Toxicity of anionic detergents determined by Saccharomyces cerevisiae microarray analysis

Sodium n-dodecyl benzene sulfonate (LAS) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) are popular anionic detergents (surfactants) that are used worldwide and the toxicities of these chemicals have been characterized. We applied these chemicals in a DNA microarray bioassay and determined that the microarray data reflects previous findings and also provides some new information about anionic detergent toxicity. The mRNA expression profiles suggest that LAS and SDS cause damage to membranes and alterations in carbon metabolism, and induce the oxidative stress response. We also found that LAS and SDS induce the pleiotropic drug-resistance network, and that LAS and SDS may be pumped out of yeast cells by this network. Hierarchical clustering of the expression profiles showed that LAS and SDS cause similar features of toxicity and that the toxicity is similar to that of capsaicin but different from that of cadmium and mercury.