Gene expression profiling of human keratinocytes exposed to the hair-dying agent, m-aminophenol

Abstract

m-Aminophenol (MAP) is widely used as an ingredient in various products, including hair dyes. Sensitization to MAP is a well-known cause of allergic contact dermatitis. However, the molecular mechanism of MAP-induced toxicity in skin-derived cells remains unclear. In this study, we performed a genome-wide expression profile analysis of human keratinocytes (HaCaT) exposed to MAP. To understand the mechanism of MAP-induced cellular toxicity on transcription levels, HaCaT cells were treated with 1.2mM MAP (the 20% inhibitory concentration of viability). We identified 3,441 up-regulated genes and 2,583 down-regulated genes, which had altered expression by >= 1.5-fold due to MAP treament. MAP-responsive genes were involved in inflammatory and oxidative stress responses and the TGF-beta signalling pathway. Our results indicate that these changes in gene expression are associated with MAP-induced skin toxicity and that these genes can be promising biomarkers for detecting MAP-induced skin toxicity. The possible roles of the responsive genes and their related pathways in MAP-induced cellular responses are discussed.