Cyanidin does not affect sulforaphane-mediated Nrf2 induction in cultured human keratinocytes

AbstractThere is increasing interest in the gene-regulatory activities of isothiocyanates and flavonoids in human skin. Nrf2 agonists, such asisothiocyanate sulforaphane (SFN), have been shown to promote chemopreventive effects in skin both in vitro and in vivo. Recentdata indicate that different secondary plant compounds may either antagonise or enhance SFN-induced Nrf2 activation. We thereforestudied the interactions of a flavonoid, cyanidin and the potent Nrf2 inductor SFN in cultured human keratinocytes (HaCaT cells).We observed that cyanidin does not induce the activation of Nrf2 and its target genes, g-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gGCS), NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase 1 and haem oxygenase-1 in HaCaTcells. Furthermore, SFN-mediated Nrf2 activation and its targetgene expressionwere not further enhanced by the co-application of SFN with cyanidin.Key words: Cyanidin: Nrf2: Haem oxygenase-1: g -Glutamylcysteine synthetase There is some experimental evidence that anthocyaninsmay exhibit skin-protective properties against UV-inducedoxidative stress and inflammation