The importance of 1,2-dithiolane structure in α-lipoic acid for the downregulation of cell surface β1-integrin expression of human bladder cancer cells.

Here, we show that cell surface β1-integrin expression, cell adhesion to fibronectin, migration, and invasion were all significantly inhibited by α-lipoic acid. These effects were not observed when cells were treated with dihydrolipoic acid or caprylic acid. These data reveal that the 1,2-dithiolane structure plays an important role in the action of α-lipoic acid.