Melatonin induces cell apoptosis in Mia PaCa-2 cells via the suppression of nuclear factor-κB and activation of ERK and JNK: A novel therapeutic implication for pancreatic cancer.

Melatonin is synthesized by the pineal gland and is released into the blood. In the last several years, some studies have shown that melatonin has anticancer properties; however, the mechanisms behind the antitumour traits are unclear, especially in pancreatic cancer. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the antitumour effects of melatonin on the human pancreatic carcinoma cell line MIA PaCa‑2 and explored its biological mechanisms. MIA PaCa‑2 cells were treated with melatonin, and we used a CCK‑8 assay to evaluate the cell viability. We also used flow cytometry to observe cell apoptosis and western blot analysis to assess the protein expression. Our study found that melatonin inhibited cell viability, suppressed colony formation and reduced cell migration and invasion and induced cell apoptosis in MIA PaCa‑2 cells. Our results showed that melatonin treatment inhibited NF‑κB p65 activation. Moreover, melatonin treatment activated the mitogen‑activated protein kinase pathways (c‑jun N‑terminal kinase and extracellular‑regulated kinase 1/2), which increased Bax protein expression and caspase‑3 cleavage and decreased Bcl‑2 protein expression. These new developments demonstrate that melatonin plays a potential role in anticancer treatment and may act as an effective therapeutic agent in the future.