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Isothiocyanates (ITCs) derived from cruciferous vegetables, including benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC), phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC) and sulforaphane (SFN), exhibit preventative effects against various types of cancers. Yet, the inhibitory effects of ITCs on C6 glioma cell invasion and migration have not been reported. Thus, we aimed to analyze ITC-regulated MMP-9 activation, a crucial enzyme of cancer metastasis that degrades the extracellular matrix, in C6 glioma cells to investigate the inhibitory effects on cancer invasion and migration by ITCs. In the present study, we found that ITCs specifically suppressed PMA-induced MMP-9 secretion and protein expression. The inhibitory effects of ITCs on PMA-induced MMP-9 expression were found to be associated with the inhibition of MMP-9 transcription levels through suppression of nuclear translocation of NF-κB and activator protein-1 (AP-1). It was also confirmed that ITCs decreased MMP-9-mediated signaling such as FAK and JNK, whereas they had no effect on the phosphorylation of ERK and p38. Moreover, wound-healing and Τranswell invasion assays showed that ITCs inhibited the migration and invasion of C6 glioma cells. These results suggest that ITCs could be potential agents for the prevention of C6 glioma cell migration and invasion by decreasing FAK/JNK-mediated MMP-9 expression.

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The unicellular green microalga Haematococcus pluvialis has the highest content of the natural antioxidant, astaxanthin. Previously, it was determined that astaxanthin accumulation in H. pluvialis could be induced by blue-wavelength irradiation; however, the molecular mechanism remains unknown. The present study aimed to compare the transcriptome of H. pluvialis, with respect to astaxanthin biosynthesis, under the monochromatic red (660 nm) or blue (450 nm) light-emitting diode (LED) irradiation. Among a total of 165,372 transcripts, we identified 67,703 unigenes, of which 2245 and 171 were identified as differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in response to blue and red irradiation, respectively. Interestingly, expressional changes of blue light receptor cryptochromes were detected in response to blue and/or red LED irradiation in H. pluvialis, which may directly and indirectly regulate astaxanthin biosynthesis. In accordance with this observation, expression of the BKT and CHY genes, which are part of the downstream section of the astaxanthin biosynthetic pathway, was significantly upregulated by blue LED irradiation compared with their expression under control white irradiation. Contrastingly, they were downregulated by red LED irradiation. Our transcriptome study provided molecular insights that highlighted the different of responses of H. pluvialis to red and blue irradiation, especially for astaxanthin biosynthesis.