Antiproliferative and Proapoptotic Effects of Erucin, A Diet-Derived H2S Donor, on Human Melanoma Cells

Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer and is characterized by chemotherapy resistance and recurrence despite the new promising therapeutic approaches. In the last years, erucin (ERU), the major isothiocyanate present in Eruca sativa, commonly known as rocket salads, has demonstrated great efficacy as an anticancer agent in different in vitro and in vivo models. More recently, the chemopreventive effects of ERU have been associated with its property of being a H2S donor in human pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Here, we investigated the effects of ERU in modulating proliferation and inducing human melanoma cell death by using multiple in vitro approaches. ERU significantly reduced the proliferation of different human melanoma cell lines. A flow cytometry analysis with annexin V/PI demonstrated that ERU was able to induce apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in A375 melanoma cells. The proapoptotic effect of ERU was associated with the modulation of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related cadherins and transcription factors. Moreover, ERU thwarted the migration, invasiveness and clonogenic abilities of A375 melanoma cells. These effects were associated with melanogenesis impairment and mitochondrial fitness modulation. Therefore, we demonstrated that ERU plays an important role in inhibiting the progression of melanoma and could represent a novel add-on therapy for the treatment of human melanoma.