Cytokine-mediated modulation of integrin, ICAM-1 and CD44 expression on human uveal melanoma cells in vitro

Adhesion molecules are likely to play a role in the process of tumour progression. We investigated the expression of integrins, ICAM-1, and CD44 and the influence of interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha), interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) on expression of these molecules on four uveal melanoma cell lines. The in vitro integrin expression was quite variable. The alpha V and beta 1 subunits were expressed on all cell lines, and none of the cell lines showed any alpha 3, beta 2, or beta 4 expression. Other integrin subunits showed a more variable pattern. ICAM-1 and CD44 were strongly expressed on all cell lines. IFN-alpha, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha upregulated alpha 1, alpha 2, and alpha 3 expression, and did not alter alpha 4, alpha 5, alpha 6, beta 2, alpha v beta 3, and beta 4 expression. The effects on alpha V and alpha V beta 5 were variable. ICAM-1 was upregulated by IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha, but not by IFN-alpha. Cytokine treatment hardly changed CD44 expression. In one case a comparison was made between expression on cultured cells and on tissue sections of the tumour of origin. Differences in expression were observed for the integrin subunits alpha 2, alpha 3, and alpha 5. This study shows that integrins and ICAM-1 expression on uveal melanoma cells in vitro are susceptible to cytokine treatment, but that the effects on integrin expression are cytokine and cell line dependent. Furthermore, some differences in integrin expression between cells in vivo and in vitro exist.