Nitric Oxide In Murine Macrophages Research Articles

Interferon-γ-Inducible Murine Macrophage Nitric-Oxide Synthase: Studies on the Mechanism of Inhibition by Imidazole Agents

Citrulline formation by the interferon-γ/lipopolysaccharide-inducible murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase is inhibited reversibly by imidazole, 1-phenylimidazole, 4-phenylimidazole, and 2-phenylimidazole with IC50 values of 40 μM, 6 μM, 225 μM and >1 mM, respectively. 1-Phenylimidazole inhibited the maximal velocity of citrulline formation but did not alter the concentration of arginine providing half-maximal activity. 1-Phenylimidazole inhibited citrulline formation by the murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase competitively versus (6R)-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-L-biopterin (THB) with a Ki value of 0.7 μM, but inhibited citrulline formation by Ca2+-calmodulin-dependent nitric oxide synthase from GH3 pituitary cells noncompetitively versus THB with a Ki value of 40 μM. Imidazole inhibited citrulline formation by the murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase noncompetitively versus THB with a Ki value of 48 μM. Neither imidazole nor 1-phenylimidazoIe inhibited the cytochrome c reductase activity of murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase at concentrations 100-fold higher than their IC50 values for inhibiting citrulline formation. The antifungal imidazoles miconazole, ketoconazole, and clotrimazole did not inhibit either citrulline formation or cytochrome c reduction by murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase at concentration as high as 200 μM. Ca2+-calmodulin-dependent nitric oxide synthase from GH3 pituitary cells exhibited a Kact for THB of 80 nM, while the inducible murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase exhibited a Kact of 8 μM.

Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein inhibits induction of macrophage nitric oxide production by lipopolysaccharide.

A recombinant (r) NH2-terminal fragment of bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein, rBPI23, was shown to inhibit murine macrophage nitric oxide (NO) production elicited by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma). Normal mouse plasma amplified NO synthesis (measured as NO2- release) at LPS concentrations of 1-10 ng/mL, and antibody to the plasma LPS-binding protein (LBP) partially inhibited NO2- release in the presence of normal mouse plasma. rBPI23 (1 microgram/mL) effectively inhibited LPS-dependent NO2- release in the presence or absence of normal mouse plasma. Fifty percent inhibition of IFN-gamma/LPS-elicited NO2- production or of binding of fluoresceinated LPS was obtained with approximately 0.2 microgram/mL rBPI23. These results provide a basis for studies of rBPI23 effects on NO synthase activity in murine models of gram-negative sepsis.

Regulation of the L-arginine-dependent and tetrahydrobiopterin-dependent biosynthesis of nitric oxide in murine macrophages.

Nitric oxide is a recently discovered biomolecule with a broad range of actions. The present study investigated the regulation of nitric oxide synthase activity by dexamethasone and the cofactor tetrahydrobiopterin in murine macrophages. The influence of the tetrahydrobiopterin biosynthesis inhibitors 2,4-diamino-6-hydroxypyrimidine, an inhibitor of GTP cyclohydrolase I, and phenprocoumon, an inhibitor of sepiapterin reductase, on the synthesis of nitric oxide was investigated. Dexamethasone decreased the nitric oxide production due to direct inhibition of the induction of nitric oxide synthase and of GTP cyclohydrolase. Substitution of tetrahydrobiopterin via sepiapterin could not overcome the dexamethasone-mediated inhibition. 2,4-Diamino-6-hydroxypyrimidine abolished nitric oxide synthesis and synergized with dexamethasone, completely eliminating nitric oxide production. Phenprocoumon inhibited production of nitric oxide via interference with later steps of tetrahydrobiopterin biosynthesis. An exogenous supply of tetrahydrobiopterin through sepiapterin led to a further increase of nitric oxide production, even in fully activated macrophages. The amount of nitric oxide produced by murine macrophages is therefore limited by the amount of tetrahydrobiopterin present in the cells. Inhibitors of tetrahydrobiopterin biosynthesis could provide a novel approach for therapy of pathological conditions mediated by nitric oxide, such as septic shock.

Irreversible inactivation of macrophage and brain nitric oxide synthase by L-NG-methylarginine requires NADPH-dependent hydroxylation.

L-NG-Methylarginine (NMA) is an established mechanism-based inactivator of murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase (mNOS). In this report, NMA is shown to irreversibly inhibit both mNOS (k(inact) = 0.08 min-1) and the recombinant constitutive brain NOS (bNOS). For both NOS isoforms, metabolism of NMA parallels that of the natural substrate L-arginine (ARG), in that it undergoes a regiospecific, NADPH-dependent hydroxylation to form L-NG-hydroxy-NG-methylarginine (NOHNMA). This intermediate then undergoes further NADPH-dependent oxidation to form L-citrulline (CIT). Authentic NOHNMA, synthesized from L-ornithine, irreversibly inhibited both mNOS (k(inact) = 0.10 min-1) and bNOS in an NADPH-dependent reaction. The conversion of either NMA or NOHNMA to CIT correlated with irreversible enzyme inactivation. Thus, the data suggest that enzyme inhibition occurs as a consequence of oxidative metabolism of the intermediate, NOHNMA. A unified mechanism is proposed that accounts for NO biosynthesis from ARG, for the inactivation of NOS by NMA and for the intermediacy of hydroxylated ARG or NMA derivatives in these processes.

Cloned, expressed rat cerebellar nitric oxide synthase contains stoichiometric amounts of heme, which binds carbon monoxide.

The endogenous formation of nitric oxide (NO) has become an area of intense interest as evidence for its biological functions has been obtained in three distinct tissues: circulating macrophages, in which it exerts cytotoxic effects; blood vessels, in which it has been identified as endothelium-derived relaxing factor; and neuronal cells, in which it functions as a neurotransmitter. The formation of NO in brain extracts has been shown to be catalyzed by an enzyme, termed NO synthase, which generates the NO responsible for stimulation of cGMP formation, the highest levels of which occur in the cerebellum. NO synthase catalyzes the formation of citrulline from arginine with the coincident production of NO and has been shown to be a flavoprotein, containing 1 mol each of FAD and FMN, tetrahydrobiopterin, and iron. It is also reported to contain an alpha-helical, calmodulin-binding consensus sequence consistent with its stimulation by calmodulin in the presence of Ca2+. The formation of NO requires incorporation of one of the atoms of molecular oxygen into one of the guanidinium nitrogen atoms of arginine with the coincident formation of citrulline. This communication reports that rat cerebellar NO synthase, cloned and stably expressed in human kidney 293 cells, contains heme in amounts stoichiometric with the flavins FAD and FMN as evidenced by the appearance of a pyridine hemochrome and a reduced CO difference spectrum with an absorbance maximum at approximately 445 nm. The finding of a CO-binding heme moiety explains the presence of iron in the enzyme and suggests a role for prosthetic heme as an oxygenase reaction center. This report also presents evidence for incorporation of delta-[14C]aminolevulinate specifically into immunoprecipitable NO synthase in stably transfected human kidney 293 cells but not in nontransfected cells. Simultaneously, K. A. White and M. A. Marletta [(1992) Biochemistry 31, 6627-6631] have demonstrated a CO-binding heme prosthetic group in purified murine macrophage NO synthase and have suggested the identity of these reaction centers in both the constitutive (cerebellar) and inducible (macrophage) forms of NO synthase.

NG-allyl- and NG-cyclopropyl-L-arginine: two novel inhibitors of macrophage nitric oxide synthase.

NG-Methyl-L-arginine has recently been shown to inactivate the inducible murine macrophage nitric oxide (.NO) synthase (Olken, N. M.; Rusche, K. M.; Richards, M. K.; Marletta, M. A. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 1991, 177, 828-833). NG-Allyl-L-arginine and NG-cyclopropyl-L-arginine were synthesized as potential mechanism-based enzyme inhibitors to exploit the chemistry presumed to occur at the active site. NG-Cyclopropyl-L-arginine was found to be a potent reversible inhibitor with a Ki = 7.7 microM. NG-Allyl-L-arginine was found to be both a potent reversible (Ki = 2.1 microM) and irreversible inhibitor of the enzyme. This irreversible inhibition demonstrated pseudo-first-order inactivation kinetics with kinact = 0.026 min-1 and KI = 3.4 microM. Stereospecific protection of the inactivation was afforded by L-arginine, and saturability of the inactivation rate was observed. Our studies indicate that both reversible and irreversible inhibition of the inducible .NO synthase can be achieved with relatively simple modifications of the substrate L-arginine.

Purification of the inducible murine macrophage nitric oxide synthase. Identification as a flavoprotein.

The synthesis of nitric oxide (.NO) from L-arginine has been demonstrated in a number of cell types and functions either as a cell signaling agent or as a key component of the cell-mediated immune response. Both constitutive and inducible activities have been described. Herein we report the purification of inducible .NO synthase (EC 1.14.23) from activated murine macrophages using a two-column procedure. Crude 100,000 x g supernatant was passed through a 2'-5'-ADP-Sepharose 4B affinity column followed by a DEAE-Bio-Gel A anion exchange column. The .NO synthase ran as a band of Mr = 130,000 on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Gel filtration experiments using a Superose 6 HR 10/30 column estimated the native molecular weight to be 260 +/- 30 kDa, indicating that the native enzyme exists as a dimer. Activity was dependent upon L-arginine (Km = 16 +/- 1 microM at 37 degrees C and pH 7.5) and NADPH. Both (6R)-tetrahydro-L-biopterin and FAD enhanced activity, whereas Mg2+ and FMN had no effect on activity. Fluorescence studies demonstrated the presence of one bound FAD and one bound FMN per subunit.