Highlights
- •The tyrosinase-mediated formation of o-quinone from phenols can trigger leukoderma.
- •Ectopic expression of human tyrosinase converts rhododendrol to quinone metabolites.
- •Rhododendrol-quinones generated bind to glutathione and cysteine in this cell model.
- •A series of leukoderma-inducing phenols is converted to quinone-thiol adducts.
- •Thiol-adduct analysis is more sensitive and specific than cytotoxicity assays.
Abstract
Background
Chemical leukoderma is a skin depigmentation disorder induced through contact with
certain chemicals, most of which have a p-substituted phenol structure similar to the melanin precursor tyrosine. The tyrosinase-catalyzed
oxidation of phenols to highly reactive o-quinone metabolites is a critical step in inducing leukoderma through the production
of melanocyte-specific damage and immunological responses.
Objective
Our aim was to find an effective method to evaluate the formation of o-quinone by human tyrosinase and subsequent cellular reactions.
Methods
Human tyrosinase-expressing 293T cells were exposed to various phenolic compounds,
after which the reactive o-quinones generated were identified as adducts of cellular thiols. We further examined
whether the o-quinone formation induces reductions in cellular GSH or viability.
Results
Among the chemicals tested, all 7 leukoderma-inducing phenols/catechol (rhododendrol,
raspberry ketone, monobenzone, 4-tert-butylphenol, 4-tert-butylcatechol, 4-S-cysteaminylphenol and p-cresol) were oxidized to o-quinone metabolites and were detected as adducts of cellular glutathione and cysteine,
leading to cellular glutathione reduction, whereas 2-S-cysteaminylphenol and 4-n-butylresorcinol were not. In vitro analysis using a soluble variant of human tyrosinase revealed a similar substrate-specificity.
Some leukoderma-inducing phenols exhibited tyrosinase-dependent cytotoxicity in this
cell model and in B16BL6 melanoma cells where tyrosinase expression was effectively
modulated by siRNA knockdown.
Conclusion
We developed a cell-based metabolite analytical method to detect human tyrosinase-catalyzed
formation of o-quinone from phenolic compounds by analyzing their thiol-adducts. The detailed analysis
of each metabolite was superior in sensitivity and specificity compared to cytotoxicity
assays for detecting known leukoderma-inducing phenols, providing an effective strategy
for safety evaluation of chemicals.
Abbreviations:
4SCAP (4-S-cysteaminylphenol), 5SCD (5-S-cysteinyldopa), 5SGD (5-S-glutathionyldopa), BTQ (dihydro-1,4-benzothiazine-6,7-dione), CRE (p-cresol), Cys (cysteine), Cys-BOC (Cys-benzyloxycatechol), Cys-MeC (Cys-methylcatechol), Cys-RDC (Cys-RD-catechol), Cys-RKC (Cys-RK-catechol), EM (eumelanin), ER (endoplasmic reticulum), GS- (glutathionyl-), GS-BOC (GS-benzyloxycatechol), GSH (glutathione), GS-RDC (GS-RD-catechol), GS-RKC (GS-RK-catechol), GS-MeC (GS-methylcatechol), GS-TBC (GS-TB-catechol), MBEH (monobenzyl ether of hydroquinone), NAC (N- acetylcysteine), PM (pheomelanin), RD (rhododendrol, RDC, RD-catechol), RK (raspberry ketone), ROS (reactive oxygen species), RUC (rucinol), TBP (4-tert-butylphenol), TBC (4-tert-butylcatechol)Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 12, 2022
Accepted:
December 8,
2022
Received in revised form:
September 4,
2022
Received:
March 22,
2022
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
