Amino acid alcohols: growth inhibition and induction of differentiated features in melanoma cells

The effects of a series of d- and l-amino acid alcohols on the proliferation and phenotypic expression of B16 mouse melanoma cells were evaluated. B16 melanoma cells were incubated for different time intervals in the presence of d- or l-phenylalaninol (PHE), d- or l-alaninol (AL), d- or l-leucinol (LE), l-histidinol (HIS), l-tyrosinol (TYR) and l-methioninol (MET). All agents, including the d or l configuration, induced an antiproliferative effect, although of considerably different magnitude. d-PHE was the most active growth inhibitor. The growth inhibitory effects were accompanied by phenotypic alterations, which included morphological changes and enhancement in the activities of NADPH cytochrome c reductase and τ-glutamyl transpeptidase. These phenotypic alterations correlated with the growth inhibitory effects of the different agents and seem to reflect a higher differentiated state.