TITLE:
Hypochlorous Acid Induces Caspase Dependent Apoptosis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
AUTHORS:
Nur Kaluç, Pinar B. Thomas
KEYWORDS:
Hypochlorous Acid, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Viability, Apoptosis
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Biosciences and Medicines,
Vol.9 No.4,
April
15,
2021
ABSTRACT: Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) is a strong oxidant produced by activated
neutrophils via the myeloperoxidase (MPO) enzyme in order to fight against
infections. Because of their antimicrobial and antiviral properties, stabilized
HOCl solutions were produced to be used as a disinfectant and became a
recommended disinfectant against COVID-19 by the US Environmental Protection
Agency. Aberrant MPO enzyme activity results in abundant HOCl production which
is related to the development and/or progression of several diseases including
atherosclerosis, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. Previous
studies investigating the effect of HOCl on the mode of cell death in different
cell types reported that HOCl induces both apoptosis and necrosis depending on
its concentration. However, the data on the apoptotic pathway triggered by HOCl
is controversial. In this study, we investigated the mode of cell death induced by different concentrations of HOCl in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Our data revealed that HOCl leads to cell
death within 1 minute at 170 μM and above. At 340 μM, HOCl causes a rapid necrosis, while 170 μM HOCl leads to apoptosis.
HOCl-induced apoptosis is mostly caspase dependent and Aif1 doesn’t have a
significant role.