Description
Long wavelength Ultraviolet (UVA-1) radiation causes oxidative stress that leads to the formation of noxious substances within the skin. As a defensive mechanism skin cells produce detoxifying enzymes and antioxidants when they detect modified molecules. We have recently shown that UVA-1 irradiation oxidizes the abundant membrane phospholipid 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphorylcholine (PAPC), which then induced the synthesis of the stress response protein heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) in dermal fibroblasts. Here we examined the effects of UVA-1 and (UV-) oxidized phospholipids on the global gene expression in human dermal fibroblasts. We identified a cluster of genes that were co-induced by UVA-1-oxidized PAPC and UVA-1 radiation. The cluster included HO-1, glutamate-cysteine ligase modifier subunit (GCLM), aldo-keto reductases-1-C1 and -C2 (AKR1C1, AKR1C2), and interleukin 8 (IL8). These genes are members of the cellular stress response system termed antioxidant response or Phase II detoxification. Accordingly, the regulatory regions of all these genes contain binding sites for NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), a major regulator of the antioxidant response.