Direct osteolysis induced by metastatic murine melanoma cells: role of matrix metalloproteinases.

We examined the osteolytic ability of metastatic cells and the role of tumour matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in bone degradation. The histomorphometry of experimental bone metastases of B16/F1 melanoma cells showed that osteolysis was associated with a 90% decrease in osteoclast number and predominance of cancer cells overlaying resorption pits. In vitro, B16/F1 cells and their conditioned medium (CM) degraded 3H-proline-labelled extracellular matrices from osteoblast-like cells and 45Ca-labelled calvariae. Using bone slices, we observed morphological evidence of degradation by B16/F1 cells. A role for tumour MMPs in bone degradation was supported by inhibition of degradation by 1,10-phenanthroline, collagen I degradation by tumour cells and the presence of TPA-inducible M(r) 90,000, 84,000 and 64,000 gelatinolytic, and 54,000 caseinolytic bands in B16/F1-CM. These studies indicate that metastatic cancer cells degrade bone matrix directly and that this is partially mediated by MMPs.