Donor variability may mask dimethyl fumarate’s effects on nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells

OBJECTIVE: Dimethyl fumarate (DMF) is an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant drug used to treat multiple sclerosis, but its mechanism(s) of action are not fully understood. In central nervous system (CNS) cells, DMF activates nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), perhaps ameliorating oxidative stress-induced damage. However, it is not known whether DMF also activates Nrf2 in peripheral immune cells, which are known to participate in CNS demyelination. We conducted a single observation study to determine whether DMF can activate Nrf2 in peripheral immune cells in vitro. RESULTS: We performed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to measure Nrf2 activation in nuclear extracts of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells treated with DMF at time points from 0 to 6 h, initially determining that DMF did not activate Nrf2, and that the mechanism(s) of action of DMF may thus differ in the periphery compared to the CNS. However, further analyses of our data suggest that high T(max) variability is masking Nrf2 activation in individual donors. Additionally, there may be sub-populations of responders, perhaps related to genetic polymorphisms in Nrf2. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s13104-017-2862-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.