ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Sargassum polycystum, a type of brown seaweed, has been used for the treatment of skin-related disorders in traditional medicine. AIM OF THE STUDY The aim of the present study is to investigate the antimelanogenesis effect of Sargassum polycystum extracts by cell-free mushroom tyrosinase assay followed by cell viability assay, cellular tyrosinase assay and melan...

The cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF) has pleiotropic functions both in normal physiology and disease. TNF signals by the virtue of two cell surface receptors, TNF receptor 1 (TNFR1) and TNF receptor 2 (TNFR2). Exogenous TNF promotes experimental metastasis in some models, yet the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. To study the contribution of host TNFR1 and TNFR2 on tumor cell pro...

DJ-1 is an oncoprotein that promotes survival of cancer cells through anti-apoptosis. However, DJ-1 also plays a role in regulating IL-1β expression, and whether inflammatory microenvironment built by dysregulated DJ-1 affects cancer progression is still unclear. This study thus aimed to compare the metastatic abilities of melanoma cells in wild-type (WT) and DJ-1 knockout (KO) mice, and to che...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of fluvastatin on the alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone-mediated increase in tyrosinase activity in the melanoma B16F10 cell line and to establish whether Akt and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (Erk) inhibition is involved in tyrosinase synthesis after fluvastatin administration. Fluvastatin modulates alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormon...

Finasteride is a well-known 5α-reductase inhibitor used for treatment of alopecia and prostate cancer. But the effect of finasteride in regulating melanogenesis is still unclear. In the present study the role of finasteride on melanogenesis was investigated. Finasteride decrease melanin level in melanocyte melan-a cells and B16F10 melanoma cells without inducing cytotoxicity. MC1R (melanocortin...

Cucurbitacin B (CuB) is reported to have anti-proliferation effects on a variety of tumors including melanoma, and more effective regimens by combination of this agent with others are under investigation. In this study, the anti-melanoma effect of CuB as a single agent and in combination with valproic acid (VPA), an inhibitor of histone deacetylase (HDAC), was evaluated in B16F10, a mouse melan...

BACKGROUND Over the last decade, the incidence of ultraviolet B (UVB)-related skin problems has increased. Oxidative stress caused by UVB induces the secretion of melanocyte growth and activating factors from keratinocytes, which results in the formation of cutaneous hyperpigmentation. Therefore, increasing the antioxidant abilities of skin cells is thought to be a beneficial strategy for the d...

Antrodia camphorata grown on germinated brown rice (CBR) was prepared to suppress melanoma development. CBR extracts were divided into hexane, EtOAc, BuOH, and water fractions. Among all the fractions, EtOAc fraction showed the best suppressive effect on B16F10 melanoma cell proliferation by CCK-8 assay. It also showed the increased cell death and the changed cellular morphology after CBR treat...

Cytokine-based and antibody-targeted immunotherapies have both been important approaches in the treatment of malignant cancers. However, combinational therapies of cytokines and tumor-targeting antibodies remain to be further explored, especially in advanced solid tumors. In this study, C57BL/6 mice bearing established subcutaneous B16F10 melanoma were treated with mouse melanoma targeting anti...

Rhapontigenin was produced from rhapontin isolated from a methanol extract of Rheum undulatum roots by enzymatic transformation. Rhapontin and rhapontigenin exhibited dose-dependent inhibition of tyrosinase activity and melanin synthesis in B16F10 melanoma cells, but the inhibitory activity of rhapontigenin was greater than that of rhapontin. Thus the bioconversion of rhapontin enhanced its abi...