Autophagy and vesicular trafficking in human uveal melanoma: A histopathological study.

Uveal melanoma is an ocular tumor with a high risk of developing metastases. The endo-lysosomal system can affect the melanoma progression by accelerating and facilitating invasion or metastasis. This study aims to conduct comparative analysis of normal choroidal melanocytes and uveal melanoma cells ultrastructure with a focus on intracellular transport system, and to examine the patterns of autophagy- and vesicular trafficking-related proteins expression in a case series of uveal melanomas.

Lithium Enhances Autophagy and Cell Death in Skin Melanoma: An Ultrastructural and Immunohistochemical Study.

Lithium is an inhibitor of glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta, which is traditionally used in the treatment of bipolar disorders and has antitumor effects. The aim of the current study was to determine if lithium salt causes autophagy and apoptosis in skin melanoma cells to enhance cell death. Light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, immunohistochemistry, and immunofluorescence were used to study the mechanism of action of lithium carbonate in B16 melanoma cells in vivo.