Phenobarbitone-mediated translocation of the cytosolic proteins interacting with the 5'-proximal region of rat liver CYP2B1/B2 gene into the nucleus

Effects of marine biotoxins on drug-metabolizing cytochrome P450 enzymes and their regulation in mammalian cells

Marine biotoxins are a heterogenous group of natural toxins, which are able to trigger different types of toxicological responses in animals and humans. Health effects arising from exposure to marine biotoxins are ranging, for example, from gastrointestinal symptoms to neurological effects, depending on the individual toxin(s) ingested. Recent research has shown that the marine biotoxin okadaic acid (OA) can strongly diminish the expression of drug-metabolizing cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes in human liver cells by a mechanism involving proinflammatory signaling. By doing so, OA may interfere with the metabolic barrier function of liver and intestine, and thus alter the toxico- or pharmacokinetic properties of other compounds. Such effects of marine biotoxins on drug and xenobiotic metabolism have, however, not been much in the focus of research yet. In this review, we present the current knowledge on the effects of marine biotoxins on CYP enzymes in mammalian cells. In addition, the role of CYP-regulating nuclear receptors as well as inflammatory signaling in the regulation of CYPs by marine biotoxins is discussed. Strong evidence is available for effects of OA on CYP enzymes, along with information about possible molecular mechanisms. For other marine biotoxins, knowledge on effects on drug metabolism, however, is scarce.

Novel CAR-mediated mechanism for synergistic activation of two distinct elements within the human cytochrome P450 2B6 gene in HepG2 cells

The constitutive active receptor (CAR) regulates the induction of the cytochrome P450 2B6 (CYP2B6) gene by phenobarbital-type inducers, such as 1,4 bis[2-(3,5-dichloropyridyloxy)]benzene (TCPOBOP) via the distal phenobarbital-responsive enhancer module (PBREM, at -1732/-1685 bp). Activation of the PBREM by TCPOBOP generated a 10-fold induction of CYP2B6 mRNA in HepG2 cells stably expressing mouse CAR (Ym17). Co-treatment with the protein phosphatase inhibitor okadaic acid (OA) synergistically increased this induction over 100-fold without directly activating CAR or the PBREM. Although OA synergy required the presence of PBREM, deletion assays delineated the OA-responsive activity to a proximal 24-bp (-256/-233) sequence (OARE) in the CYP2B6 promoter. CAR did not directly bind to the OARE in electrophoretic mobility shift assays. However, both DNA affinity and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays showed a significant increase in CAR association with the OARE after co-treatment with TCPOBOP and OA, indicating the indirect binding of CAR to the OARE. The two cis-acting elements, the distal PBREM and the proximal OARE, within the chromatin structure are both regulated by CAR in response to TCPOBOP and OA, respectively, to maximally induce the CYP2B6 promoter. This functional interaction between the two sites expands the current understanding of the mechanism of CAR-mediated inducible transcription.

Induction of Drug Metabolism: The Role of Nuclear Receptors

Induction of drug metabolism was described more than 40 years ago. Progress in understanding the molecular mechanism of induction of drug-metabolizing enzymes was made recently when the important roles of the pregnane X receptor (PXR) and the constitutive androstane receptor (CAR), two members of the nuclear receptor superfamily of transcription factors, were discovered to act as sensors for lipophilic xenobiotics, including drugs. CAR and PXR bind as heterodimeric complexes with the retinoid X receptor to response elements in the regulatory regions of the induced genes. PXR is directly activated by xenobiotic ligands, whereas CAR is involved in a more complex and less well understood mechanism of signal transduction triggered by drugs. Most recently, analysis of these xenobiotic-sensing nuclear receptors and their nonmammalian precursors such as the chicken xenobiotic receptor suggests an important role of PXR and CAR also in endogenous pathways, such as cholesterol and bile acid biosynthesis and metabolism. In this review, recent findings regarding xenosensors and their target genes are summarized and are put into an evolutionary perspective in regard to how a living organism has derived a system that is able to deal with potentially toxic compounds it has not encountered before.