Effect of pancreatic phospholipase A2 and gastric lipase on the action of pancreatic carboxyl ester lipase against lipid substrates in vitro

Evaluation of the Impact of Esterases and Lipases from the Circulatory System against Substrates of Different Lipophilicity

Esterases and lipases can process amphiphilic esters used as drugs and prodrugs and impact their pharmacokinetics and biodistribution. These hydrolases can also process ester components of drug delivery systems (DDSs), thus triggering DDSs destabilization with premature cargo release. In this study we tested and optimized assays that allowed us to quantify and compare individual esterase contributions to the degradation of substrates of increased lipophilicity and to establish limitations in terms of substrates that can be processed by a specific esterase/lipase. We have studied the impact of carbonic anhydrase; phospholipases A1, A2, C and D; lipoprotein lipase; and standard lipase on the hydrolysis of 4-nitrophenyl acetate, 4-nitrophenyl palmitate, DGGR and POPC liposomes, drawing structure–property relationships. We found that the enzymatic activity of these proteins was highly dependent on the lipophilicity of the substrate used to assess them, as expected. The activity observed for classical esterases was diminished when lipophilicity of the substrate increased, while activity observed for lipases generally increased, following the interfacial activation model, and was highly dependent on the type of lipase and its structure. The assays developed allowed us to determine the most sensitive methods for quantifying enzymatic activity against substrates of particular types and lipophilicity.

Pancreatic and mucosal enzymes in choline phospholipid digestion

The digestion of choline phospholipids is important for choline homeostasis, lipid signaling, postprandial lipid and energy metabolism, and interaction with intestinal bacteria. The digestion is mediated by the combined action of pancreatic and mucosal enzymes. In the proximal small intestine, hydrolysis of phosphatidylcholine (PC) to 1-lyso-PC and free fatty acid (FFA) by the pancreatic phospholipase A₂ IB coincides with the digestion of the dietary triacylglycerols by lipases, but part of the PC digestion is extended and must be mediated by other enzymes as the jejunoileal brush-border phospholipase B/lipase and mucosal secreted phospholipase A₂ X. Absorbed 1-lyso-PC is partitioned in the mucosal cells between degradation and reacylation into chyle PC. Reutilization of choline for hepatic bile PC synthesis, and the reacylation of 1-lyso-PC into chylomicron PC by the lyso-PC-acyl-CoA-acyltransferase 3 are important features of choline recycling and postprandial lipid metabolism. The role of mucosal enzymes is emphasized by sphingomyelin (SM) being sequentially hydrolyzed by brush-border alkaline sphingomyelinase (alk-SMase) and neutral ceramidase to sphingosine and FFA, which are well absorbed. Ceramide and sphingosine-1-phosphate are generated and are both metabolic intermediates and important lipid messengers. Alk-SMase has anti-inflammatory effects that counteract gut inflammation and tumorigenesis. These may be mediated by multiple mechanisms including generation of sphingolipid metabolites and suppression of autotaxin induction and lyso-phosphatidic acid formation. Here we summarize current knowledge on the roles of pancreatic and mucosal enzymes in PC and SM digestion, and its implications in intestinal and liver diseases, bacterial choline metabolism in the gut, and cholesterol absorption.

Effect of human milk or formula on gastric function and fat digestion in the premature infant

The effect of diet, human milk or formula, on gastric function (lipase and pepsin activity, pH, and volume) and intragastric digestion of fat was assessed in 28 appropriate for gestational age preterm infants (gestational age, 28.9 +/- 1.4, 29.1 +/- 0.9, 29.5 +/- 0.6 wk; birth weight, 1.00 +/- 0.14 to 1.18 +/- 0.07 kg). The infants were fed either human milk (n = 11), SMA Super Preemie formula (n = 9), or Similac, Special Care formula (n = 8). Fasting and postprandial activity of digestive enzymes, pH, and gastric volume (measured before or during 50 min after gavage feeding) did not differ as a function of diet among the three groups of infants. Gastric lipase output, 23.1 +/- 5.1, 28.3 +/- 6.6, and 22.5 +/- 6.4 (U/kg of body weight) in human milk-, SMA SP-, or Similac SC-fed infants was comparable to the gastric lipase output of healthy adults fed a high fat diet (22.6 +/- 3.0). Pepsin output was, however, significantly lower (597 +/- 77, 743 +/- 97, and 639 +/- 142 U/kg of body weight) in human milk-, SMA SP-, and Similac SC-fed infants) than in healthy adults (3352 +/- 753 U/kg). The hydrolysis of dietary fat was 1.7-2.5-fold higher (p < 0.01) in human milk-fed infants than in infants fed either formula. We conclude that differences in type of feeding, i.e. different fatty acid profiles (long chain or medium chain triglycerides), different emulsions (natural or artificial), and different fat particle sizes do not affect the level of activity of gastric enzymes. However, the triglyceride within milk fat globules appears to be more accessible to gastric lipase than that within formula fat particles. We suggest that the contribution of gastric lipase to overall fat digestion might be greater in the newborn (a period of pancreatic insufficiency) than in the adult.

Digestive lipases of the newborn ferret: compensatory role of milk bile salt-dependent lipase

The amount of mRNA hybridizing to bile salt-dependent lipase and to colipase-dependent lipase probes as well as their translation into active proteins were quantified in the adult and newborn pancreas and lactating mammary gland from the ferret, a species whose milk, similar to that of the human, has bile salt-dependent lipase. The concentration of colipase-dependent lipase mRNA correlated with the amount of activity found in the adult and newborn pancreas, whereas neither mRNA nor activity of this enzyme was detected in the kit pancreas or in the lactating mammary gland. These data indicate that colipase-dependent lipase is actually expressed in adult pancreas and might represent the main lipolytic system in the adult. mRNA hybridizing to the bile salt-dependent lipase probe used in this study were detected in adult and in newborn ferret pancreas as well as in lactating mammary gland. However, the bile salt-dependent lipase activity expressed in the newborn pancreas was very low when compared with the activity expressed either in the mammary gland or in the adult pancreas. These data argue for a compensatory role of milk bile salt-dependent lipase in lipid digestion in the newborn. The hydrolysis of dietary fat might be initiated by preduodenal lipase, the activity of which is only two times lower in the gastric mucosa of the newborn than in the adult ferret. The high concentration of mRNA hybridizing to the bile salt-dependent lipase probe associated with a very poor bile salt-dependent lipase activity and protein suggests either that these mRNA are very unstable or that they are poorly translated into an active pancreatic bile salt-dependent lipase.

The activation of porcine pancreatic lipase by cis-unsaturated fatty acids

In the presence of taurodeoxycholate, cis-unsaturated fatty acids increase porcine pancreatic lipase activity 15-fold at pH 7.5. This effect is saturable with a low proportion of fatty acid to substrate. The overall angle of the fatty acid, the position of its double bond and the presence of a carboxyl group were critical factors in whether the fatty acid effectively increased lipase activity. When the substrate is emulsified by taurodeoxycholate, the pH optimum for lipase ranges from 6.2 to 7.0. In the presence of cis-unsaturated fatty acids, the overall activity of lipase increases, the pH optimum shifts, and the pH-activity curve becomes biphasic, with one optimum around pH 7.7, and the other around pH 8.8. Fluorescence studies indicate that fatty acids bind near aromatic residues in lipase, particularly tryptophan. Using the fluorescent fatty acid cis-parinaric acid, it was determined that multiple binding sites are present with Kd values of approx. 10(-6) M. Far-UV circular dichroism (CD) studies indicate that in addition to a high affinity fatty acid binding site with a Kd of approx. 10(-6) M, there is also a low affinity binding site with a Kd of approx. 10(-4) M. The far-UV CD data also show that cis-unsaturated fatty acids change the conformation of lipase. It is calculated that the percentage of alpha helix decreases, and the amount of beta sheet and beta turn structure increases. Because the three-dimensional crystal structure of lipase is known, a model is proposed to describe how cis-unsaturated fatty acids increase lipase activity.

Decrease in contents of pancreatic carboxyl ester lipase, phospholipase A2, and lingual lipase in rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes

The changes in contents of pancreatic carboxyl ester lipase, phospholipase A2, and lingual lipase in rats with streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes have been studied. The contents of pancreatic carboxyl ester lipase and phospholipase A2 decreased by 40% and 45%, respectively, 5 days after injection of STZ, whereas pancreatic lipase steadily increased to 100% over control. The content of lingual lipase decreased sharply by more than 90% 2 days after STZ injection, followed by a tendency to recover slightly. Insulin treatment at a dose abolishing the urine glucose in diabetic rats for 3 days restored the contents of pancreatic lipase, carboxyl ester lipase, and lingual lipase but not pancreatic phospholipase A2. The results indicate that lack of insulin action induces an anticoordinate change in gastrointestinal lipolytic enzymes, with decreases in pancreatic carboxyl ester lipase, phospholipase A2, and lingual lipase contents and an increase in pancreatic lipase content.

Comparison of the ability to bind lipids of beta-lactoglobulin and serum albumin of milk from ruminant and non-ruminant species

The interaction of sheep, horse, pig, human and guinea-pig whey proteins with fatty acids has been studied. Using gel filtration and autoradiography, it was found that sheep beta-lactoglobulin and serum albumin from all species had the ability to bind fatty acids in vitro. Sheep beta-lactoglobulin, isolated from milk, had approximately 0.5 mol fatty acids bound per mol monomer protein, and albumin from sheep, horse and pig contained approximately 4.5, 2.9 and 4.7 mol fatty acids/mol protein respectively. However, beta-lactoglobulin from horse and pig milk had neither fatty acids physiologically bound nor the ability to bind them in vitro. Albumin was the only whey protein detected with bound fatty acids in these species as well as in human and guinea pig. This suggests that the ability of ruminant beta-lactoglobulin to bind fatty acids was not shared by the same protein of non-ruminants.