Sunscreen filter octocrylene is a potential obesogen by acting as a PPAR gamma partial agonist

Octocrylene (OC) is an extensively prescribed organic ultraviolet B filter used in sunscreen products. Due to its extensive use, a significant level of OC is detected in marine and freshwater environments. Notably, the bioaccumulation of OC in aquatic biota may affect human health. In this study, the effect of OC on metabolism was investigated using the adipogenesis model of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSCs). OC promoted adiponectin production during adipogenesis in hBM-MSCs compared to the vehicle-treated control (EC50, 29.6 mu M). In target identification, OC directly bound to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) y (Ki, 37.8 mu M). OC-bound PPARy also significantly recruited nuclear receptor coactivator proteins SRC-1 (EC50, 54.1 mu M) and SRC-2 (EC50, 58.6 mu M). In the molecular docking simulation study, the optimal ligand-binding mode of OC suggested that OC is a PPARy partial agonist. A competitive analysis with a PPARy full agonist pioglitazone revealed that OC acted as a PPARy partial agonist. OC altered the gene transcription profile of lipid-metabolism associated enzymes in normal human keratinocytes, primarily exposed human cells after the application of sunscreens. In conclusion, OC is a potential metabolic disrupting obesogen. (C)& nbsp;2021 Published by Elsevier B.V.