Transient Receptor Potential Cation Channel Subfamily M, Member 1 (TRPM1)

Transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily M member 1 is a protein similar to the transient receptor potential (Trp) calcium channel family members. The expression of this protein is inversely correlated with melanoma aggressiveness, suggesting that it suppresses melanoma metastasis. The expression of the TRPM1 gene is regulated by the Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor. Northern blot analysis of mouse tissues and cell lines revealed that melastatin was expressed as a 2.8-kb mRNA in normal eye and in 4 melanoma cell lines; its expression in each of the 4 cell lines was inversely proportional to metastatic potential. In 45 human melanocytic primary neoplasms examined by in situ hybridization, the loss of melastatin expression correlated with the thickness of the melanomas.