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Mechanism-based inactivation of cytochromes P450 2B1 and P450 2B6 by 2-phenyl-2-(1-piperidinyl)propane.

2-Phenyl-2-(1-piperidinyl)propane (PPP), an analog of phencyclidine, was tested for its ability to inactivate cytochrome P450s (P450s) 2B1 and 2B6. PPP inactivated the 7-(benzyloxy)resorufin O-dealkylation activity of liver microsomes obtained from phenobarbital-induced rats with a K(I) of 11 microM. The 7-ethoxy-4-(trifluoromethyl)coumarin O-deethylation activity of purified rat liver P450 2B1 and expressed human P450 2B6 was inactivated by PPP in a reconstituted system containing NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase and lipid. In the presence of NADPH, the loss of activity was time- and concentration-dependent, and followed pseudo first order kinetics. The rate of inactivation for P450 2B1 was 0.3 min(-1), and the concentration of PPP required to achieve half-maximal inactivation was 12 microM. The time for 50% of the P450 2B1 to become inactivated at saturating concentrations of PPP was 2.5 min. P450 2B6 was inactivated with a k(inact) of 0.07 min(-1), a K(I) of 1.2 microM, and a t(1/2) of 9.5 min. The inactivated P450s 2B1 and 2B6 lost about 25 and 15%, respectively, of their ability to form a CO-reduced complex, suggesting that the loss of activity was caused by a PPP modification of the apoprotein rather than the heme. The estimated partition ratio for P450s 2B1 and 2B6 with PPP was 31 and 15, respectively. The inactivation was not reversible and reductase activity was not affected. Coincubation of P450 2B1 and 2B6 with PPP and NADPH in the presence of an alternate substrate protected both enzymes from inactivation. The exogenous nucleophile GSH did not affect the rate of inactivation. PPP-inactivated P450s 2B1 and 2B6 were recognized on Western blots by an antibody generated to phencyclidine that had been conjugated to BSA. Stoichiometries of 1.4:1 and 0.7:1 were determined for the binding of a [3H]PPP metabolite to P450 2B1 and 2B6, respectively.

Animals↗

Metabolism of taxol by human hepatic microsomes and liver slices: participation of cytochrome P450 3A4 and an unknown P450 enzyme.

Incubation of taxol with human hepatic microsomal fractions or freshly isolated human liver slices yields three metabolite high performance liquid chromatography peaks, metabolite A, metabolite B, and 6 alpha-hydroxytaxol. These metabolites are formed in patients given taxol, with 6 alpha-hydroxytaxol formation representing the principal biotransformation pathway. Metabolite B and 6 alpha-hydroxytaxol are shown to be products of different, highly regioselective cytochrome P-450 (P450) enzymes, while metabolite A results from stepwise metabolism by each of these enzymes. Correlation of metabolite B formation with P450 3A markers was good (r2 = 0.91-0.94), but the correlation of 6 alpha-hydroxytaxol formation with markers for several P450 enzymes was poor. Chemical inhibitors that selectively inhibited metabolite B formation (troleandomycin, cyclosporine), that selectively inhibited 6 alpha-hydroxytaxol formation (naringenin, quercetin), or that nonselectively inhibited both pathways (felodipine, ketoconazole) were found. Metabolite B formation was selectively reduced by anti-P450 3A4 antibodies. Expressed human P450 3A4 preparations were efficient catalysts of metabolite B formation; no expressed P450 preparation tested showed a capacity for catalyzing taxane 6 alpha-hydroxylation reactions. The combined results of several experimental approaches show that P450 3A4 is the major catalyst of metabolite B formation and that the identity of the P450 enzyme or enzymes responsible for 6 alpha-hydroxytaxol formation cannot be assigned with certainty.

Biotransformation↗

New perspectives on the conformational equilibrium regulating multi-phasic reduction of cytochrome P450 2B4 by cytochrome P450 reductase.

The pre-steady-state reduction of cytochrome P450 (P450) 2B4 by P450 reductase (reductase) was modeled by assuming that an equilibrium between three catalytic conformers of P450 regulates the multi-phasic reduction of the enzyme. This model was compared to a model of reduction involving a minimum number of phases. Based on several criteria, the former model seems to provide an improved fit to the reduction data. Substrates were divided into two groups based on their effects at different concentrations of reductase. Surprisingly, in the presence of some substrates (group 1) but not others (group 2), the rate of reduction was actually slower with an excess of reductase than with equimolar reductase and P450. Presumably, oxidized reductase binds differently to P450 than reduced reductase. A schematic model based on two sites of interaction between reductase and P450 2B4 is offered to explain the unusual reduction kinetics with the two different groups of substrates.

Animals↗

Rat liver cytochrome P450 2B3: structure of the CYP2B3 gene and immunological identification of a constitutive P450 2B3-like protein in rat liver.

The cytochrome P450 2B subfamily in the rat contains an estimated eight to eleven members at the genomic level. Synthesis in the liver of the prototypic forms P450 2B1 and P450 2B2 is dramatically induced by phenobarbital. The 1.9-kb mRNA for P450 2B3, a third member of the P450 2B subfamily, is constitutively present in rat liver but is not inducible by phenobarbital. We have now cloned and sequenced exonic sequences corresponding to the entire 2B3 mRNA and determined their exon-intron structure, which is identical to that of CYP2B1/CYP2B2 and other CYP2B genes. A putative CYP2B3 transcription start site was identified and CYP2B3 5'- and 3'-flanking sequences were compared to those of CYP2B1 and CYP2B2. CYP2B3, like CYP2B1 and CYP2B2, has a modified TATA box preceding the transcription start site and lacks the canonical polyadenylation signal preceding the poly(A) site. A 2B3 expression vector, pMT2-2B3, directed the synthesis in COS-1 cells of an approximately 50-kD protein detectable on Western blots with a polyclonal antibody and with one of four monoclonal antibodies raised against 2B1 but not with a polyclonal antibody raised against P450 PB6. The 2B3 protein migrated with a slightly higher electrophoretic mobility than 2B1 and comigrated with a protein detected by anti-2B1 antibodies in liver microsomes from untreated rats. The results indicate that a 2B3-like protein is present in rat liver and that it is distinct from P450 PB6 and other known constitutive rat hepatic P450s.

Animals↗

Establishment of a novel host, high-red yeast that stably expresses hamster NADPH-cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase: usefulness for examination of the function of mammalian cytochrome P450.

A novel strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae useful for expression studies of mammalian microsomal cytochrome P450s was established and named High-red yeast. Hamster NADPH-cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (P450 reductase) cDNA to be introduced into yeast was isolated from a hamster liver cDNA library. The cDNA was 2421 bp long and contained an entire coding region for 667 amino acids. The NH2-terminal amino acid sequence deduced from the hamster P450 reductase cDNA was identical with that of the enzyme purified from hamster livers except for deletion of the initial methionine. A delta-sequence derived from yeast retrotransposon Ty was cloned and used as a sequence for homologous recombination in a yeast genome. S. cerevisiae YPH500 was transformed with a multi-integration cassette containing the expression unit of the hamster P450 reductase and the delta-sequence. The transformant showing the highest activity of the P450 reductase was named High-red yeast. High-red yeast carried more than six copies of the multi-integration cassettes in a single chromosome and retained the multi-integration cassettes over a period of 100 generations under nonselective culture conditions, indicating that this yeast was a mitotically stable transformant. The microsomes prepared from High-red yeast had 20 times the P450 reductase activity of the microsomes prepared from the parental yeast. Due to the high activity of the hamster P450 reductase, the 7-ethoxycoumarin deethylase activity of mouse CYP1A1 expressed in High-red yeast was 250 times higher than the activity of mouse CYP1A1 expressed in the parental yeast.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Differential effects of naturally occurring isothiocyanates on the activities of cytochrome P450 2E1 and the mutant P450 2E1 T303A.

The effects of benzyl (BITC) and phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC) on the activity of a P450 2E1 mutant where the conserved threonine at position 303 was replaced with an alanine residue (P450 2E1 T303A) were examined. PEITC inactivated the mutant enzyme with a K(I) of 1.6 microM. PEITC also inactivated the wild-type P450 2E1 as efficiently with a K(I) of 2.7 microM. The inactivation was entirely dependent on NADPH and followed pseudo-first-order kinetics. Previously we reported the mechanism-based inactivation of wild-type P450 2E1 by BITC with a K(I) of 13 microM. In contrast to the wild-type enzyme, the P450 2E1 T303A mutant was not inactivated by BITC but it was inhibited in a competitive manner with a K(i) of 3 microM. The binding constants determined by spectral binding studies were similar for both enzymes. The binding of BITC produced characteristic Type I spectral changes in the wild-type and mutant enzyme. A radiolabeled BITC metabolite bound to P450 2E1 and to P450 2E1 T303A when both enzymes were incubated with [(14)C]BITC and NADPH. Whole protein electrospray ion trap mass spectrometry indicated that a mass consistent with one molecule of benzylisocyanate and oxygen was adducted to the wild-type enzyme. The mass adducted to the T303A mutant was consistent with the addition of one hydroxylated BITC or of one benzylisocyanate moiety and one sulfur molecule. Analysis of the metabolites of BITC indicated that each enzyme produced similar metabolites but that the mutant enzyme generated significantly higher amounts of benzaldehyde and benzoic acid when compared to the wild-type enzyme.

Animals↗

Roles of NADPH-P450 reductase in the O-deethylation of 7-ethoxycoumarin by recombinant human cytochrome P450 1B1 variants in Escherichia coli.

Four human cytochrome P450 1B1 (CYP1B1) allelic variants were purified from membranes of Escherichia coli in which respective CYP1B1 cDNAs and human NADPH-P450 reductase cDNA have been introduced. Purified CYP1B1 variants were used to reconstitute 7-ethoxycoumarin O-deethylation activities with purified rabbit liver or recombinant (rat) NADPH-P450 reductase in the phospholipid vesicles and compared with those catalyzed by CYP1B1 enzymes in the membranes of E. coli in monocistronic (by adding the reductase) and bicistronic (without addition of extra reductase) systems. In the bicistronic system, the ratio of expression of NADPH-P450 reductase to CYP1B1 proteins was found to range from 0.2 to 0.5. Purified CYP1B1 enzymes (under optimal reconstitution conditions) catalyzed 7-ethoxycoumarin O-deethylation at rates one-third to one-fourth of those catalyzed by membranes of E. coli coexpressing CYP1B1 and the reductase proteins. Full catalytic activities in reconstituted systems were achieved with a twofold molar excess of NADPH-P450 reductase to CYP1B1; in membranes of E. coli with the monocistronic CYP1B1 construct, an eightfold molar excess of reductase to CYP1B1 was required. However, in membranes of bicistronic constructs, there was no additional stimulation of 7-ethoxycoumarin O-deethylation by extra NADPH-P450 reductase, despite the fact that the molar ratio of expression levels of reductase to CYP1B1 was <0.5. These results suggest that NADPH-P450 reductase produced in the bacterial membranes is more active in interacting with CYP1B1 proteins in the bicistronic system than the reductase added to artificial phospholipid vesicles or bacterial membranes.

Alkylation↗

Cytochrome P450 of small intestinal epithelial cells. Immunochemical characterization of the increase in cytochrome P450 caused by phenobarbital.

We have studied total cytochrome P450 and the major form of cytochrome P450 increased by phenobarbital in small intestinal epithelial cells and livers of male Sprague-Dawley rats. Using an improved method for preparing microsomes from intestinal epithelial cells, we find that concentrations of total cytochrome P450 in intestinal cell microsomes are 10% of those in liver microsomes, and that this percentage is unchanged after phenobarbital treatment. In untreated rats, less than 5% of total cytochrome P450 of liver or intestinal epithelium is the form induced by phenobarbital, as measured by rocket immunoelectrophoresis. In phenobarbital-treated rats, the major phenobarbital-induced form accounts for approximately 50% of the total in both organs. In the small intestine of phenobarbital-treated rats, the concentrations of total cytochrome P450 and of the major phenobarbital-induced form increase concurrently as epithelial cells mature from crypt to upper villus. Concentrations of total cytochrome P450 and of the major phenobarbital-induced form in the proximal two-thirds of the rat small intestine are twofold higher than in the distal third. Immunoblotting performed with a monoclonal antibody to the major phenobarbital-induced form of cytochrome P450 from rat liver revealed a subtle difference between this form in liver and intestine.

Animals↗

Reconstituted microsomal lipid peroxidation: ADP-Fe3+-dependent peroxidation of phospholipid vesicles containing NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase and cytochrome P450.

A reconstituted lipid peroxidation system consisting of rat liver microsomal NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase and cytochrome P450 incorporated into phospholipid vesicles was developed and characterized. Peroxidation of the vesicles required NADPH and ADP-Fe3+, just as in the NADPH-dependent peroxidation of microsomes. The peroxidation of the vesicles was inhibited 30-50% by superoxide dismutase, depending upon their cytochrome P450 content: those with higher cytochrome P450 contents exhibited greater rates of malondialdehyde formation which were less sensitive to inhibition by superoxide dismutase. When cytochrome P450 was incorporated into vesicles, EDTA-Fe3+ was not required for lipid peroxidation, distinguishing this system from the one previously described by Pederson and Aust [Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm. 48, 789; 1972]. Since at least 50% of the malondialdehyde formation in the vesicular system was not inhibited by superoxide dismutase, alternative means of iron reduction (O2-.-independent) were examined. It was found that rat liver microsomes or a reconstituted mixed function oxidase system consisting of NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase and cytochrome P450 in dilauroylphosphatidylcholine micelles reduced ADP-Fe3+ under anaerobic conditions.

Adenosine Diphosphate↗

Cytochrome P450 reductase dependent inhibition of cytochrome P450 2B1 activity: Implications for gene directed enzyme prodrug therapy.

Cytochrome P450 (P450) enzymes are often used in suicide gene cancer therapy strategies to convert an inactive prodrug into its therapeutic active metabolites. However, P450 activity is dependent on electrons supplied by cytochrome P450 reductase (CPR). Since endogenous CPR activity may not be sufficient for optimal P450 activity, the overexpression of additional CPR has been considered to be a valuable approach in gene directed enzyme prodrug therapy (GDEPT). We have analysed a set of cell lines for the effects of CPR on cytochrome P450 isoform 2B1 (CYP2B1) activity. CPR transfected human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells showed both strong CPR expression in Western blot analysis and 30-fold higher activity in cytochrome c assays as compared to parental HEK293 cells. In contrast, resorufin and 4-hydroxy-ifosfamide assays revealed that CYP2B1 activity was up to 10-fold reduced in CPR/CYP2B1 cotransfected HEK293 cells as compared to cells transfected with the CYP2B1 expression plasmid alone. Determination of ifosfamide-mediated effects on cell viability allowed independent confirmation of the reduction in CYP2B1 activity upon CPR coexpression. Inhibition of CYP2B1 activity by CPR was also observed in CYP2B1/CPR transfected or infected pancreatic tumour cell lines Panc-1 and Pan02, the human breast tumour cell line T47D and the murine embryo fibroblast cell line NIH3T3. A CPR mediated increase in CYP2B1 activity was only observed in the human breast tumour cell line Hs578T. Thus, our data reveal an effect of CPR on CYP2B1 activity dependent on the cell type used and therefore demand a careful evaluation of the therapeutic benefit of combining cytochrome P450 and CPR in respective in vivo models in each individual target tissue to be treated.

Animals↗

Inactivation of rat liver cytochrome P450 (P450) by N,N-dimethylformamide and N,N-dimethylacetamide.

N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF), an organic solvent widely used in industry, is bioactivated by cytochrome P450 (P450) to reactive metabolites which are believed to be responsible for the hepatotoxicity observed in animals and humans. A decrease of the activating enzyme has been reported in rats treated with DMF, although the specific P450 isoform(s) involved and the nature of the reactive species responsible for this and the other toxic effects are still being investigated. In the present work, the effect of DMF and of the structurally related N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) on the activating enzyme and the nature of the reactive species involved in the mechanism of P450 inactivation by the two chemicals were investigated in vitro. Incubation of liver microsomes from pyridine-induced rats with either substrate resulted in a dose-dependent (0-20 mM) loss of P450 (up to 28 and 24% for DMF and DMAc, respectively), microsomal haem (up to 24 and 20% for DMF and DMAc, respectively), but not protoporphyrin IX content. Moreover, bubbling of CO through the incubation mixture gave almost complete protection against substrate-dependent P450 inactivation, and the spin trapping agent N-tert-butyl-alpha-phenylnitrone, but neither glutathione nor vitamin C, provided a significant protection against DMF- or DMAc-dependent haem loss. Finally, electron spin resonance analysis of microsomal incubations in presence of DMF or DMAc showed spectral evidence for a carbon centered radical intermediate. The results indicate, overall, that both compounds are metabolized in vitro by P450, probably CYP2E1, to free radical metabolites which attack the haem prosthetic group, leading to suicidal enzyme inactivation.

Acetamides↗

Roles of divalent metal ions in oxidations catalyzed by recombinant cytochrome P450 3A4 and replacement of NADPH--cytochrome P450 reductase with other flavoproteins, ferredoxin, and oxygen surrogates.

Recombinant cytochrome P450 (P450) 3A4 was most active in nifedipine and testosterone oxidation in a system including NADPH-P450 reductase, cytochrome b5 (b5), a semisynthetic phospholipid mixture plus cholate, glutathione, and MgCl2. The MgCl2 effect could be seen with high concentrations of Ca2+ or Sr2+ but not readily when these cations were replaced with monovalent cations. The divalent cation effect was also seen in liver microsomes. Part of the basis of this effect appears to be enhanced rates of b5 reduction, as judged from studies on deletions of reconstitution components and analysis of steady-state spectral studies. Rapid reduction of ferric P450 3A4 to ferrous was dependent upon the presence of substrate, either testosterone or ethylmorphine. When testosterone was present, reduction was also highly dependent upon the presence of b5 and Mg2+. In the case of the substrate ethylmorphine, the need to add b5 and Mg2+ to obtain optimal reduction rates was less pronounced. These patterns are consistent with the dramatic dependence of testosterone 6 beta-hydroxylation on b5 and the lack of dependence of ethylmorphine N-demethylation on b5. Our interpretation is that divalent cations stimulate electron transfer from NADPH-P450 reductase to several acceptors and that substrates and b5 can bind to P450 3A4 to influence its rate of reduction by the reductase. P450 3A4 catalyzed testosterone 6 beta-hydroxylation within Escherichia coli cells. The reactions could be supported by E. coli cytosol or by purified E. coli flavodoxin and NADPH-flavodoxin reductase. Spinach ferredoxin and NADPH-ferredoxin reductase also supported catalytic activities.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Characterization of cytochrome P450 3A inactivation by cannabidiol: possible involvement of cannabidiol-hydroxyquinone as a P450 inactivator.

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a major constituent of marijuana and a potent inhibitor of P450-mediated hepatic drug metabolism. Mouse P450 3A11 metabolism of [14C]CBD resulted in the formation of radiolabeled P450, which after digestion with lysyl endopeptidase C (Lys-C) and HPLC resolution of peptides, revealed one major broadly eluting peak of radioactivity. Electrophoresis/autoradiography of this peak identified several peptide bands, one of which was predominantly radiolabeled and had an apparent molecular mass of approximately 6 kDa. Amino-terminal sequence determination of this band revealed the presence of two peptides whose sequences identified them as Ala344-Lys379 and Gly426-Lys454. To characterize the reactive species that may be generated during P450 3A11-catalyzed CBD metabolism, reduced glutathione (GSH) was used as a trapping agent for possible electrophilic metabolites. Incubation of P450 3A11 in the presence of cofactors NADPH, CBD, and [3H]GSH resulted in the formation of a radiolabeled product which was absent in incubations lacking any of the cofactors. The UV absorption spectra of this compound indicated absorbances at approximately 220, 275, and 350 nm, and mass spectral analysis revealed prominent ions at m/z 634, 599, 505, 402, and 359, ions consistent with that of a GSH adduct of CBD-hydroxyquinone. A synthetic CBD-hydroxyquinone-GSH adduct was also prepared and had UV absorption and mass spectra nearly identical to that of the P450-mediated CBD-GSH adduct. CBD-hydroxyquinone formation may be the penultimate oxidative step involved in CBD-mediated modification and inactivation of P450 3A11.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Cytochrome P450 (P450) isoenzyme specific dealkylation of alkoxyresorufins in rat brain microsomes.

Characterization of xenobiotic metabolizing cytochrome P450s (P450s) was carried out in rat brain microsomes using the specific substrates, 7-pentoxy- and 7-ethoxyresorufin (PR and ER), metabolized in the liver by P450 2B1/2B2 and 1A1/1A2 respectively and 7-benzyloxyresorufin (BR), a substrate for both the isoenzymes. Brain microsomes catalysed the O-dealkylation of PR, BR and ER in the presence of NADPH. The ability to dealkylate alkoxyresorufins varied in different regions of the brain. Microsomes from the olfactory lobes exhibited maximum pentoxyresorufin-O-dealkylase (PROD), benzyloxyresorufin-O-dealkylase (BROD) and ethoxyresorufin-O-dealkylase (EROD) activities. The dealkylation was found to be inducer selective. While pretreatment with phenobarbital (PB; 80 mg/kg; i.p. x 5 days) resulted in significant induction in PROD (3-4 fold) and BROD (4-5 fold) activities, 3-methylcholanthrene (MC; 30 mg/kg; i.p. x 5 days) had no effect on the activity of PROD and only a slight effect on that of BROD (1.4 fold). MC pretreatment significantly induced the activity of EROD (3 fold) while PB had no effect on it. Kinetic studies have shown that this increase in the activities following pretreatment with P450 inducers was associated with a significant increase in the velocity of the reaction (Vmax) of O-dealkylation. In vitro studies using organic inhibitors and antibodies have further provided evidence that the O-dealkylation of alkoxyresorufins is isoenzyme specific. While in vitro addition of alpha-naphthoflavone (ANF), an inhibitor of P450 1A1/1A2 catalysed reactions and antibody for hepatic P450 1A1/1A2 isoenzymes produced a concentration-dependent inhibition of EROD activity, metyrapone, an inhibitor of P450 2B1/2B2 and antibody for hepatic P450 2B1/2B2 significantly inhibited the activity of PROD and BROD in vitro. The data suggest that, as in the case of liver, dealkylation of alkoxyresorufins can be used as a biochemical tool to characterise the xenobiotic metabolising P450s and substrate selectivity of P450 isoenzymes in rat brain microsomes.

Alkylation↗

Human NADPH-P450 oxidoreductase modulates the level of cytochrome P450 CYP2D6 holoprotein via haem oxygenase-dependent and -independent pathways.

NADPH-P450 oxidoreductase (CPR) is essential for the activity of cytochrome P450 (P450). Previous studies demonstrated that CPR regulates the levels of various P450 isoforms in vitro. We investigated the mechanistic basis for this regulation. By transfection of Chinese hamster ovary DUKXB11 cells we obtained the cell line DUKX/2D6, which expressed human CYP2D6, a P450 isoform. Subsequently, DUKX/2D6 cells were transfected with human CPR cDNA to generate the cell line DUKX/2D6/CPR-3. Expression of recombinant CPR decreased the level of spectrally detectable CYP2D6 holoprotein in DUKX/2D6/CPR-3 cells by 70%, whereas the level of immunodetectable apoprotein remained unchanged. Addition of the radical scavenger DMSO increased levels of CYP2D6 holoenzyme in DUKX/2D6/CPR-3 cells but not in DUKX/2D6 cells. A similar effect was noted when cells were grown in the presence of hemin. Importantly, combined treatment with DMSO and hemin increased levels of CYP2D6 holoenzyme in DUKX/2D6/CPR-3 but not in DUKX/2D6 cells even further than either treatment alone. None of these treatments affected the level of immunodetectable CYP2D6. This demonstrates that expression of CPR increases production of damaging radicals but also that CPR may alter haem homoeostasis. In agreement with this, the activity of haem oxygenase, a rate-limiting enzyme in haem metabolism, was compared with that in DUKX/DHFR control cells (expressing dihydrofolate reductase), and was 3-fold higher in DUKX/2D6/CPR-3 but similar in DUKX/2D6 cells. Furthermore, treatment of cells with sodium arsenite increased levels of haem oxygenase concomitant with a marked decrease of spectrally detectable CYP2D6 and a rise in levels of ferritin, which sequesters free iron released from the destruction of haem. These data demonstrate that CPR regulates P450 activity by supplying electrons and also by altering P450 levels via radical-and haem oxygenase-mediated pathways.

Animals↗

High-level expression in Escherichia coli of enzymatically active fusion proteins containing the domains of mammalian cytochromes P450 and NADPH-P450 reductase flavoprotein.

This report describes the properties of two mammalian cytochromes P450 that have been expressed at high levels in Escherichia coli as enzymatically active fusion proteins containing the flavoprotein domain of rat NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase (EC 1.6.2.4). Fusion proteins were prepared by engineering the cDNAs for the steroid-metabolizing bovine adrenal P450 17A with the cDNA for rat liver NADPH-P450 reductase with the introduction of a Ser-Thr linker to give a protein we have named rF450[mBov17A/mRatOR]L1. Similarly, the cDNA for the omega-hydroxylase of rat liver (P450 4A1) was linked with the cDNA for rat liver NADPH-P450 reductase to give rF450[mRat4A1/mRatOR]L1. A procedure involving disruption of transformed E. coli by sonication, isolation of membranes by differential centrifugation, solubilization with detergent, and affinity chromatography provided significant amounts of purified fusion proteins of approximately 118 kDa. The purified fusion proteins had turnover numbers for the metabolism of steroids (rF450[mBov17A/mRatOR]L1) or fatty acids (rF450[mRat4A1/mRatOR]L1) ranging from 10/min to 30/min in the absence of added phospholipid. Addition of purified rat liver cytochrome b5 stimulated the 17,20-lyase reaction for the conversion of 17-hydroxypregnenolone to dehydroepiandrosterone, and addition of purified rat NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase enhanced the formation of omega--1 metabolites from lauric and arachidonic acids. NADPH oxidation was tightly coupled to substrate hydroxylation with the purified fusion proteins.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Peroxo-iron and oxenoid-iron species as alternative oxygenating agents in cytochrome P450-catalyzed reactions: switching by threonine-302 to alanine mutagenesis of cytochrome P450 2B4.

Among biological catalysts, cytochrome P450 is unmatched in its multiplicity of isoforms, inducers, substrates, and types of chemical reactions catalyzed. In the present study, evidence is given that this versatility extends to the nature of the active oxidant. Although mechanistic evidence from several laboratories points to a hypervalent iron-oxenoid species in P450-catalyzed oxygenation reactions, Akhtar and colleagues [Akhtar, M., Calder, M. R., Corina, D. L. & Wright, J. N. (1982) Biochem. J. 201, 569-580] proposed that in steroid deformylation effected by P450 aromatase an iron-peroxo species is involved. We have shown more recently that purified liver microsomal P450 cytochromes, including phenobarbital-induced P450 2B4, catalyze the analogous deformylation of a series of xenobiotic aldehydes with olefin formation. The investigation presented here on the effect of site-directed mutagenesis of threonine-302 to alanine on the activities of recombinant P450 2B4 with N-terminal amino acids 2-27 deleted [2B4 (delta2-27)] makes use of evidence from other laboratories that the corresponding mutation in bacterial P450s interferes with the activation of dioxygen to the oxenoid species by blocking proton delivery to the active site. The rates of NADPH oxidation, hydrogen peroxide production, and product formation from four substrates, including formaldehyde from benzphetamine N-demethylation, acetophenone from 1-phenylethanol oxidation, cyclohexanol from cyclohexane hydroxylation, and cyclohexene from cyclohexane carboxaldehyde deformylation, were determined with P450s 2B4, 2B4 (delta2-27), and 2B4 (delta2-27) T302A. Replacement of the threonine residue in the truncated cytochrome gave a 1.6- to 2.5-fold increase in peroxide formation in the presence of a substrate, but resulted in decreased product formation from benzphetamine (9-fold), cyclohexane (4-fold), and 1-phenylethanol (2-fold). In sharp contrast, the deformylation of cyclohexane carboxaldehyde by the T302A mutant was increased about 10-fold. On the basis of these findings and our previous evidence that aldehyde deformylation is supported by added H202, but not by artificial oxidants, we conclude that the iron-peroxy species is the direct oxygen donor. It remains to be established which of the many other oxidative reactions involving P450 utilize this species and the extent to which peroxo-iron and oxenoid-iron function as alternative oxygenating agents with the numerous isoforms of this versatile catalyst.

Animals↗

Identification of the binding site on cytochrome P450 2B4 for cytochrome b5 and cytochrome P450 reductase.

A model of cytochrome P450 2B4, which was constructed by homology modeling with the four known crystal structures of the cytochromes P450 (Chang, T.-T., Stiffelman, O. B., Vakser, I. A., Loew, G. H., Bridges, A., and Waskell, L. (1997) Protein Eng. 10, 119-129), was used to select amino acids predicted, by computer docking studies and numerous previous biochemical and site-directed mutagenesis studies, to be involved in binding the heme domain of cytochrome b5. Twenty-four amino acid residues located on both the distal and the proximal surface of the molecule were chosen for mutagenesis. These 24 mutant proteins were expressed in Escherichia coli, purified, and characterized with respect to their ability to bind cytochrome b5 and support substrate oxidation. Seven mutants, R122A, R126A, R133A, F135A, M137A, K139A, and K433A, all on the proximal surface of cytochrome P450 2B4 near the heme ligand, were identified that exhibited decreased ability to bind cytochrome b5. All of the mutants except K433A are located in either the C or C* helices or their termini. In addition, these seven mutants and two additional mutants on the proximal surface of cytochrome P450, R422A and R443A, were shown to exhibit decreased binding to cytochrome P450 reductase. These studies indicate that the binding sites for cytochrome b5 and cytochrome P450 reductase are, as predicted, located on the proximal surface of cytochrome P450 2B4 and are partially overlapping but not identical.

Aryl Hydrocarbon Hydroxylases↗