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Intravital Imaging Reveals Transient Changes in Pigment Production and Brn2 Expression during Metastatic Melanoma Dissemination

Pinner, S; Jordan, P; Sharrock, K; Bazley, L; Collinson, L; Marais, R; Bonvin, E; ... Sahai, E; + view all (2009) Intravital Imaging Reveals Transient Changes in Pigment Production and Brn2 Expression during Metastatic Melanoma Dissemination. Cancer Research , 69 (20) pp. 7969-7977. 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-09-0781. Green open access

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Abstract

How melanoma acquire a metastatic phenotype is a key issue. One possible mechanism is that metastasis is driven by microenvironment-induced switching between noninvasive and invasive states. However, whether switching is a reversible or hierarchical process is not known and is difficult to assess by comparison of primary and metastatic tumors. We address this issue in a model of melanoma metastasis using a novel intravital imaging method for melanosomes combined with a reporter construct in which the Brn-2 promoter drives green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression. A subpopulation of cells containing little or no pigment and high levels of Brn2::GFP expression are motile in the primary tumor and enter the vasculature. Significantly, the less differentiated state of motile and intravasated cells is not maintained at secondary sites, implying switching between states as melanoma cells metastasize. We show that melanoma cells can switch in both directions between high- and low-pigment states. However, switching from Brn2::GFP high to low was greatly favored over the reverse direction. Microarray analysis of high- and low-pigment populations revealed that transforming growth factor (TGF)β2 was up-regulated in the poorly pigmented cells. Furthermore, TGFβ signaling induced hypopigmentation and increased cell motility. Thus, a subset of less differentiated cells exits the primary tumor but subsequently give rise to metastases that include a range of more differentiated and pigment-producing cells. These data show reversible phenotype switching during melanoma metastasis. [Cancer Res 2009;69(20):7969–77]

Type: Article
Title: Intravital Imaging Reveals Transient Changes in Pigment Production and Brn2 Expression during Metastatic Melanoma Dissemination
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-09-0781
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-09-0781
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Oncology, ONCOLOGY, ELEVATED EXPRESSION, GENE-EXPRESSION, CELLS, PROLIFERATION, MITF, BRAF, MELANOCYTES, NETWORK, STATES, CYCLE
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Lab for Molecular Cell Bio MRC-UCL
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1387313
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