Effect of inorganic arsenic on gap junctional intercellular communication between human skin fibroblasts

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of inorganic arsenic on gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) between human skin fibroblasts.GJIC between human skin fibroblasts was detected by the scrape loading/dye transfer assay.Arsenite at concentrations from 0.005 micromol/L to 5.0 micromol/L significantly inhibited the dye transfer between human skin fibroblasts in a dose dependent manner. The dye transfer between human skin fibroblasts was also inhibited by arsenate, while the dose-dependent effects were not observed. Further study found that arsenite at concentrations of 0.5 micromol/L and 5.0 micromol/L significantly increased protein kinase C (PKC) activities in cells, especially in the membrane fraction.Arsenite and arsenate significantly inhibited GJIC between human skin fibroblasts, suggesting that inorganic arsenic may play an important role in the process of tumor promotion. Furthermore, PKC activation may be involved in the mechanisms of GJIC inhibition by inorganic arsenic.PubMed0151-43