Abstract
Dyes containing one or more azo linkages are widely applied in cosmetics, tattooing, food and drinks, pharmaceuticals, printing inks, plastics, leather, as well as paper industries. Previously we reported that bacteria living on human skin have the ability to reduce some azo dyes to aromatic amines, which raises potential safety concerns regarding human dermal exposure to azo dyes such as those in tattoo ink and cosmetic colorant formulations. To comprehensively investigate azo dye-induced toxicity by skin bacteria activation, it is very critical to understand the mechanism of metabolism of the azo dyes at the systems biology level. In this study, an LC/MS-based metabolomics approach was employed to globally investigate metabolism of azo dyes by Staphylococcus aureus as well as their effects on the metabolome of the bacterium. Growth of S. aureus in the presence of Sudan III or Orange II was not affected during the incubation period. Metabolomics results showed that Sudan III was metabolized to 4-(phenyldiazenyl) aniline (48%), 1-[(4-aminophenyl) diazenyl]-2-naphthol (4%) and eicosenoic acid Sudan III (0.9%). These findings indicated that the azo bond close to naphthalene group of Sudan III was preferentially cleaved compared with the other azo bond. The metabolite from Orange II was identified as 4-aminobenzene sulfonic acid (35%). A much higher amount of Orange II (~90×) was detected in the cell pellets from the active viable cells compared with those from boiled cells incubated with the same concentration of Orange II. This finding suggests that Orange II was primarily transported into the S. aureus cells for metabolism, instead of the theory that the azo dye metabolism occurs extracellularly. In addition, the metabolomics results showed that Sudan III affected energy pathways of the S. aureus cells, while Orange II had less noticeable effects on the cells. In summary, this study provided novel information regarding azo dye metabolism by the skin bacterium, the effects of azo dyes on the bacterial cells and the important role on the toxicity and/or inactivation of these compounds due to microbial metabolism.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cerniglia CE, Freeman JP, Franklin W, Pack LD (1982) Metabolism of benzidine and benzidine-congener based dyes by human, monkey and rat intestinal bacteria. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 107:1224–1229
Cerniglia CE, Freeman JP, Franklin W, Pack LD (1982) Metabolism of azo dyes derived from benzidine, 3,3′-dimethyl-benzidine and 3,3′-dimethoxybenzidine to potentially carcinogenic aromatic amines by intestinal bacteria. Carcinogenesis 3:1255–1260
Cerniglia CE, Zhuo Z, Manning BW, Federle TW, Heflich RH (1986) Mutagenic activation of the benzidine-based dye direct black 38 by human intestinal microflora. Mutat Res 175:11–16
Chen H, Wang RF, Cerniglia CE (2004) Molecular cloning, overexpression, purification, and characterization of an aerobic FMN-dependent azoreductase from Enterococcus faecalis. Protein Expr Purif 34:302–310
Chen H, Hopper SL, Cerniglia CE (2005) Biochemical and molecular characterization of an azoreductase from Staphylococcus aureus, a tetrameric NADPH-dependent flavoprotein. Microbiology 151:1433–1441
Chen YE, Tsao H (2013) The skin microbiome: current perspectives and future challenges. J Am Acad Dermatol 69:143–155
Childs JJ, Nakajima C, Clayson DB (1967) The metabolism of 1-phenylazo-2-naphthol in the rat with reference to the action of the intestinal flora. Biochem Pharmacol 16:1555–1561
Chung KT (1983) The significance of azo-reduction in the mutagenesis and carcinogenesis of azo dyes. Mutat Res 114:269–281
Chung KT, Stevens SE Jr, Cerniglia CE (1992) The reduction of azo dyes by the intestinal microflora. Crit Rev Microbiol 18:175–190
Cundell AM (2016) Microbial ecology of the human skin. Microb Ecol. doi:10.1007/s00248-016-0789-6
Dettmer K, Aronov PA, Hammock BD (2007) Mass spectrometry-based metabolomics. Mass Spectrom Rev 26:51–78
Feng J, Heinze TM, Xu H, Cerniglia CE, Chen H (2010) Evidence for significantly enhancing reduction of Azo dyes in Escherichia coli by expressed cytoplasmic Azoreductase (AzoA) of Enterococcus faecalis. Protein Pept Lett 17:578–584
Feng J, Cerniglia CE, Chen H (2012) Toxicological significance of azo dye metabolism by human intestinal microbiota. Front Biosci (Elite Ed) 4:568–586
Fouts JR, Kamm JJ, Brodie BB (1957) Enzymatic reduction of prontosil and other azo dyes. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 120:291–300
Gingell R, Bridges JW, Williams RT (1969) Gut flora and the metabolism of prontosils in the rat. Biochem J 114:5P–6P
Gingell R, Walker R (1971) Mechanisms of azo reduction by Streptococcus faecalis. II. The role of soluble flavins. Xenobiotica 1:231–239
Griswold DP Jr, Casey AE, Weisburger EK, Weisburger JH (1968) The carcinogenicity of multiple intragastric doses of aromatic and heterocyclic nitro or amino derivatives in young female sprague-dawley rats. Cancer Res 28:924–933
Haug W, Schmidt A, Nortemann B, Hempel DC, Stolz A, Knackmuss HJ (1991) Mineralization of the sulfonated azo dye mordant Yellow 3 by a 6-aminonaphthalene-2-sulfonate-degrading bacterial consortium. Appl Environ Microbiol 57:3144–3149
Keck A, Klein J, Kudlich M, Stolz A, Knackmuss HJ, Mattes R (1997) Reduction of azo dyes by redox mediators originating in the naphthalenesulfonic acid degradation pathway of Sphingomonas sp. strain BN6. Appl Environ Microbiol 63:3684–3690
Levine WG (1991) Metabolism of azo dyes: implication for detoxication and activation. Drug Metab Rev 23:253–309
Li L, Gao HW, Ren JR, Chen L, Li YC, Zhao JF, Zhao HP, Yuan Y (2007) Binding of Sudan II and IV to lecithin liposomes and E. coli membranes: insights into the toxicity of hydrophobic azo dyes. BMC Struct Biol 7:16
Lowry LK, Tolos WP, Boeniger MF, Nony CR, Bowman MC (1980) Chemical monitoring of urine from workers potentially exposed to benzidine-derived azo dyes. Toxicol Lett 7:29–36
Mailloux RJ, Beriault R, Lemire J, Singh R, Chenier DR, Hamel RD, Appanna VD (2007) The tricarboxylic acid cycle, an ancient metabolic network with a novel twist. PLoS One 2:e690
Martin CN, Kennelly JC (1985) Metabolism, mutagenicity, and DNA binding of biphenyl-based azodyes. Drug Metab Rev 16:89–117
Mueller GC, Miller JA (1949) The reductive cleavage of 4-dimethylaminoazobenzene by rat liver; the intracellular distribution of the enzyme system and its requirement for triphosphopyridine nucleotide. J Biol Chem 180:1125–1136
Nony CR, Bowman MC, Cairns T, Lowry LK, Tolos WP (1980) Metabolism studies of an azo dye and pigment in the hamster based on analysis of the urine for potentially carcinogenic aromatic amine metabolites. J Anal Toxicol 4:132–140
Pan H, Feng J, Cerniglia CE, Chen H (2011) Effects of Orange II and Sudan III azo dyes and their metabolites on Staphylococcus aureus. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 38:1729–1738
Pan H, Xu J, Kweon OG, Zou W, Feng J, He GX, Cerniglia CE, Chen H (2015) Differential gene expression in Staphylococcus aureus exposed to Orange II and Sudan III azo dyes. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 42:745–757
Pearce CI, Christie R, Boothman C, von Canstein H, Guthrie JT, Lloyd JR (2006) Reactive azo dye reduction by Shewanella strain J18 143. Biotechnol Bioeng 95:692–703
Platzek T, Lang C, Grohmann G, Gi US, Baltes W (1999) Formation of a carcinogenic aromatic amine from an azo dye by human skin bacteria in vitro. Hum Exp Toxicol 18:552–559
Rinde E, Troll W (1975) Metabolic reduction of benzidine azo dyes to benzidine in the rhesus monkey. J Natl Cancer Inst 55:181–182
Stingley RL, Zou W, Heinze TM, Chen H, Cerniglia CE (2010) Metabolism of azo dyes by human skin microbiota. J Med Microbiol 59:108–114
Sun J, Schnackenberg LK, Beger RD (2009) Studies of acetaminophen and metabolites in urine and their correlations with toxicity using metabolomics. Drug Metab Lett 3:130–136
Sun J, Von Tungeln LS, Hines W, Beger RD (2009) Identification of metabolite profiles of the catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitor tolcapone in rat urine using LC/MS-based metabonomics analysis. J Chromatogr B Anal Technol Biomed Life Sci 877:2557–2565
Sun J, Von Tungeln LS, Hines W, Beger RD (2009) Identification of metabolite profiles of the catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitor tolcapone in rat urine using LC/MS-based metabonomics analysis. J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci 877:2557–2565
Sun J, Schnackenberg LK, Hansen DK, Beger RD (2010) Study of valproic acid-induced endogenous and exogenous metabolite alterations using LC–MS-based metabolomics. Bioanalysis 2:207–216
Sun J, Jin J, Beger RD, Cerniglia CE, Yang M, Chen H (2016) Metabolomics evaluation of the impact of smokeless tobacco exposure on the oral bacterium Capnocytophaga sputigena. Toxicol Vitro 36:133–141
Walker R (1970) The metabolism of azo compounds: a review of the literature. Food Cosmet Toxicol 8:659–676
Wilson ID, Nicholson JK (2017) Gut microbiome interactions with drug metabolism, efficacy, and toxicity. Transl Res 179:204–222
Xu H, Heinze TM, Chen S, Cerniglia CE, Chen H (2007) Anaerobic metabolism of 1-amino-2-naphthol-based azo dyes (Sudan dyes) by human intestinal microflora. Appl Environ Microbiol 73:7759–7762
Xu H, Heinze TM, Paine DD, Cerniglia CE, Chen H (2010) Sudan azo dyes and Para Red degradation by prevalent bacteria of the human gastrointestinal tract. Anaerobe 16:114–119
Yoshida O (1973) Etiological factors in bladder tumors. Nihon Hinyokika Gakkai Zasshi 64:707–712
Zimmermann T, Kulla HG, Leisinger T (1982) Properties of purified Orange II azoreductase, the enzyme initiating azo dye degradation by Pseudomonas KF46. Eur J Biochem 129:197–203
Zimmermann T, Gasser F, Kulla HG, Leisinger T (1984) Comparison of two bacterial azoreductases acquired during adaptation to growth on azo dyes. Arch Microbiol 138:37–43
Acknowledgements and disclaimer
We thank Drs. Li-Rong Yu and Jing Han for their critical review of this manuscript. This study was funded by National Center for Toxicological Research, United States Food and Drug Administration, and supported in part by appointment (JJ) in the Postgraduate Research Fellowship Program by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education through an interagency agreement between the US Department of Energy and the US Food and Drug Administration. The findings and conclusions in this publication are those of the authors and do not represent FDA positions or policies.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding authors
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sun, J., Jin, J., Beger, R.D. et al. Evaluation of metabolism of azo dyes and their effects on Staphylococcus aureus metabolome. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 44, 1471–1481 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10295-017-1970-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10295-017-1970-8