A new class of nitric oxide (NO•)-releasing nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NONO-NSAIDs) were developed in recent years and have shown promising potential as NSAID substitutes due to their gentle nature on cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems. Since nitric oxide plays a role in regulation of cell adhesion, we assessed the potential use of NONO-NSAIDs as anti-metastasis drugs. In this regard, we compared the effects of NONO-aspirin and a novel NONO-naproxen to those exerted by their respective parent NSAIDs on avidities of human melanoma M624 cells. Both NONO-NSAIDs, but not the corresponding parent NSAIDs, reduced M624 adhesion on vascular cellular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) by 20-30% and fibronectin by 25-44% under fluid flow conditions and static conditions, respectively. Only NONO-naproxen reduced (~56%) the activity of β1 integrin, which binds to α4 integrin to form very late antigen-4 (VLA-4), the ligand of VCAM-1. These results indicate that the diazeniumdiolate (NO•)-donor moiety is critical for reducing the adhesion between VLA-4 and its ligands, while the NSAID moiety can impact the regulation mechanism of melanoma cell adhesion.
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