Re-differentiation of thyroid carcinoma cell lines treated with 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine and retinoic acid.

We studied cell growth rate, mechanisms of growth inhibition, phenotype re-differentiation, expression of RARalpha, beta, gamma and differentiation thyroid genes before and after combined treatment with 5-Aza-CdR and RA (5-Aza/RA) of human thyroid carcinoma cell lines (FRO, WRO, TT). Furthermore, the activity and localization of the re-expressed sodium-iodide-symporter (NIS) protein was analyzed. After 5-Aza/RA treatment, all cell lines showed a significant reduction in cell growth. This was associated with apoptosis in the TT, with inhibition of cell proliferation in the WRO, and with cell cycle impairment in FRO and WRO. FRO and WRO treated with 5-Aza/RA lost the ability to grow in soft agar. FRO re-expressed thyroid transcription factor-1 and thyroglobulin, TT and WRO re-expressed PAX-8 and FRO and TT re-expressed RARbeta and NIS mRNA. Despite this expression, they were unable to take up iodine: a cytoplasmic localization of NIS protein was demonstrated in FRO. In conclusion, besides a significant reduction in cell growth rate and in the ability to grow in soft agar, treatment with 5-Aza/RA partially re-differentiated FRO and induced expression of NIS mRNA and protein in FRO and TT, but this treatment was unable to restore the functional activity of NIS, likely because it was located into the cytoplasm without reaching the plasma membrane.

Retinoic acid receptor beta2 re-expression and growth inhibition in thyroid carcinoma cell lines after 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine treatment.

The treatment of both undifferentiated and de-differentiated thyroid tumors, which are unresponsive to radioiodine, represents one of the biggest challenges for thyroidologists. The aim of the present study was to investigate in vitro the methylation status of retinoic acid receptors (RAR)beta2 promoter and the effect of the demethylating agent 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza-CdR) on 5 human thyroid cancer cell lines. The methylation status of RARbeta2 promoter was analyzed by methylation-specific PCR. The effect of 5-Aza-CdR on cell growth and apoptosis was evaluated by cell counting, enzymelinked immunosorbent assay tests and fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis, while the effect on the expression of RAR and thyroid-specific genes was measured by qualitative and quantitative RT-PCR. Methylation of RARbeta2 promoter was present only in ARO cells. 5-Aza-CdR determined growth inhibition in all cell lines, probably due to apoptosis in WRO, NPA, and ARO cells, and to inhibition of DNA synthesis in TT cells. Treatment with 5-Aza-CdR induced the expression of RARbeta mRNA in ARO and FRO cells, a slight increase of the expression of Tg, TPO and thyroid trancription factor 1 (TTF-1) mRNA and the new expression of low levels of NIS in TT cells. A significant increase of TTF-1 mRNA in FRO cells was also observed. In this study we demonstrated that RARbeta2 promoter was methylated in ARO cell line. However, the 5-Aza-CdR treatment induced RARbetamRNA expression not only in ARO but also in FRO and TT cell lines, whose RARbeta2 promoter was unmethylated. A significant reduction of cell growth, but not cell re-differentiation, was also observed after 5-Aza-CdR treatment.