A novel apoptosis-inducing mechanism of 5-aza-2′-deoxycitidine in melanoma cells: Demethylation of TNF-α and activation of FOXO1

Melanoma is a poor-prognosis cancer in both humans and dogs, and so the anti-tumor effects of 5-aza-2′-deoxycitidine (5-aza) on solid tumors such as melanoma have gained much attention. However, its anti-tumor mechanism remains entirely unclear. This present study revealed a part of the anti-tumor effects of 5-aza, focusing on apoptosis induction, on human and canine melanoma cells. Treatment with 5-aza markedly induced obvious apoptosis in melanoma cells. 5-Aza-induced apoptosis was possibly due to induced expression of cytotoxic cytokines such as TNF-α. We revealed hypermethylation of the promoter region of TNF-α as a consequence of treatment with 5-aza. Concurrently, we evaluated the effect of 5-aza on the Akt/FOXO1 signaling cascade, which plays a pivotal role in the transcription of cytokine genes. As a result, 5-aza inactivated Akt and inversely activated FOXO1, which contributed to the up-regulation of TNF-α. Furthermore, up-regulation of TNF-α by 5-aza administration was found in in vivo experiments. These current data suggest a novel apoptosis-inducing mechanism of 5-aza and indicate that 5-aza could be a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of human and canine melanomas.