patients with advanced disease. Treatment failure in melanoma patients is attributed mainly to the development of tumor heterogeneity resulting from the formation of genetically divergent subpopulations. These subpopulations are composed of cancer stem-like cells (CSCs) as a small fraction and non-cancer stem cells that form the majority of the tumor mass. In recent years, CSCs gained more attention and suggested as valuable experimental model system for tumor study. In melanoma, intratumoral heterogeneity, progression and drug resistance result from the unique characteristics of melanoma stem cells (MSCs). These MSCs are characterized by their distinct protein signature and tumor growth-driving pathways, whose activation is mediated by driver mutation-dependent signal. The molecular features of MSCs are either in a causal or consequential relationship to melanoma progression, drug resistance and relapse. Here, we review the current scientific evidence that supports CSC hypothesis and the validity of MSCs-dependent pathways and their key molecules as potential therapeutic target for melanoma treatment.

  18. A Landscape of Driver Mutations in Melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Hodis, Eran; Watson, Ian R.; Kryukov, Gregory V.; Arold, Stefan T.; Imielinski, Marcin; Theurillat, Jean-Philippe; Nickerson, Elizabeth; Auclair, Daniel; Li, Liren; Place, Chelsea; DiCara, Daniel; Ramos, Alex H.; Lawrence, Michael S.; Cibulskis, Kristian; Sivachenko, Andrey; Voet, Douglas; Saksena, Gordon; Stransky, Nicolas; Onofrio, Robert C.; Winckler, Wendy; Ardlie, Kristin; Wagle, Nikhil; Wargo, Jennifer; Chong, Kelly; Morton, Donald L.; Stemke-Hale, Katherine; Chen, Guo; Noble, Michael; Meyerson, Matthew; Ladbury, John E.; Davies, Michael A.; Gershenwald, Jeffrey E.; Wagner, Stephan N.; Hoon, Dave S.B.; Schadendorf, Dirk; Lander, Eric S.; Gabriel, Stacey B.; Getz, Gad; Garraway, Levi A.; Chin, Lynda

    2012-01-01

    SUMMARY Despite recent insights into melanoma genetics, systematic surveys for driver mutations are challenged by an abundance of passenger mutations caused by carcinogenic ultraviolet (UV) light exposure. We developed a permutation-based framework to address this challenge, employing mutation data from intronic sequences to control for passenger mutational load on a per gene basis. Analysis of large-scale melanoma exome data by this approach discovered six novel melanoma genes (PPP6C, RAC1, SNX31, TACC1, STK19 and ARID2), three of which - RAC1, PPP6C and STK19 - harbored recurrent and potentially targetable mutations. Integration with chromosomal copy number data contextualized the landscape of driver mutations, providing oncogenic insights in BRAF- and NRAS-driven melanoma as well as those without known NRAS/BRAF mutations. The landscape also clarified a mutational basis for RB and p53 pathway deregulation in this malignancy. Finally, the spectrum of driver mutations provided unequivocal genomic evidence for a direct mutagenic role of UV light in melanoma pathogenesis. PMID:22817889

  19. miR-137 inhibits glutamine catabolism and growth of malignant melanoma by targeting glutaminase.

    PubMed

    Luan, Wenkang; Zhou, Zhou; Zhu, Yan; Xia, Yun; Wang, Jinlong; Xu, Bin

    2018-01-01

    Glutamine catabolism is considered to be an important metabolic pathway for cancer cells. Glutaminase (GLS) is the important rate-limiting enzyme of glutamine catabolism. miR-137 functions as a tumor suppressor in many human malignant tumors. However, the role and molecular mechanism of miR-137 and GLS in malignant melanoma has not been reported. In this study, we showed that miR-137 was decreased in melanoma tissue, and the low miR-137 level and high GLS expression are independent risk factor in melanoma. miR-137 suppressed the proliferation and glutamine catabolism of melanoma cells. GLS is crucial for glutamine catabolism and growth of malignant melanoma. We also demonstrated that miR-137 acts as a tumor suppressor in melanoma by targeting GLS. This result elucidates a new mechanism for miR-137 in melanoma development and provides a survival indicator and potential therapeutic target for melanoma patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. MicroRNA-33b, upregulated by EF24, a curcumin analog, suppresses the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and migratory potential of melanoma cells by targeting HMGA2.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Pu; Bai, Huiyuan; Liu, Gentao; Wang, Heyong; Chen, Feng; Zhang, Baoshun; Zeng, Panying; Wu, Chengxiang; Peng, Cong; Huang, Changjin; Song, Yang; Song, Erqun

    2015-05-05

    Diphenyl difluoroketone (EF24), a curcumin analog, exhibits potent anti-tumor activities by arresting cell cycle and inducing apoptosis. However, the efficacy and modes of action of EF24 on melanoma metastasis remain elusive. In this study, we found that at non-cytotoxic concentrations, EF24 suppressed cell motility and epithelial-to-mesenchymal Transition (EMT) of melanoma cell lines, Lu1205 and A375. EF24 also suppressed HMGA2 expression at mRNA and protein levels. miR-33b directly bound to HMGA2 3' untranslated region (3'-UTR) to suppress its expression as measured by dual-luciferase assay. EF24 increased expression of E-cadherin and decreased STAT3 phosphorylation and expression of the mesenchymal markers, vimentin and N-cadherin. miR-33b inhibition or HMGA2 overexpression reverted EF24-mediated suppression of EMT phenotypes. In addition, EF24 modulated the HMGA2-dependent actin stress fiber formation, focal adhesion assembly and FAK, Src and RhoA activation by targeting miR-33b. Thus, the results suggest that EF24 suppresses melanoma metastasis via upregulating miR-33b and concomitantly reducing HMGA2 expression. The observed activities of EF24 support its further evaluation as an anti-metastatic agent in melanoma therapy. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  1. Separate Primary Melanomas of the Bulbar Conjunctiva and Eyelid Skin: Clinical Implications of Multiple Primary Melanomas.

    PubMed

    Jacinto, Frances A; Fisher, George H; Espana, Edgar M; Leyngold, Ilya M; Margo, Curtis E

    2016-10-01

    We report a patient with previous in situ melanoma of the forehead skin who was referred for treatment of a bulbar conjunctival melanoma and a separate superficially invasive melanoma of the eyelid skin, and we offer a review of the biological and clinical implications of patients who have multiple primary melanomas. This article offers a clinicopathological correlation with a review of the relevant literature. An 80-year-old white man was referred for evaluation of a suspicious conjunctival tumor and a lower-eyelid lesion. Excisional biopsies revealed that both were primary melanomas arising within in situ disease. Over the span of 25 years, the patient had three separate foci of in situ melanoma, two of which spawned invasive melanoma. Separate melanomas arising from the bulbar conjunctiva and eyelid skin have rarely been reported. Multiple primary melanomas of the skin, however, are not uncommon. Based on studies of persons with multiple cutaneous melanomas, the prognosis is best predicted by the tumor with the greatest depth of invasion. Patients with multiple melanomas should be examined for dysplastic nevi, additional cutaneous melanomas, and screened periodically for future lesions. Ongoing studies enrolling patients with multiple primary melanomas are attempting to generate insights into low-penetrance susceptibility genes.

  2. Genetically fluorescent melanoma bone and organ metastasis models.

    PubMed

    Yang, M; Jiang, P; An, Z; Baranov, E; Li, L; Hasegawa, S; Al-Tuwaijri, M; Chishima, T; Shimada, H; Moossa, A R; Hoffman, R M

    1999-11-01

    We report here the establishment and metastatic properties of bright, highly stable, green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression transductants of the B16 mouse malignant melanoma cell line and the LOX human melanoma line. The highly fluorescent malignant melanoma cell lines allowed the visualization of skeletal and multiorgan metastases after i.v. injection of B16 cells in C57BL/6 mice and intradermal injection of LOX cells in nude mice. The melanoma cell lines were transduced with the pLEIN expression retroviral vector containing the GFP and neomycin resistance genes. Stable B16F0 and LOX clones expressing high levels of GFP were selected stepwise in vitro in levels of G418 of up to 800 microg/ml. Extensive bone and bone marrow metastases of B16F0 were visualized by GFP expression when the animals were sacrificed 3 weeks after cell implantation. Metastases for both cell lines were visualized in many organs, including the brain, lung, pleural membrane, liver, kidney, adrenal gland, lymph nodes, skeleton, muscle, and skin by GFP fluorescence. This is the first observation of experimental skeletal metastases of melanoma, which was made possible by GFP expression. These models should facilitate future studies of the mechanism and therapy of bone and multiorgan metastasis of melanoma.

  3. 14 CFR 375.42 - Transport operations-occasional planeload charters.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Transport operations-occasional planeload charters. 375.42 Section 375.42 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Operations Requiring Specific Preflight Authorization of Filing § 375.42 Transport operations—occasional...

  4. 14 CFR 375.42 - Transport operations-occasional planeload charters.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Transport operations-occasional planeload charters. 375.42 Section 375.42 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Operations Requiring Specific Preflight Authorization of Filing § 375.42 Transport operations—occasional...

  5. 40 CFR 80.375 - What requirements apply to California gasoline?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... gasoline? 80.375 Section 80.375 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) REGULATION OF FUELS AND FUEL ADDITIVES Gasoline Sulfur Exemptions § 80.375 What requirements apply to California gasoline? (a) Definition. For purposes of this subpart California gasoline...

  6. 40 CFR 80.375 - What requirements apply to California gasoline?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... gasoline? 80.375 Section 80.375 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) REGULATION OF FUELS AND FUEL ADDITIVES Gasoline Sulfur Exemptions § 80.375 What requirements apply to California gasoline? (a) Definition. For purposes of this subpart California gasoline...

  7. 40 CFR 80.375 - What requirements apply to California gasoline?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... gasoline? 80.375 Section 80.375 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) REGULATION OF FUELS AND FUEL ADDITIVES Gasoline Sulfur Exemptions § 80.375 What requirements apply to California gasoline? (a) Definition. For purposes of this subpart California gasoline...

  8. 40 CFR 80.375 - What requirements apply to California gasoline?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... gasoline? 80.375 Section 80.375 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) REGULATION OF FUELS AND FUEL ADDITIVES Gasoline Sulfur Exemptions § 80.375 What requirements apply to California gasoline? (a) Definition. For purposes of this subpart California gasoline...

  9. 40 CFR 80.375 - What requirements apply to California gasoline?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... gasoline? 80.375 Section 80.375 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) REGULATION OF FUELS AND FUEL ADDITIVES Gasoline Sulfur Exemptions § 80.375 What requirements apply to California gasoline? (a) Definition. For purposes of this subpart California gasoline...

  10. NF-kappaB mediates mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway-dependent iNOS expression in human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Uffort, Deon G; Grimm, Elizabeth A; Ellerhorst, Julie A

    2009-01-01

    Tumor expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) predicts poor outcomes for melanoma patients. We have reported the regulation of melanoma iNOS by the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. In this study, we test the hypothesis that NF-kappaB mediates this regulation. Western blotting of melanoma cell lysates confirmed the constitutive expression of iNOS. Western blot detected baseline levels of activated nuclear extracellular signal-regulated kinase and NF-kappaB. Indirect immunofluorescence confirmed the presence of NF-kappaB p50 and p65 in melanoma cell nuclei, with p50 being more prevalent. Electrophoretic mobility shift assay demonstrated baseline NF-kappaB activity, the findings confirmed by supershift analysis. Treatment of melanoma cells with the MEK inhibitor U0126 decreased NF-kappaB binding to its DNA recognition sequence, implicating the MAPK pathway in NF-kappaB activation. Two specific NF-kappaB inhibitors suppressed iNOS expression, demonstrating regulation of iNOS by NF-kappaB. Several experiments indicated the presence of p50 homodimers, which lack a transactivation domain and rely on the transcriptional coactivator Bcl-3 to carry out this function. Bcl-3 was detected in melanoma cells and co-immunoprecipitated with p50. These data suggest that the constitutively activated melanoma MAPK pathway stimulates activation of NF-kappaB hetero- and homodimers, which, in turn, drive iNOS expression and support melanoma tumorigenesis.

  11. RACK1, a clue to the diagnosis of cutaneous melanomas in horses.

    PubMed

    Campagne, Cécile; Julé, Sophia; Bernex, Florence; Estrada, Mercedes; Aubin-Houzelstein, Geneviève; Panthier, Jean-Jacques; Egidy, Giorgia

    2012-06-29

    Melanocytic proliferations are common in horses but the diagnosis of malignancy is not always straightforward. To improve diagnosis and prognosis, markers of malignancy are needed. Receptor for activated C kinase 1 (RACK1) protein may be such a marker. RACK1 was originally found to characterize malignant melanocytic lesions in the Melanoblastoma-bearing Libechov minipig (MeLiM) and, later, in human patients. Our purpose was to investigate the value of RACK1 in the classification of cutaneous melanocytic proliferations in horses. Using immunofluorescence, we report here that both MITF (Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor) and PAX3 (Paired box 3) allow the identification of melanocytic cells in horse skin samples. Importantly, RACK1 was detected in melanocytic lesions but not in healthy skin melanocytes. Finally, we found that RACK1 labeling can be used in horses to distinguish benign melanocytic tumors from melanomas. Indeed, RACK1 labeling appeared more informative to assess malignancy than individual histomorphological features. This study confirms that horses provide an interesting model for melanoma genesis studies. It establishes MITF and PAX3 as markers of horse melanocytic cells. RACK1 emerges as an important marker of malignancy which may contribute to progress in the diagnosis of melanomas in both human and veterinary medicine.

  12. RACK1, a clue to the diagnosis of cutaneous melanomas in horses

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Melanocytic proliferations are common in horses but the diagnosis of malignancy is not always straightforward. To improve diagnosis and prognosis, markers of malignancy are needed. Receptor for activated C kinase 1 (RACK1) protein may be such a marker. RACK1 was originally found to characterize malignant melanocytic lesions in the Melanoblastoma-bearing Libechov minipig (MeLiM) and, later, in human patients. Our purpose was to investigate the value of RACK1 in the classification of cutaneous melanocytic proliferations in horses. Results Using immunofluorescence, we report here that both MITF (Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor) and PAX3 (Paired box 3) allow the identification of melanocytic cells in horse skin samples. Importantly, RACK1 was detected in melanocytic lesions but not in healthy skin melanocytes. Finally, we found that RACK1 labeling can be used in horses to distinguish benign melanocytic tumors from melanomas. Indeed, RACK1 labeling appeared more informative to assess malignancy than individual histomorphological features. Conclusions This study confirms that horses provide an interesting model for melanoma genesis studies. It establishes MITF and PAX3 as markers of horse melanocytic cells. RACK1 emerges as an important marker of malignancy which may contribute to progress in the diagnosis of melanomas in both human and veterinary medicine. PMID:22747534

  13. Norepinephrine upregulates VEGF, IL-8, and IL-6 expression in human melanoma tumor cell lines: implications for stress-related enhancement of tumor progression

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Eric V.; Kim, Seung-jae; Donovan, Elise L.; Chen, Min; Gross, Amy C.; Webster Marketon, Jeanette I.; Barsky, Sanford H.; Glaser, Ronald

    2009-01-01

    Studies suggest that stress can be a co-factor for the initiation and progression of cancer. The catecholamine stress hormone, norepinephrine (NE), may influence tumor progression by modulating the expression of factors implicated in angiogenesis and metastasis. The goal of this study was to examine the influence of NE on the expression of VEGF, IL-8, and IL-6 by the human melanoma cell lines, C8161, 1174MEL, and Me18105. Cells were treated with NE and levels of VEGF, IL-8, and IL-6 were measured using ELISA and real-time PCR. The expression of β-adrenergic receptors (β-ARs) mRNA and protein were also assessed. Finally, immunohistochemitry was utilized to examine the presence of β1- and β2-AR in primary and metastatic human melanoma biopsies. We show that NE treatment upregulated production of VEGF, IL-8, and IL-6 in C8161 cells and to a lesser extent 1174MEL and Me18105 cells. The upregulation was associated with induced gene expression. The effect on C8161 cells was mediated by both β1- and β2-ARs. Furthermore, 18 of 20 melanoma biopsies examined expressed β2-AR while 14 of 20 melanoma biopsies expressed β1-AR. Our data support the hypothesis that NE can stimulate the aggressive potential of melanoma tumor cells, in part, by inducing the production VEGF, IL-8, and IL-6. This line of research further suggests that interventions targeting components of the activated sympathetic-adrenal medullary (SAM) axis, or the utilization of β-AR blocking agents, may represent new strategies for slowing down the progression of malignant disease and improving cancer patients’ quality of life. PMID:18996182

  14. The experimental chemotherapeutic N6-furfuryladenosine (kinetin-riboside) induces rapid ATP depletion, genotoxic stress, and CDKN1A (p21) upregulation in human cancer cell lines

    PubMed Central

    Cabello, Christopher M.; Bair, Warner B.; Ley, Stephanie; Lamore, Sarah D.; Azimian, Sara; Wondrak, Georg T.

    2008-01-01

    Cytokinins and cytokinin nucleosides are purine derivatives with potential anticancer activity. N6-furfuryladenosine (FAdo, kinetin-riboside) displays antiproliferative and apoptogenic activity against various human cancer cell lines, and FAdo has recently been shown to suppress tumor growth in murine xenograft models of human leukemia and melanoma. In this study, FAdo-induced genotoxicity, stress response gene expression, and cellular ATP depletion were examined as early molecular consequences of FAdo-exposure in MiaPaCa-2 pancreas carcinoma, A375 melanoma, and other human cancer cell lines. FAdo, but not adenosine or N6-furfuryladenine, displayed potent antiproliferative activity that was also observed in human primary fibroblasts and keratinocytes. Remarkably, massive ATP depletion and induction of genotoxic stress as assessed by the alkaline comet assay occurred within 60 to 180 minutes of exposure to low micromolar concentrations of FAdo. This was followed by rapid upregulation of CDKN1A and other DNA damage/stress response genes (HMOX1, DDIT3, GADD45A) as revealed by expression array and Western analysis. Pharmacological and siRNA-based genetic inhibition of adenosine kinase suppressed FAdo cytotoxicity and also prevented ATP-depletion and p21-upregulation suggesting the importance of bioconversion of FAdo into the nucleotide form required for drug action. Taken together our data suggest that early induction of genotoxicity and energy crisis are important causative factors involved in FAdo cytotoxicity. PMID:19186174

  15. ATG5 mediates a positive feedback loop between Wnt signaling and autophagy in melanoma

    PubMed Central

    Ndoye, Abibatou; Budina-Kolomets, Anna; Kugel, Curtis H.; Webster, Marie; Kaur, Amanpreet; Behera, Reeti; Rebecca, Vito; Li, Ling; Brafford, Patricia; Liu, Qin; Gopal, Y.N. Vashisht; Davies, Michael A.; Mills, Gordon B.; Xu, Xiaowei; Wu, Hong; Herlyn, Meenhard; Nicastri, Michael; Winkler, Jeffrey; Soengas, Maria S.; Amaravadi, Ravi; Murphy, Maureen; Weeraratna, Ashani T.

    2017-01-01

    Autophagy mediates resistance to various anticancer agents. In melanoma, resistance to targeted therapy has been linked to expression of Wnt5A, an intrinsic inhibitor of β-catenin, which also promotes invasion. In this study, we assessed the interplay between Wnt5A and autophagy by combining expression studies in human clinical biopsies with functional analyses in cell lines and mouse models. Melanoma cells with high Wnt5A and low β-catenin displayed increased basal autophagy. Genetic blockade of autophagy revealed an unexpected feedback loop whereby knocking down the autophagy factor ATG5 in Wnt5Ahigh cells decreased Wnt5A and increased β-catenin. To define the physiological relevance of this loop, melanoma cells with different Wnt status were treated in vitro and in vivo with the potent lysosomotropic compound Lys05. Wnt5Ahigh cells were less sensitive to Lys05 and could be reverted by inducing β-catenin activity. Our results suggest the efficacy of autophagy inhibitors might be improved by taking the Wnt signature of melanoma cells into account. PMID:28887323

  16. Quercetin as an Emerging Anti-Melanoma Agent: A Four-Focus Area Therapeutic Development Strategy.

    PubMed

    Harris, Zoey; Donovan, Micah G; Branco, Gisele Morais; Limesand, Kirsten H; Burd, Randy

    2016-01-01

    Replacing current refractory treatments for melanoma with new prevention and therapeutic approaches is crucial in order to successfully treat this aggressive cancer form. Melanoma develops from neural crest cells, which express tyrosinase - a key enzyme in the pigmentation pathway. The tyrosinase enzyme is highly active in melanoma cells and metabolizes polyphenolic compounds; tyrosinase expression thus makes feasible a target for polyphenol-based therapies. For example, quercetin (3,3',4',5,7-pentahydroxyflavone) is a highly ubiquitous and well-classified dietary polyphenol found in various fruits, vegetables, and other plant products including onions, broccoli, kale, oranges, blueberries, apples, and tea. Quercetin has demonstrated antiproliferative and proapoptotic activity in various cancer cell types. Quercetin is readily metabolized by tyrosinase into various compounds that promote anticancer activity; additionally, given that tyrosinase expression increases during tumorigenesis, and its activity is associated with pigmentation changes in both early- and late-stage melanocytic lesions, it suggests that quercetin can be used to target melanoma. In this review, we explore the potential of quercetin as an anti-melanoma agent utilizing and extrapolating on evidence from previous in vitro studies in various human malignant cell lines and propose a "four-focus area strategy" to develop quercetin as a targeted anti-melanoma compound for use as either a preventative or therapeutic agent. The four areas of focus include utilizing quercetin to (i) modulate cellular bioreduction potential and associated signaling cascades, (ii) affect transcription of relevant genes, (iii) regulate epigenetic processes, and (iv) develop effective combination therapies and delivery modalities/protocols. In general, quercetin could be used to exploit tyrosinase activity to prevent, and/or treat, melanoma with minimal additional side effects.

  17. An Inducible Endothelial Cell Surface Glycoprotein Mediates Melanoma Adhesion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rice, G. Edgar; Bevilacqua, Michael P.

    1989-12-01

    Hematogenous metastasis requires the arrest and extravasation of blood-borne tumor cells, possibly involving direct adhesive interactions with vascular endothelium. Cytokine activation of cultured human endothelium increases adhesion of melanoma and carcinoma cell lines. An inducible 110-kD endothelial cell surface glycoprotein, designated INCAM-110, appears to mediate adhesion of melanoma cells. In addition, an inducible endothelial receptor for neutrophils, ELAM-1, supports the adhesion of a human colon carcinoma cell line. Thus, activation of vascular endothelium in vivo that results in increased expression of INCAM-110 and ELAM-1 may promote tumor cell adhesion and affect the incidence and distribution of metastases.

  18. 14 CFR 375.31 - Demonstration flights of foreign aircraft.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Demonstration flights of foreign aircraft. 375.31 Section 375.31 Aeronautics and Space OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION... Authorized Operations § 375.31 Demonstration flights of foreign aircraft. Flights of foreign civil aircraft...

  19. The role of thioredoxin reductase 1 in melanoma metabolism and metastasis.

    PubMed

    Cassidy, Pamela B; Honeggar, Matthew; Poerschke, Robyn L; White, Karen; Florell, Scott R; Andtbacka, Robert H I; Tross, Joycelyn; Anderson, Madeleine; Leachman, Sancy A; Moos, Philip J

    2015-11-01

    Although significant progress has been made in targeted and immunologic therapeutics for melanoma, many tumors fail to respond, and most eventually progress when treated with the most efficacious targeted combination therapies thus far identified. Therefore, alternative approaches that exploit distinct melanoma phenotypes are necessary to develop new approaches for therapeutic intervention. Tissue microarrays containing human nevi and melanomas were used to evaluate levels of the antioxidant protein thioredoxin reductase 1 (TR1), which was found to increase as a function of disease progression. Melanoma cell lines revealed metabolic differences that correlated with TR1 levels. We used this new insight to design a model treatment strategy that creates a synthetic lethal interaction wherein targeting TR1 sensitizes melanoma to inhibition of glycolytic metabolism, resulting in a decrease in metastases in vivo. This approach holds the promise of a new clinical therapeutic strategy, distinct from oncoprotein inhibition. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. AMP kinase-related kinase NUAK2 affects tumor growth, migration, and clinical outcome of human melanoma.

    PubMed

    Namiki, Takeshi; Tanemura, Atsushi; Valencia, Julio C; Coelho, Sergio G; Passeron, Thierry; Kawaguchi, Masakazu; Vieira, Wilfred D; Ishikawa, Masashi; Nishijima, Wataru; Izumo, Toshiyuki; Kaneko, Yasuhiko; Katayama, Ichiro; Yamaguchi, Yuji; Yin, Lanlan; Polley, Eric C; Liu, Hongfang; Kawakami, Yutaka; Eishi, Yoshinobu; Takahashi, Eishi; Yokozeki, Hiroo; Hearing, Vincent J

    2011-04-19

    The identification of genes that participate in melanomagenesis should suggest strategies for developing therapeutic modalities. We used a public array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) database and real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) analyses to identify the AMP kinase (AMPK)-related kinase NUAK2 as a candidate gene for melanomagenesis, and we analyzed its functions in melanoma cells. Our analyses had identified a locus at 1q32 where genomic gain is strongly associated with tumor thickness, and we used real-time qPCR analyses and regression analyses to identify NUAK2 as a candidate gene at that locus. Associations of relapse-free survival and overall survival of 92 primary melanoma patients with NUAK2 expression measured using immunohistochemistry were investigated using Kaplan-Meier curves, log rank tests, and Cox regression models. Knockdown of NUAK2 induces senescence and reduces S-phase, decreases migration, and down-regulates expression of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). In vivo analysis demonstrated that knockdown of NUAK2 suppresses melanoma tumor growth in mice. Survival analysis showed that the risk of relapse is greater in acral melanoma patients with high levels of NUAK2 expression than in acral melanoma patients with low levels of NUAK2 expression (hazard ratio = 3.88; 95% confidence interval = 1.44-10.50; P = 0.0075). These data demonstrate that NUAK2 expression is significantly associated with the oncogenic features of melanoma cells and with the survival of acral melanoma patients. NUAK2 may provide a drug target to suppress melanoma progression. This study further supports the importance of NUAK2 in cancer development and tumor progression, while AMPK has antioncogenic properties.