Sulforaphane has a therapeutic effect in an atopic dermatitis murine model and activates the Nrf2/HO-1 axis

Atopic dermatitis (AD), a chronic inflammatory skin disease, is characterized by intense itching and recurrent eczematous lesions. Sulforaphane is known to attenuate oxidative stress, and tissue or cell damage in cerebral ischemia, brain inflammation and intracerebral hemorrhage. In the present study, a 2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB)-induced AD mouse model was developed, and ear thickness, dermatitis score, eosinophil count, mast cell infiltration, and serum IgE levels were measured in DNCB-induced AD and sulforaphane-treated groups to demonstrate the therapeutic effects of sulforaphane. AD symptoms of DNCB-induced mice were attenuated by sulforaphane treatment compared with those of negative control mice; furthermore, eosinophil count, mast cell infiltration and serum IgE levels were also reduced by sulforaphane treatment in DNCB-induced AD mice. Western blot assays revealed that the expression levels of nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), which exhibit oxidation resistance, were increased by sulforaphane treatment in DNCB-induced AD mice. The present study suggested that sulforaphane exerted a therapeutic effect in the AD mouse model through the activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 axis as well as the suppression of Janus kinase 1/STAT3 signaling pathway.