Summary
An in vitro human melanoma cell assay was used to work up the partial purification of (a) low molecular weight (MW) substance(s) from aqueous extracts of ovine pineal tissue shown to contain a growth-inhibiting activity. A combination of paper chromatography, ion-exchange and reversephase high performance liquid chromatography with post-column antitumor assay has been developed. This allows a specific identification of an ovine pineal factor (MW<500) which inhibits the growth of human melanoma cells in vitro. The substance was partially purified to about 1,000 times as compared to the IC100-value of the starting material (retentate5). The growth inhibition of human melanoma cells in culture was complete at a dose of 0.1 μg/ml of purified pineal factor(s). It was demonstrated that the activity of this pineal compound differs from some substances known to be present in the pineal, such as melatonin, serotonin, peridines and β-carbolines. The activity was not destroyed by treatment with proteolytic enzymes.
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Supported in part by grant no. 28-920 of the Praeventiefonds, The Hague, The Netherlands.
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Noteborn, H.P.J.M., Bartsch, H., Bartsch, C. et al. Partial purification of (a) low molecular weight ovine pineal compound(s) with an inhibiting effect on the growth of human melanoma cells in vitro. J. Neural Transmission 73, 135–155 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01243385
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01243385