Experimental hypoxia does not influence gene expression and protein synthesis of Eph receptors and ephrin ligands in human melanoma cells in vitro.

Eph receptor tyrosine kinases and their ephrin ligands are supposed to play important roles in melanoma progression and metastasis. Moreover, hypoxia is known to contribute to melanoma metastasis. In this study, the influence of experimental hypoxia on expression and synthesis of EphA2 and EphB4, and their corresponding ligands ephrinA1, ephrinA5, and ephrinB2 was systematically studied in four human melanoma cell lines in vitro. Melanoma cell monolayer and spheroid cultures were used as both extrinsic and intrinsic hypoxia models. Hypoxic conditions were confirmed by analyzing HIF-1α/-2α expression, VEGF expression, and cellular uptake of [18F]fluoromisonidazol. In normoxia, EphA2, EphB4, ephrinA1, ephrinA5, and ephrinB2 expression was detectable in all cell lines with varying extent. Considerable protein synthesis of EphA2 was detected in all cell lines. However, no effect of experimental hypoxia on both Eph/ephrin expression and protein synthesis was observed. This contributes critically to debating the hypothesis that hypoxia regulates the Eph/ephrin system in melanoma.