Altered Golgi Apparatus Morphology In Response To Cisplatin Treatment During Ovarian Cancer Cell Migration

Background: Cell migration, when unregulated, is the driving force behind cell invasion and metastasis – two phenomena that are hallmarks of cancer. Cell migration is a collective process that requires single cells to polarise in the direction of movement. Morphological distribution of the Golgi complex towards the leading edge is crucial to directed cell migration. Recently, Golgi-associated proteins have been implicated in tumour cell migration and invasion. This study investigates the structural changes in the Golgi apparatus in response to treatment with the chemotherapy drug cisplatin during ovarian cancer cell migration.

Methods: Scratch wound assays were performed to study migration of human ovarian carcinoma cells. A2780, OVCAR-3 and SKOV3 cells were grown to confluency and treated with the pre-determined inhibitory concentration (IC50) of cisplatin. A scratch was created, and cell migration into the scratch area was studied for 24 hours. Cells were antibody labelled for the mesenchymal marker vimentin and the cis-Golgi marker GM130. Z-projected images of cells at t=0hr and t=24hr were collected using confocal microscopy. Golgi fragmentation and orientation was measured using Volocity and FIJI software, respectively.

Results: Significant fragmentation of the Golgi was observed in migrating cells (A2780, OVCAR-3 and SKOV3) at t=24hr in response to cisplatin (p<0.05). Golgi orientation was also significantly altered in these cells (p<0.05); the Golgi in control cells was oriented more towards the migratory front than in cisplatin treated cells.

Conclusion: Cisplatin treatment alters Golgi morphology and seems to interfere with Golgi orientation during cell migration in ovarian cancer cells.