Acta Med. 2004, 47: 91-96
Depletion of Endogenous Zinc Stores Induces Oxidative Stress and Cell Death in Human Melanoma Cells
The role of intracellular free zinc and its chelation by TPEN (N,N,N’,N’-tetrakis(2–pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine) was studied in Bowes human melanoma cells. The content of free Zn pools was determined by fluorescent probe Zinquin. Depletion of zinc triggered apoptosis confirmed by cell blebbing, changes in mitochondrial transmembrane potential and GSH levels, caspase-3 activation and nuclear fragmentation. Apoptosis was only partially prevented by cyclosporin A or N-acetylcystein, suggesting various independent but likely interrelated mechanisms participating in this process.
Keywords
Human melanoma cells, Labile zinc, Cell death, Mitochondria, Oxidative stress.
Funding
This work was supported by Ministry of Education Czech Republic Research Project MSM 111500001 Serious organ failure, experimental and clinical aspects, possibilities for prevention and therapeutic management.
References
Copyright
Published by the Karolinum Press. For permission to use please write to actamedica@lfhk.cuni.cz.
