Exploiting cannabinoid-induced cytotoxic autophagy to drive melanoma cell death
- Armstrong JL
- Hill DS
- McKee CS
- Hernandez Tiedra S
- Lorente M
- Lopez Valero I
- Eleni Anagnostou M
- Babatunde F
- Redfern CP
- Velasco G
- Lovat PE
- CORAZZARI, MARCO
DOIAbstract
Although the global incidence of cutaneous melanoma is increasing, survival rates for patients with metastatic disease remain <10%. Novel treatment strategies are therefore urgently required, particularly for patients bearing BRAF/NRAS wild-type tumors. Targeting autophagy is a means to promote cancer cell death in chemotherapy-resistant tumors, and the aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that cannabinoids promote autophagy-dependent apoptosis in melanoma. Treatment with Δ(9)-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) resulted in the activation of autophagy, loss of cell viability, and activation of apoptosis, whereas cotreatment with chloroquine or knockdown of Atg7, but not Beclin-1 or Ambra1, prevented THC-induced autophagy and cell death in vi...
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