Microsomal Reductase Research Articles

Disruption of a Regulatory System Involving Cobalamin Distribution and Function in a Methionine-dependent Human Glioma Cell Line

Cobalamin metabolism and function were investigated at the levels from transcobalamin II (TCII) receptor to the cobalamin-dependent enzymes, methionine synthase and methylmalonyl-CoA mutase, in a methionine-dependent (P60) and a methionine-independent (P60H) glioma cell line. Using P60H as reference, the P60 cells cultured in a methionine medium had slightly lower TCII receptor activity and normal total cobalamin content, a moderately reduced microsomal and mitochondrial cobalamin(III) reductase activity but only trace amounts of the methylcobalamin and adenosylcobalamin cofactors. When transferred to a homocysteine medium without methionine, P60H cells showed a slightly enhanced TCII receptor activity, but the other cobalamin-related functions were essentially unchanged. In contrast, the methionine-dependent P60 cells responded to homocysteine medium with a nearly 6-fold enhancement of TCII receptor expression and a doubling of both the hydroxycobalamin content and the microsomal reductase activity. The mitochondrial reductase and the cobalamin-related processes further down the pathway did not change markedly. In both cell lines, TCII receptor activity was further increased when growth in homocysteine medium was combined with N2O exposure. These data suggest that low methionine and/or high homocysteine exert a positive feedback control on TCII receptor activity. The concurrent increase in hydroxycobalamin content and in microsomal reductase activity are either subjected to similar regulation or secondary to increased cobalamin transport. This regulatory network is most prominent in the methionine-dependent P60 cells harboring a disruption of the network in the proximity of cobalamin(III) reductase.

Metabolism of 14C-labelled 5-nitro-1,2,4-triazol-3-one by rat liver microsomes--evidence for the participation of cytochrome P-450.

In the present study, we synthesized 14C-labelled 5-nitro-1,2,4-triazol-3-one (NTO) and investigated its hepatic metabolism by dexamethasone-induced murine hepatic microsomes. Under the nitrogen atmosphere, 5-amino-1,2,4-triazol-3-one was the only detected metabolite of NTO. The microsomal nitroreductase activity was dependent on NADPH, totally inhibited by carbon monoxide and partially inhibited by oxygen. In aerobic conditions, beside a low amount of amine, the major metabolite formed is the 5-hydroxy-triazolone, urazole. This compound resulted from the oxidative denitrification of NTO, which produced equivalent amount of nitrite. This reaction, like the nitroreductase activity, was dependent on NADPH and totally inhibited by carbon monoxide. Both nitroreduction and oxidative denitrification were inhibited by imidazole-related inhibitors: miconazole and methimazole, and to a less extent by N-octylamine. The microsomal denitrification was induced by the treatment of rats with dexamethasone and phenobarbital. The microsomal reductase activity is present in untreated rat microsomes, and recovered with various inducers. The results of this study indicate the role played by cytochrome P-450 in the metabolism of NTO, supported by its transformation with reconstituted cytochrome P-450 systems.

The effect of pravastatin on hepatic 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase obtained from poloxamer 407-induced hyperlipidemic rats.

A single 300-mg intraperitoneal injection of poloxamer 407 (P-407) to rats produces a marked hypercholesterolemia for a minimum of 96 hours and increases the activity of hepatic 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase compared with the enzyme activity found in microsomal homogenates of control animals. We attempted to determine whether inhibition of microsomal HMG-CoA reductase by pravastatin sodium would yield similar values for the maximum reaction in velocity (Vmax) and the HMG-CoA reductase-pravastatin dissociation constant (Ki) when the enzyme was in the activated state compared with the control state. Knowledge of the respective values for Vmax and Ki would allow us to determine whether P-407-induced hypercholesterolemia in the rat was refractory to pravastatin treatment. Over a pravastatin concentration range of 0.5-50 nM, enzyme activity in vitro decreased as the drug's concentration increased. A standard Dixon plot of mean values of reciprocal reaction velocity versus pravastatin concentration yielded Ki of 3.7 and 4.1 nM for the control and activated states, respectively. The Vmax for conversion of HMG-CoA to mevalonate in vitro in the presence of pravastatin was 3.5-fold greater when assayed in microsomal homogenates obtained from P-407-injected rats compared with control animals. Dixon plot analysis of the data resulted in Vmax of 58.1 and 202 pmol.min-1.mg-1 for the control and activated states, respectively. These data suggest that whereas the Vmax is affected, injection of P-407 to rats does not alter the binding affinity of pravastatin for receptor(s) contained in HMG-CoA reductase as reflected by similar Ki values. This experimental animal model may be an additional screen with which to rank order the relative potency of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors by determining the drug's effectiveness when HMG-CoA reductase is in an activated state.

N-nitroso compounds induce changes in carcinogen-metabolizing enzymes.

The bioactivation of N-nitrosoamines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) is mediated by the mixed function oxidase system, which includes dimethylnitrosamine N-demethylase I (DMN-dI), arylhydrocarbon hydroxylase (AHH), cytochrome P-450, cytochrome b5 and NADPH-cytochrome c reductase of liver microsomes. The present study shows the influence of N-nitroso compounds on the activities of the above-mentioned enzymes. Single-dose treatment (20 mg/kg body weight) of male mice with ethylbutylnitrosamine, propylbutylnitrosamine, or dibutylnitrosamine: increased (1) the activity of DMN-dI by 108%, 104%, 51%, respectively; (2) the cytochrome P-450 content by 106%, 72%, 51%, respectively; (3) the activity of AHH by 95%, 106%, 80% respectively; (4) the cytochrome b5 content by 164%, 97%, 94% respectively; and (5) decreased the activity of NADPH-cytochrome c reductase by 55%, 50% and 45%, respectively. Methylpropylnitrosamine decreased the activity of DMN-dI by 44% and the P-450 content by 50%. Diphenylnitrosamine also decreased cytochrome P-450 by 54%, AHH activity by 64% but increased the activity of DMN-dI by 42%, the cytochrome b5 content by 159% and NADPH-cytochrome c reductase activity by 57%. It seems from this study that the activity of AHH is dependent on P-450 content but DMN-dI is not since the compounds that increased or decreased the activity of AHH had parallel effects on P-450 content. Also, the extent to which the altered activities of DMN-dI, P-450, AHH, cytochrome b5 and NADPH-cytochrome c reductase depends on the type of alkyl groups linked to the nitroso group.

Soluble maize root NADH ferric‐chelate reductase

Abstract A combination of ammonium sulphate fractionation, Cibacron Blue 3 GA affinity chromatography and size exclusion chromatography was employed to partially purify a 28 kDa NADH Fe3+‐chelate reductase from maize root 110,000 g supernatants. This form was similar to a previously purified 28 kDa microsomal ferric reductase, showing the same chromatographic behavior, ratio of ferricyanide to ferric‐chelate reduction (3:1 to 2:1, depending on the iron chelator) and high sensitivity to PHMB. The two forms were subjected to IEF in nondenaturing PAGE and the gel was activity‐stained. Two bands of pl 8.5 and 7.6 were detected in both cases. A fainter pl 6.9 band was also present in the reductase from the supernatant. The supernatant form seems to be derived from the microsomal form, which was previously shown to be loosely bound to membranes and mainly hydrophilic.

Warfarin withdrawal. Pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic considerations.

Warfarin, like all the 4-hydroxycoumarin compounds, has an asymmetric carbon atom. The clinically available warfarin preparations consist of a racemic mixture of equal amounts of 2 distinct S and R isomers, the former being 4-times more potent as anticoagulant and more susceptible to drug interaction. Warfarin is highly water soluble and rapidly absorbed from the stomach and the upper gastrointestinal tract; its plasma concentrations peak 60 to 90 minutes after oral administration. Warfarin binds to the enzyme vitamin K 2,3-epoxide reductase in liver microsomes, stopping the cycle of vitamin K and reducing gamma-carboxylation of the precursors of vitamin D-dependent pro- and anticoagulant factors. A variable fraction of the binding with the target enzyme, albeit small, can be reversed by competitive displacers, such as dithiol-reducing agent activity. Differences in dithiol-reducing activity have been suggested as a contributing factor to the wide interindividual differences in sensitivity to oral anticoagulants. The anticoagulant effect is caused by a small fraction of the drug, since most (97 to 99%) is protein bound (mainly to albumin) and ineffective. Drugs that can displace the albumin binding will increase the action of warfarin, even though this effect is counteracted by a more rapid elimination of the drug. The elimination half-life of warfarin varies greatly among individuals, ranging from 35 to 45 hours; the S isomer has, however, an average half-life shorter than the R isomer. The plasma levels of vitamin K-dependent proteins are determined by a dynamic equilibrium between their synthesis and half-life times. The delay before warfarin takes effect reflects the half-life of the clotting proteins; the levels of factor VII and protein C (with shorter half-lives) are reduced earlier, reaching steady inhibited levels in about 1 day, whereas factor II takes more than 10 days. Oral anticoagulant therapy (OAT) with warfarin or other coumarin derivatives is increasingly administered to patients for primary or secondary prevention of various arterial or venous thromboembolic diseases. If in some clinical conditions OAT is given indefinitely, in others--such as venous thromboembolism or after tissue heart valve replacement--anticoagulants are usually given only for the high risk period of thrombotic complication. A recent large prospective study performed by the Italian Federation of Anticoagulation Clinics showed that about 30% of the patients who began OAT for various clinical indications stopped treatment at different times, confirming that withdrawal from OAT is an occurrence that affects a large number of patients. The expression 'rebound phenomenon' was adopted to indicate a hypercoagulant condition occurring after warfarin withdrawal. A possible more frequent recurrence of thromboembolism after cessation of anticoagulation became a matter of controversy and many clinical studies, mostly observational and noncontrolled, reported on the issue with inconsistent results. Most authoritative commentators agreed that rebound phenomenon, though possible, was not clinically relevant and did not differ in frequency and intensity according to mode of withdrawal. Scientific interest in the topic waned until more sensitive methods for investigating blood hypercoagulability became available. In recent years, many studies (reviewed in the text) have investigated the levels of different markers of hypercoagulability [fibrinopeptide A, activated factor VII, prothrombin fragments F1+2, thrombin-antithrombin complexes, D-dimers (DD)], consistently finding an increase in their values after cessation of anticoagulation. Changes in the levels of markers of activated blood coagulation were prospectively investigated by our group in 32 patients with venous thromboembolism who were randomly withdrawn abruptly or gradually from warfarin treatment. Our results indicate that interruption of anticoagulant treatment frequently elicits low grade acti

Ontogeny and dietary modulation of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase activities in neonatal pigs.

The development of hepatic and ileal -hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase was studied in three types of young pigs crossbred, obese, and lean pigs). Pigs were fed one of two diets: a high-fat (coconut oil), high-cholesterol 1.0%; designated HC) diet or a high-fat, noncholesterol (designated NC) diet from postpartum d 3 to d 13, 25, and 42 (crossbred only). There were four pigs per age per diet group (except for obese pigs). Liver and ileal mucosal microsomal reductase activities were determined by the conversion of [14C]HMG-CoA to mevalonic acid followed by lactonization of the product. The samples were analyzed by thin layer chromatography and liquid scintillation spectrometry. Hepatic reductase activity (1 unit of specific activity = 1 pmol.min-1.mg protein-1) was < 20 units on d 3 in all groups. By d 13, the activity was 40 to 46 units in all groups of pigs fed HC and approximately 50 to 80 units in pigs fed NC. Reductase activity then decreased at d 25 to 18 to 40 units in pigs fed NC and to < 14 units in pigs fed HC. The d 42 reductase values (crossbred only) were approximately 14 units for pigs fed both HC and NC diets. Intestinal reductase activity was not affected (P > .1) by either age or diet. The data suggest that dietary cholesterol suppressed hepatic reductase activity in young pigs (d 13 and 25) from divergent genetic backgrounds. The data also suggest that the stage of development is a dominant factor in regulating porcine hepatic HMG-CoA reductase activity, which was considerably increased at d 13, even in pigs fed HC diets. The relatively modest increase in plasma cholesterol, even in pigs fed cholesterol during the suckling period, provides evidence that both dietary and endogenously synthesized cholesterol are probably used predominantly for tissue building in very young pigs (d 13).

Total parenteral nutrition stimulates hepatic cholesterol synthesis in the rat

Cholesterol synthesis was studied in parenterally fed rats, as compared to orally fed rats with or without saline infusion. Conditions of total parenteral nutrition (TPN) involved the intravenous infusion of a nutritive mixture containing 20% Intralipid R as the lipid source (50% of non-protein energy) at the continuous rate of 2 ml per h, for five days. In rats maintained in isotopic steady state by daily injections of [ 3H]cholesterol, isotope dilution indicated that the endogenous plasma cholesterol input was significantly higher (+15%, P < 0.05) in TPN than in orally fed rats, which suggested a slight stimulation of whole body cholesterogenesis. Cholesterol synthesis was assessed in TPN and orally fed rats by the in vivo incorporation of [1,2- 13 C]- and [1- 14C]acetate into hepatic and intestinal sterols, and by the activity of HMG-CoA reductase in microsomes isolated from liver and small intestine. Both methods demonstrated that TPN markedly stimulated the hepatic cholesterol synthesis, since the radioactivity of liver sterols was 6- to 10-fold higher, and the activity of HMG-CoA reductase 5-fold higher, in TPN than in orally fed rats. Despite the weight reduction of the small intestine, by about 20% after TPN, the incorporation of exogenous [ 14C]acetate into intestinal sterols was similar in TPN and orally fed rats. As the liver and intestine are the main organs responsible for the appearance of endogenous cholesterol in plasma, it may be concluded that the increased endogenous plasma cholesterol input was mainly due to a strong stimulation of hepatic cholesterol synthesis in TPN rats.

Reversible Inhibition of NADPH-Cytochrome P450 Reductase by α-Lipoic Acid

NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase both purified from rat hepatic microsomes and involved in microsomal fraction was inactivated by treatment with α-lipoic acid. Since α-lipoic acid contains disulfide bond, it reacts with SH-groups of the reductase via the reaction of thiol-disulfide exchange resulting in the loss of the enzyme reducing activity. NADP + completely protected reductase from the inactivation. The modification of reductase was reversible: the modified enzyme was partially reactivated with dithiothreitol and dihydrolipoic acid in the case when cytochrome c was used as a substrate of reductase. In the case when inorganic substrate, K 3Fe(CN) 6, was used for assay the activity of modified reductase no reactivation was observed. It was found that the order of the reaction of inactivation of membrane-bound microsomal reductase is equal to 1.2 ± 0.2, which is in an agreement with pseudo-first order kinetics, and the second-order-rate constant of 26 M −1min −1. The results have shown that well known therapeutic agent α-lipoic acid is an efficient inhibitor of both purified and microsomal reductase.

Oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) reduces the activity of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase in rat liver microsomes.

The effect of dried oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) on cholesterol (C) content in serum, in lipoproteins and in liver, and on the activity of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase in liver microsomes, was studied in male rats (strain Wistar, initial body weight 75 g) fed on low-cholesterol (9 mg/100 g) and high-cholesterol (0.3%) diets. Addition of 5% oyster mushroom to both diets reduced significantly the C-content in serum (by 30%), in very-low- and low-density lipoproteins (in a 1:1 ratio to the decrease of total serum C) and in liver (by 50%), as well as the activity of HMG-CoA reductase (by more than 30%).

Effect of gemfibrozil on lipid biosynthesis from acetyl-CoA derived from peroxisomal β-oxidation

The effect of gemfibrozil, a peroxisome proliferator, on lipid biosynthesis from acetyl-CoA derived from peroxisomal β-oxidation was studied. The specific activity of the peroxisomal fatty acylCoA β-oxidation system of rats fed a chow containing 0.2% gemflbrozil for 2 weeks was approximately five times higher than that of control rats. When [1- 14C]lignoceric acid, a very-long-chain fatty acid which is degraded exclusively by the peroxisomal β-oxidation system at first, was injected into rats treated with gemfibrozil, radioactivity and content of bile acid in the bile were enhanced to approximately 2.2 and 3.5 times the control, respectively. Gemfibrozil increased the radioactivity and content of chenodeoxycholic acid more than that of cholic acid. The incorporation of radioactivity into cholesterol in the bile was as much as 4.5 times greater than the control, and content was 2.6 times greater. In the liver, incorporation of [ 14C]lignoceric acid into the simple lipids phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine was unaffected by gemfibrozil. The radioactivity and content of cholesterol separated from the simple lipids were also virtually unaffected. However, the specific activities of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutararyl-CoA reductase (rate-limiting enzyme of cholesterol synthesis) of peroxisomes and microsomes were remarkably stimulated by gemfibrozil treatment. These results suggest that biosyntheses of cholesterol and bile acid from acetyl-CoA derived from peroxisomal β-oxidation are stimulated by gemfibrozil, due at least in part to activation of the peroxisomal β-oxidation system and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase of peroxisomes and/or microsomes. Most peroxisomal proliferators (e.g. clofibrate) have been known to inhibit 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase activity. Therefore, gemfibrozil is expected to be a very useful tool for elucidating the relationship between peroxisomes and the biosyntheses of cholesterol and bile acid.

The stereospecificity, purification, and characterization of an NADH-ferricyanide reductase from spinach leaf plasma membrane

The stereospecificity of NADH-ferricyanide reductase activities in the inner mitochondrial membrane, peroxisomal membrane, plasma membrane and tonoplast are all specific for the β-hydrogen of NADH whereas the reductases in the ER, the Golgi and the outer mitochondrial membrane are α-specific. This shows unequivocally that the NADH-ferricyanide activity in the plasma membrane is not caused by ER contamination. In all the membranes one or several polypeptides with an apparent size of 45–50 kDa cross-react with antibodies raised against a microsomal NADH-ferricyanide reductase. An NADH-ferricyanide reductase was purified from spinach leaf plasma membranes. The enzyme was released from the membrane by CHAPS solubilization and purified 360-fold by ion-exchange chromatography followed by affinity chromatography and size exclusion chromatography on FPLC. A major band of 45 kDa was detected by SDS-PAGE and it cross-reacted with the anti-NADH-ferricyanide reductase antibodies. The native size of the enzyme is 160 kDa as determined by size-exclusion chromatography indicating that it is a tetramer. Isoelectric focusing revealed three isoenzymes between pH 5.3 and 5.6. The enzyme shows typical FAD fluorescence spectra with excitation peaks at 371 and 468 nm and an emission peak at 525 nm. It is specific for the β-hydrogen of NADH and prefers NADH over NADPH as electron donor. It is highly specific for ferricyanide as electron acceptor and it is therefore unlikely to be the enzyme responsible for iron reduction on the outer surface of the plasma membrane.

Ethanol-induced oxygen radical formation and lipid peroxidation in rat brain: effect of chronic alcohol consumption.

The effect of chronic and in vitro ethanol exposure on brain oxygen radical formation and lipid peroxidation was analyzed. Ethanol induces a dose-dependent increase in lipid peroxidation in brain homogenates. The peroxidative effects of alcohol seem to be related to both cytochrome P450 and the ethanol-inducible form of cytochrome P450 (CYP2E1), because preincubation with metyrapone (an inhibitor of cytochrome P450) or with an antibody against CYP2E1 abolished the ethanol-increased lipid peroxidation. Using the formation of dichlorofluorescein, we also demonstrated that both in vitro and chronic alcohol exposure significantly enhanced the formation of oxygen radical species in synaptosomes. Chronic alcohol treatment also leads to an induction of cytochrome P450 (230%), NADPH cytochrome c reductase (180%), NADPH oxidation (184%), and CYP2E1 in brain microsomes. In addition, this treatment produced a decrease in the GSH/GSSG ratio in brain and significantly enhanced the levels of superoxide dismutase and catalase activities. This mechanism could be involved in the toxic effects of ethanol on brain and membrane alterations occurring after chronic ethanol intake.

Effects of Dietary Oxidized Cholesterol on Lipid Metabolism in Differently Aged Rats

Male Sprague-Dawley rats, 4 weeks (young) or 8 months (adult) of age, were fed one of three purified diets free of or containing either 0.5% cholesterol or 0.5% oxidized cholesterol (92% oxidized cholesterol) for 3 weeks. Feeding of oxidized cholesterol caused a significant reduction of food intake, body weight gain, and relative liver weight in rats of both ages. The activity of the HMG-CoA reductase and cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase of liver microsomes, the key enzymes in cholesterol synthesis and catabolism, respectively, was lowered by oxidized cholesterol compared to the diet free of cholesterol in both ages, and the difference was significantly in the adult. On the other hand, the activity of Δ6-desaturase of liver microsomes, a key enzyme in linoleic acid metabolism to arachidonic acid, was significantly increased by oxidized cholesterol in adult rats, leading to the increase in linoleic acid desaturation index [(20:3n-6 + 20:4n-6)/18:2n-6] in liver phospholipids. Oxidized cholesterol reduced the conc...

Mitochondrial NADPH-Linked Aquacobalamin Reductase Is Distinct from the NADPH-Linked Enzyme from Microsomal Membranes in Rat Liver

Mitochondrial NADPH-linked aquacobalamin reductase was purified and characterized to clarify its enzymatic properties. The enzyme was purified about 360-fold over rat liver mitochondrial membranes in a yield of 7.5%. The purified enzyme was homogenous in SDS-PAGE. The molecular mass (M(r)) of the enzyme was calculated to be 65 kDa by SDS-PAGE and by Toyopearl HW55 gel filtration, indicating that the enzyme is a monomeric polypeptide with M(r) of 65 kDa. The enzyme was a flavoprotein containing 1 mol of FAD and FMN per mole of the enzyme. The enzyme was specific for NADPH as electron donor and had the ability to reduce cytochrome c (15.4 mumol.min-1 x mg protein-1), potassium ferricyanide (4.9 mumol.min-1 x mg protein-1) and 2,6-dichlorophenolindophenol (16.8 mumol.min-1.mg protein-1) as well as aquacobalamin (6.4 mumol.min-1 x mg protein-1). Although the enzyme immunoreacted with an antibody against NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase, which had the activity of the NADPH-linked aquacobalamin reductase in rat liver microsomes, the mitochondrial enzyme and the microsomal enzyme had different enzymological properties.

Formation and Reduction of Ascorbate Radicals by Hog Thyroid Microsomes

The formation of ascorbate radicals, identified by ESR experiments, was observed in the ascorbate peroxidase reaction by thyroid microsomes. The steady-state concentration of ascorbate radicals decreased in the presence of NADH. The oxidation of NADH was followed optically. Using the ascorbic acid oxidase system, NADH-dependent electron transport in thyroid microsomes was examined. Ascorbate radicals competed with bound cytochrome b 5 for the reaction with reduced NADH-cytochrome b 5 reductase. The NADH-ascorbate radical reductase activity of thyroid microsomes was calculated to be 0.17 μmol/mg · s at 3.3 μM ascorbate radicals. Kinetic results show that the properties of NADH-cytochrome b 5 reductase in thyroid microsomes were similar to those of the enzyme in liver microsomes. The formation of ascorbate radicals by thyroid microsomes was stimulated by the addition of thyroxine, and the stimulation was decreased also by NADH. The thyroxine-mediated oxidation of ascorbate is explained in terms of consecutive one-electron transfers initiated by bound thyroid peroxidase. These results, along with those described in our previous paper (M. Nakamura, I. Yamazaki, and S. Ohtaki, 1990, J. Biochem. 108, 804-810), support the idea that ascorbate protects thyroid hormones from oxidative degradation through the NADH-cytochrome b 5 reductase system.

Accumulation of Intermediates and Isotopically Sensitive Enolization Distinguish between Aromatase (Cytochrome P450 CYP19) from Rat Ovary and Human Placenta

Aromatase activity in microsomes from human placenta (HPM) and rat ovary (ROM) was compared by measuring the accumulation of 19-oxygenated intermediates, the effect of tritium substitution upon rates, and the distribution of tritium in products. A considerable accumulation of intermediates (19-hydroxyandrogen and 19-al-androgen) and a lag in product formation (estrogen and water) was observed with ROM but not HPM. Addition of purified NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase to ROM decreased the accumulation of 19-hydroxyandrostenedione and increased the rate of estrone formation. This difference could not be attributed to the microsomal reductase concentration since its concentration was similar in both tissues. Estrogen formation by aromatase from these tissues was not associated with a significant kinetic isotope effect when androstenedione was labeled with tritium at C-1 and C-2. Isotopically sensitive switching (branching) from the 19-al-androstenedione enzyme complex to form free 19-al-androstenedione rather than estrogen was not observed. These data suggest that for aromatase in both tissues, an enzymatic step exists between the 19-al-androstenedione intermediate and hydrogen abstraction or enolization that has a large commitment to catalysis. The distribution of tritium into the products, water and estrogen, was dependent upon substrate, enzyme source, and position of the label. Incubation of 1β,2β-[ 3H]androstenedione and testosterone with ROM and 1β,2β-[ 3H]testosterone with HPM resulted in approximately 50% of the label being retained in the estrogen and 50% being lost in water. The majority of the label was lost in water upon incubation of 1β-labeled substrates with microsomes from both sources. Unexpectedly, no label was lost to water upon incubation of the specifically lα,2α-labeled substrates with either enzyme source. Only incubation of 1β,2β-[ 3H]androstenedione with RPM resulted in loss of tritium from the 2-position. These data were interpreted to indicate that, for androstenedione metabolism by ROM and testosterone metabolism by both ROM and HPM, enolization occurs nonspecifically in an isotopically sensitive manner following deformylation, but for HPM metabolism of androstenedione enolization occurs in an enzyme-assisted manner. The studies show that aromatase located in ROM differs from that in HPM by its accumulation of intermediates and inability to selectively remove the 2β-tritium from androstenedione.

Inhibition of cytochrome-P450 reductase by polyols has an electrostatic nature.

The present study was undertaken to examine the nature of the inhibitory action of glycerol on the liver microsomal monooxygenase system. In agreement with earlier observations, glycerol inhibited benzphetamine N-demethylation by liver microsomes of the phenobarbital-treated rabbit. The presence of glycerol in the medium did not affect binding of the substrate to cytochrome P450. Another polyol, ethylene glycol, was equally efficient in inhibiting benzphetamine N-demethylation. Both also inhibited reduction of rabbit cytochrome P450 LM2, cytochrome c and potassium ferricyanide by NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase in microsomes. Recently, we showed that the stimulation of electron transfer by increased ionic strength is due to neutralization of electrostatic interaction between NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase and its charged redox partners [Voznesensky, A. I. & Schenkman, J. B. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 14669-14676]. Polyols have an opposite effect to that of salt on ionic properties of a solution. They decrease the dielectric constant, thereby promoting electrostatic interactions between proteins. Addition of polyols decreased the conductivity of the medium. When rates of electron transfer to charged acceptors, cytochrome P450, cytochrome c and potassium ferricyanide, at various salt and polyol concentrations, relative to activities in 200 mM sodium phosphate, were plotted as a function of the conductivity the data for each acceptor fit on the same line. In contrast, neither alteration of ionic strength nor polyol addition affected the rate of electron transfer from NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase to an uncharged acceptor 1,4-benzoquinone. The data obtained is consistent with our earlier suggestion that charge repulsion limits redox interactions between rabbit cytochrome P450 LM2 and its reductase at low ionic strength, and suggest that the observed action of polyols is the result of enhancement of electrostatic interactions that inhibits electron transfer between NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase and its charged redox partners. In congruence with the hypothesis, the Km of rabbit cytochrome P450 LM2 for NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase was increased almost one order of magnitude by elevating the glycerol content from 5% to 25% (by vol.) without a change in Vmax.

Acyl-CoA: Cholesterol acyltransferase and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase in carp-liver microsomes: effect of cold acclimation on enzyme activities and on hepatic and plasma lipid composition

Hepatic microsomal activities of acyl-CoA : cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase, rate-limiting enzymes in cholesterol esterification and cholesterol synthesis, and the concentrations and compartimentalization of esterified and unesterified cholesterol, were studied in carp acclimated to 10 and 30°C. Irrespective of acclimation temperature, carp-liver ACAT is characterized by an apparent, K m -value for oleoyl-CoA of 11–15 μM and displays an optimum activity at pH 7.4. The enzyme activity is reduced approx. 2-fold upon preincubation of microsomes with alkaline phosphatase. Arrhenius plots of ACAT-activity are curvilinear, with curvatures considerably affected by the acclimation temperature of the fish. Carp HMG-CoA reductase has been characterized previously by Teichert and Wodtke ((1987) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 920, 161–170). When measured at 30°C, ACAT activities from 30°C- and 10°C-accIimated carp are identical (approx. 6 pmol/min per mg protein), whilst ‘expressed’ HMG-CoA reductase activity (18.1 ± 12.2 pmol/min per mg protein for 30°C-acclimated carp vs. 159.8 ± 106.6 pmol/min per mg protein for 10°C-acclimated carp) is enhanced 9-fold in the cold environment. This disparity indicates that cold-acclimation results in a massive increase in the capacity for hepatic cholesterol synthesis relative to hepatic cholesterol esterification. At the same time, hepatic compositional analysis reveals identical contents of unesterified cholesterol in either groups of carp but significantly decreased (3-fold) amounts in cholesterol ester (and also in triacylglycerol, 4-fold) in cold-acclimated carp. Moreover, microsomal fractions display lower cholesterol to phospholipid ratios in the cold. In contrast, concentrations of either cholesterol fractions (and of triacylglycerols) in plasma - the mobile compartment for lipoprotein transport — do not differ in cold- and warm-acclimated carp. Based on current concepts of cholesterol metabolism, it is concluded that the cold-enhanced expression of hepatic HMG-CoA reductase activity is a homeostatic response directed against and compensating for a cold-induced but not yet characterized deficiency in hepatic cholesterol availability.

Reconstitution of cytochrome P4502B4 (LM2) activity with camphor and linalool monooxygenase electron donors

The P4502B4 (LM2) monooxygenase was shown to bind the P450cam and P450lin redoxins with respective dissociation constants of ca. 500 and 100 microM. When the redoxin reductases are added, the heterogeneous complexes demethylate benzphetamine with HCHO yields and Vmax similar to results with the homologous microsomal reductase. Implications of evolutionary conserved P450 redox electron donor binding site residues are discussed.