The Hedgehog/GLI signaling pathway activates transcription of Slug (Snail2) in melanoma cells.

In melanoma and other cancers, invasion, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, metastasis and cancer stem cell maintenance are regulated by transcription factors including the Snail family. Slug (Snail2) protein generally supports migration and apoptosis resistance. However, its role in melanoma is not completely understood.

Many Distinct Ways Lead to Drug Resistance in - and -Mutated Melanomas.

Advanced melanoma is a relentless tumor with a high metastatic potential. The combat of melanoma by using the targeted therapy is impeded because several major driver mutations fuel its growth (predominantly and ). Both these mutated oncogenes strongly activate the MAPK (MEK/ERK) pathway.

Widespread Expression of Hedgehog Pathway Components in a Large Panel of Human Tumor Cells and Inhibition of Tumor Growth by GANT61: Implications for Cancer Therapy.

The sonic Hedgehog/GLI signaling pathway (HH) is critical for maintaining tissue polarity in development and contributes to tumor stemness. Transcription factors GLI1⁻3 are the downstream effectors of HH and activate oncogenic targets. To explore the completeness of the expression of HH components in tumor cells, we performed a screen for all HH proteins in a wide spectrum of 56 tumor cell lines of various origin using Western blot analysis.

Inducibly decreased MITF levels do not affect proliferation and phenotype switching but reduce differentiation of melanoma cells.

Melanoma arises from neural crest-derived melanocytes which reside mostly in the skin in an adult organism. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a tumorigenic programme through which cells acquire mesenchymal, more pro-oncogenic phenotype. The reversible phenotype switching is an event still not completely understood in melanoma.

GLI inhibitor GANT61 kills melanoma cells and acts in synergy with obatoclax.

MEK kinase inhibitors (trametinib and selumetinib) or kinase inhibitors directed against mutated BRAF(V600E) (vemurafenib and dabrafenib) have initial encouraging effects in the treatment of melanoma but acquired resistance appears almost invariably after some months. Studies revealed mutually exclusive NRAS and BRAF activating mutations driving the MAPK/ERK pathway among human melanomas. Although combination therapy exerts significantly better antitumor cell efficacy, complete remission is rarely achieved.