Abstract
Non-thermal atmospheric pressure (NAP) plasma has demonstrated potential in biomedical applications, such as cancer treatment, bactericidal sterilization, and cell growth promotion or inhibition. In this study, for the first time, we demonstrated on–off switching of cell cycle progression and regulated melanogenesis in normal human skin melanocytes by NAP plasma-activated medium (PAM). The melanocytes were exposed to NAP plasma at durations varying from 0 to 20 min, and the effects of PAM on cell proliferation, cell cycle progression, and melanogenesis were investigated. Although PAM showed no cytotoxicity, the proliferation of melanocytes was inhibited. The melanocyte cell cycle was arrested by PAM for a relatively short period (48 h), after which it recovered slowly. PAM promoted melanogenesis through the activation of the enzymes tyrosinase, tyrosinase-related protein-1, and tyrosinase-related protein-2. These effects seem to be related to reactive oxygen species induced by PAM. Our finding that PAM modulates the cell cycle may provide insight into the recurrence of cancer. The regulation of the melanogenesis of melanocytes may facilitate the control of skin tone without incurring negative side effects.
Highlights
Non-thermal atmospheric pressure (NAP) plasma is emerging as a new tool in various biological and medical fields[1,2]
We examined the effects of NAP plasma on normal human skin melanocyte functions, including proliferation, cell cycle progression, and melanogenesis
Because the generation of radicals was proportional to the exposure duration to NAP plasma, the exposure duration of the culture medium to plasma corresponded to the plasma-activated medium (PAM) dose
Summary
Non-thermal atmospheric pressure (NAP) plasma is emerging as a new tool in various biological and medical fields[1,2]. We examined the effects of NAP plasma on normal human skin melanocyte functions, including proliferation, cell cycle progression, and melanogenesis. Melanocytes were exposed to plasma-activated medium (PAM), and the changes in cell number, cell cycle, melanin contents, and gene expression of tyrosinase, tyrosinase-related protein-1 (TRP-1), and tyrosinase-related protein-2 (TRP-2) were analyzed. Plasma in gas and has several additional advantages: (1) PAM can avoid any effects from UV radiation and temperature; (2) it allows for uniform treatment at a given time; and (3) it maintains a stable state for a long time under appropriate temperature conditions[7,8]. The cell culture medium was exposed to NAP plasma for 0–20 min, and the resulting PAM was applied to melanocytes. This study is the first to demonstrate the effects of PAM in on–off switching of cell cycle progression and melanogenesis
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