Melatonin disturbs SUMOylation-mediated crosstalk between c-Myc and nestin via MT1 activation and promotes the sensitivity of paclitaxel in brain cancer stem cells

Here the underlying antitumor mechanism of melatonin and its potency as a sensitizer of paclitaxel was investigated in X02 cancer stem cells. Melatonin suppressed sphere formation and induced G2/M arrest in X02 cells expressing nestin, CD133, CXCR4, and SOX-2 as biomarkers of stemness. Furthermore, melatonin reduced the expression of CDK2, CDK4, cyclin D1, cyclin E, and c-Myc and upregulated cyclin B1 in X02 cells. Notably, genes of c-Myc related mRNAs were differentially expressed in melatonin-treated X02 cells by microarray analysis. Consistently, melatonin reduced the expression of c-Myc at mRNA and protein levels, which was blocked by MG132. Of note, overexpression of c-Myc increased the expression of nestin, while overexpression of nestin enhanced c-Myc through crosstalk despite different locations, nucleus, and cytoplasm. Interestingly, melatonin attenuated small ubiquitin-related modifier-1 (SUMO-1) more than SUMO-2 or SUMO-3 and disturbed nuclear translocation of nestin for direct binding to c-Myc by SUMOylation of SUMO-1 protein by immunofluorescence and immunoprecipitation. Also, melatonin reduced trimethylated histone H3K4me3 and H3K36me3 more than dimethylation in X02 cells by Western blotting and chromatin immunoprecipitation assay. Notably, melatonin upregulated MT1, not MT2, in X02 cells and melatonin receptor inhibitor luzindole blocked the ability of melatonin to decrease the expression of nestin, p-c-Myc(S62), and c-Myc. Furthermore, melatonin promoted cytotoxicity, sub-G1 accumulation, and apoptotic body formation by Paclitaxcel in X02 cells. Taken together, these findings suggest that melatonin inhibits stemness via suppression of c-Myc, nestin, and histone methylation via MT1 activation and promotes anticancer effect of Paclitaxcel in brain cancer stem cells.