The Novelty

This study reported the pathway underlying how melatonin suppresses the metastatic potential of osteoblastic prostate cancer. The pathway started with the binding of melatonin to MT1 receptor which was crucial in conveying the downstream effects of melatonin. After that, the phosphorylation of FAK, c‐Src and NF‐κB was decreased, inhibiting the integrin α2β1 expression as well as osteoblastic prostate cancer migration. The pathway was revealed via in vitro studies using osteoblastic prostate cancer cell line C4‐2. Preclinical trials can be carried out in the future to explore the possibilities of developing a cancer therapy based on this discovery.


The Background

Prostate cancer has been identified as a cause of osteoblastic bone metastasis. This indicated that patients with prostate cancer are also facing a high risk of metastatic bone disease. Meanwhile, strong evidence implied the direct involvement of receptors integrins α2β1 in prostate cancer bone metastasis due to their potential in prostate cancer cell progression, migration, and invasion. On the other hand, besides exhibiting antitumor activity, melatonin was actively involved in antimetastatic activity in osteolytic prostate cancer cells as well as osteoclastogenesis inhibition. However, the potential and mechanism of melatonin in inhibiting the migratory and invasive properties of osteoblastic prostate cancer cells remain ambiguous. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the underlying mechanism of how melatonin hinders the motility human prostate cancer cells and the metastatic in osteoblastic prostate cancer cells. The findings confirmed the therapeutic potential of melatonin for prostate cancer bone metastases, paving a path to the design of high-efficacy therapeutic strategies.


The SDG Impact

Metastatic bone disease is a severe collateral damage due to cancers and 84% of deaths were due to prostate cancer. There are approximately 268,000 new cases of prostate cancer reported yearly in United States, indicating the high risks of metastatic bone disease. Hence, while focusing on cancer therapies, attention should also be allocated to the treatment of metastatic bone. By demonstrating the efficacy of melatonin in inhibiting the metastatic potential of osteoblastic prostate cancer, this study fulfils UNSDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being.