Benzophenone-3 increases metastasis potential in lung cancer cells via epithelial to mesenchymal transition

Exposure to compounds with cancer-potentiating effects can contribute to the progression of cancer. Herein we have discovered for the first time that benzophenone-3 (BP-3), a chemical used as sunscreen in various cosmetic products, enhances the ability of lung cancer cells to undergo metastasis. The exposure of the lung cancer cells to BP-3 at non-toxic concentrations significantly increased the number of anoikis resistant cells in a dose-dependent manner. Also, BP-3 increased the growth rate as well as the number of colonies accessed by anchorage-independent growth assay. We found that the underlying mechanisms of such behaviors were the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) process of cancer cells, and the increase in caveolin-1 (Cav-1) expression. As both mechanistic events mediated anoikis resistance via augmentation of cellular survival signals, our results further revealed that the BP-3 treatment significantly up-regulated extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK). Also, such compounds increased the cellular levels of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 proteins. As the presence of a substantial level of BP-3 in plasma of the consumers has been reported, this finding may facilitate further investigations that lead to better understanding and evidence concerning the safety of use in cancer patients.