Butyrate Enhances γ-H2AX Induced by Benzo[a]pyrene

Benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) is known to form DNA adduct following metabolic activation, which causes phosphorylation of histone H2AX (γ-H2AX). Recent studies have shown that histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors enhanced BaP-induced CYP1A1 gene expression. In this study, we examined the relationship between the HDAC inhibitor-augmented metabolic activation and BaP-induced γ-H2AX. Sodium butyrate (SB), a typical HDAC inhibitor, enhanced BaP-induced γ-H2AX. The enhanced DNA damage was further confirmed by biased sinusoidal field gel electrophoresis, which detects DNA double-strand breaks. SB remarkably augmented BaP-induced CYP1A1 gene expression, and CYP1A1-overexpressing cells showed elevated generation of γ-H2AX. Furthermore, SB enhanced intracellular oxidation after treatment with BaP. These results suggested that SB-induced CYP1A1 upregulation facilitated BaP metabolism, which might result in excess DNA adducts or oxidative DNA damages, leading to augmentation of γ-H2AX.