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- Adipocyte-released factors enhance melanocyte’s proliferation and motilityPublication . Fernandes, Rúben; Coelho, Pedro; Almeida, Joana; Prudêncio, Cristina; Soares, RaquelObesity, favored by the modern lifestyle, acquired epidemic proportions nowadays. Obesity has been associated with various major causes of death and morbidity including malignant neoplasms. Cutaneous melanoma incidence rates have also been increasing uring the last four decades in several countries. Obesity involvement in melanoma etiology has been recognized, but the implicated mechanisms remain unclear. We propose to address the above relationship and investigate the mechanism interplaying between obesity and an increased risk of melanoma onset.
- Quinoxaline-1, 4-dioxide derivatives inhibitory action in melanoma and brain tumor cellsPublication . Silva, Liliana; Coelho, Pedro; Soares, Raquel; Prudêncio, Cristina; Vieira, MónicaQuinoxaline-1,4-dioxide derivatives are synthetic heterocyclic compounds with multiple biological and pharmacological effects. In this study, we investigated the bioactivity of five quinoxaline-1,4-di-N-oxides derivatives in different animal cell lines.
- Melanoma and obesity: Should antioxidant vitamins be addressed?Publication . Oliveira, Sofia; Coelho, Pedro; Prudêncio, Cristina; Vieira, Mónica; Soares, Raquel; Guerreiro, Susana G.; Fernandes, RúbenMelanoma is an aggressive form of skin cancer refractory to conventional therapies. Obesity has reached epidemic dimensions acting as a risk factor for several cancer types, such as melanoma. Several reactive species of oxygen are also involved in melanoma initiation and progression. Low levels of antioxidant content and/or activity in lightly pigmented cells could expose them to an extremely oxidative environment and rise the susceptibility to oxidative damage and consequently loss of cell homeostasis. Despite the knowledge about melanoma biology, pathogenesis and developed therapies, is extremely important to understand the antioxidant modulation of melanoma under an environment of obesity, especially the effect of some natural compounds of the diet, such as antioxidant vitamins A, C and E and selenium in order to establish alternatives to conventional therapies, which are known to be ineffective against melanoma.
- Effect of Adipocyte Secretome in Melanoma Progression and Vasculogenic MimicryPublication . Coelho, Pedro; Almeida, Joana; Prudêncio, Cristina; Fernandes, Rúben; Soares, RaquelObesity, favored by the modern lifestyle, acquired epidemic proportions nowadays. Obesity has been associated with various major causes of death and morbidity including malignant neoplasms. This increased prevalence has been accompanied by a worldwide increase in cutaneous melanoma incidence rates during the last decades. Obesity involvement in melanoma aetiology has been recognized, but the implicated mechanisms remain unclear. In the present study, we address this relationship and investigate the influence of adipocytes secretome on B16-F10 and MeWo melanoma cell lines. Using the 3T3-L1 adipocyte cell line, as well as ex vivo subcutaneous (SAT) and visceral (VAT) adipose tissue conditioned medium, we were able to show that adipocyte-released factors play a dual role in increasing melanoma cell overall survival, both by enhancing proliferation and decreasing apoptosis. B16-F10 cell migration and cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion capacity were predominantly enhanced in the presence of SAT and VAT released factors. Melanocytes morphology and melanin content were also altered by exposure to adipocyte conditioned medium disclosing a more dedifferentiated phenotype of melanocytes. In addition, exposure to adipocyte-secreted molecules induced melanocytes to rearrange, on 3D cultures, into vessel-like structures, and generate characteristic vasculogenic mimicry patterns. These findings are corroborated by the released factors profile of 3T3-L1, SAT, and VAT assessed by microarrays, and led us to highlight the mechanisms by which adipose secretome from sub-cutaneous or visceral depots promote melanoma progression.
- Oxidative Stress Modulation and Radiosensitizing Effect of Quinoxaline-1,4-Dioxides DerivativesPublication . Silva, Liliana; Coelho, Pedro; Teixeira, Dulce; Monteiro, Armanda; Pinto, Gabriela; Soares, Raquel; Prudêncio, Cristina; Vieira, MónicaQuinoxaline-1,4-dioxide (QNX) derivatives are synthetic heterocyclic compounds with multiple biological and pharmacological effects. In this study, we investigated the oxidative status of quinoxaline-1,4-dioxides derivatives in modulating melanoma and glioma cell lines, based on previous results from the research group and their capability to promote cell damage by the production of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS).
- Development of a stable melanoma dual reporter cell line expressing Luciferase and GFPPublication . Aguiar, Gonçalo; Torres, Sílvia; Prudêncio, Cristina; Soares, Raquel; Coelho, Pedro; Prudêncio, Cristina; Coelho, PedroMelanoma is the most aggressive and lethal form of skin cancer, with a high risk of metastatic spread. Obesity is recognized as a risk factor for various types of cancer. However, regarding melanoma, this association remains controversial. Obesity might act as a double-edged sword in melanoma, promoting primary tumour growth but at the same time limiting metastatic spread - the "obesity paradox”. Herein, we aimed to create a stable murine B16F10 melanoma cell line expressing both firefly luciferase (Luc) and green fluorescent protein (GFP), which will later be engrafted into diet induced-obesity animal model for future in vivo studies. B16F10-Luc-GFP cells were generated by transfection with premade lentiviral particles, featuring a construct with Luc and GFP under a cytomegalovirus promoter and mediated by a F2A element. The antibiotic selection marker (puromycin) is expressed under a Rous sarcoma virus promoter. Afterwards, the transfected cells were selected with 1 μg/ml of puromycin. The clones with the highest levels of GFP-positive cells and GFP fluorescence were purified by two rounds of cell sorting and submitted to fluorescence and bioluminescence quantification, morphology, injury, BrdU incorporation, 7-AAD, and PI cell cycle assays and compared to the parental cell line. B16F10-Luc-GFP were successfully generated, and both GFP fluorescence and D-luciferin bioluminescence are present and proportional to cell density. As expected, the parental cell line didn’t display GFP or Luc activities. Moreover, transduced cells exhibit similar morphology, motility, proliferation, viability, and cell cycle progression as B16F10 cells. Conclusions: Altogether, the future engraftment of B16F10-LucGFP in obese mice, will improve melanoma research models, enabling the in vivo and ex vivo visualization of primary tumours and metastasis, providing a better understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms, to clarify the “obesity paradox” in melanoma.