Modulation of polycation-induced redistribution of melanoma cell surface anionic macromolecules by retinoic acid

The ability of cationized ferritin (CF) to redistribute negatively charged cell surface molecules has been shown to increase after malignant transformation. Pretreatment of murine melanoma S91-C2 and B16-F1 cells with retinoic acid (RA), which suppresses their transformed phenotype, decreased the ability of CF to cluster surface anionic sites. In contrast, a similar pretreatment of RA-resistant mutant clone S91-C154 and subline B16-F10 caused only a minor reduction in CF-induced patching of anionic sites. These results indicate that the effect of RA on the redistribution of negatively charged cell surface molecules is related to the growth-inhibitory action of this vitamin A metabolite.