During this initial phase of ECM production, an increase in MGP and TNAP concomitant with Col1A1, was expected based on the homology between fish and mammalian systems56,57; nevertheless, higher MGP mRNA levels were only found at day 20 in OM cells relative to cells growing in GM in our study, but no changes in TNAP expression were found. This evidence concerns the gene COL1A1 and ocular melanoma.