Carcinogenic effects of ionizing radiation and benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-diol-9,10-epoxide (B[a]PDE), a major metabolite of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P), have been well demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo. Two-stage carcinogenesis results indicate that mouse skin is highly susceptible to both ionizing radiation and benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-diol-9,10-epoxide (B[a]PDE), a major metabolite of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P). It is believed that signaling pathways leading to the regulation of gene expression play a significant role in the development of skin cancers. The NFAT family of proteins are important transcription factors involved in the regulation of various target genes, such as IL-1 and TNF-α, which play key roles in the regulation of inflammation and carcinogenesis. Thus, the effect of ionizing radiation and B[a]PDE on COX-2 induction and NFAT3 activation, and their relationship, was investigated in mouse epidermal Cl 41 cells. We found that B[a]PDE exposure induced a very high level of NFAT activation in mouse epidermal Cl 41 cells. Ionizing radiation exhibited a synergistic effect with B[a]PDE on NFAT activation and COX-2 induction, while ionizing radiation alone had no effect. By stably knocking down NFAT3 protein expression by means of the specific interfering RNA (siRNA) technique, we found that COX-2 induction by B[a]PDE and the synergistic effect of ionizing radiation with B[a]PDE was totally blocked. These results indicate that ionizing radiation acts synergistically with B[a]PDE on COX-2 induction, and the synergism is dependent on the NFAT3 pathway.

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