IL-9 inhibits HTB-72 melanoma cell growth through upregulation of p21 and TRAIL.

Background: IL-9 is a pleiotropic cytokine produced mainly by Th9 cells. IL-9 may have an anti-proliferative role in murine melanoma, however, its effect on human melanoma is unknown.

Methods: We examined the effects of IL-9 on proliferation and apoptosis in four human melanoma cell lines, HTB-65, HTB-72, CRL-11147, and SK-Mel-5.