AUTHOR=De Cicco Paola , Panza Elisabetta , Armogida Chiara , Ercolano Giuseppe , Taglialatela-Scafati Orazio , Shokoohinia Yalda , Camerlingo Rosa , Pirozzi Giuseppe , Calderone Vincenzo , Cirino Giuseppe , Ianaro Angela TITLE=The Hydrogen Sulfide Releasing Molecule Acetyl Deacylasadisulfide Inhibits Metastatic Melanoma JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pharmacology VOLUME=8 YEAR=2017 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2017.00065 DOI=10.3389/fphar.2017.00065 ISSN=1663-9812 ABSTRACT=

Melanoma is the most common form of skin cancer. Given its high mortality, the interest in the search of preventive measures, such as dietary factors, is growing significantly. In this study we tested, in vitro and in vivo, the potential anti-cancer effect of the acetyl deacylasadisulfide (ADA), a vinyl disulfide compound, isolated and purified from asafoetida a foul-smelling oleo gum-resin of dietary and medicinal relevance. ADA markedly suppressed proliferation of human melanoma cell lines by inducing apoptosis. Moreover, treatment of melanoma cells with ADA reduced nuclear translocation and activation of NF-κB, decreased the expression of the anti-apoptotic proteins c-FLIP, XIAP, and Bcl-2 and inhibited the phosphorylation and activation of both AKT and ERK proteins, two of the most frequently deregulated pathways in melanoma. Finally, the results obtained in vitro were substantiated by the findings that ADA significantly and dose-dependently reduced lung metastatic foci formation in C57BL/6 mice. In conclusion, our findings suggest that ADA significantly inhibits melanoma progression in vivo and could represent an important lead compound for the development of new anti-metastatic agents.