Species differences in the intracellular distribution of ciprofibroyl-CoA hydrolase. Implications for peroxisome proliferation

Analysis of the uterine artery pulsatility index on the day of endometrial transformation and pregnancy outcomes of patients undergoing frozen-thawed embryo transfer

Objective

The objective was to analyze the impact of the uterine artery pulsatility index (PI) on pregnancy outcomes by measuring uterine artery blood flow on the day of endometrial transformation in patients undergoing frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET).

Methods

This was a case-control study. In total, 2,036 patients who underwent FET at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from October 2019 to September 2020 were included. The patients were divided into a clinical pregnancy group and a nonclinical pregnancy group according to pregnancy outcome. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the factors affecting the clinical pregnancy rate. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine the optimal mean PI cutoff value of 1.75. After 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM), 562 patients were included. For statistical description and analysis, the patients were divided into two groups: a group with a mean PI > 1.75 and a group with a mean PI ≤ 1.75.

Results

The clinical pregnancy group included 1,218 cycles, and the nonclinical pregnancy group included 818 cycles. There were significant differences in female age (P<0.01), infertility type (P=0.04), baseline follicle-stimulating hormone level (P=0.04), anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) level (P<0.01), antral follicle count (P<0.01), number of transferred embryos (P=0.045) and type of transferred embryo (P<0.01). There was no significant difference in the mean bilateral PI (1.98 ± 0.34 vs. 1.95 ± 0.35, P=0.10). The multivariate analysis results showed that maternal age (AOR=0.95, 95% CI=0.93-0.98, P<0.01), AMH level (AOR=1.00, 95% CI=1.00-1.01, P=0.045), number of transferred embryos (AOR=1.98, 95% CI=1.47-2.70, P<0.01), and type of transferred embryo (AOR=3.10, 95% CI=2.27-4.23, P<0.01) were independent factors influencing the clinical pregnancy rate. The mean PI (AOR=0.85, 95% CI=0.70-1.05; P=0.13) was not an independent factor influencing the clinical pregnancy rate. Participants were divided into two groups according to the mean PI cutoff value of 1.75, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05).

Conclusion

In this study, we found that the uterine artery PI on the day of endometrial transformation in patients undergoing FET is not a good predictor of pregnancy outcomes.

Complicating factors in safety testing of drug metabolites: Kinetic differences between generated and preformed metabolites

This paper aims to provide a scientifically based perspective on issues surrounding the proposed toxicology testing of synthetic drug metabolites as a means of ensuring adequate nonclinical safety evaluation of drug candidates that generate metabolites considered either to be unique to humans or are present at much higher levels in humans than in preclinical species. We put forward a number of theoretical considerations and present several specific examples where the kinetic behavior of a preformed metabolite given to animals or humans differs from that of the corresponding metabolite generated endogenously from its parent. The potential ramifications of this phenomenon are that the results of toxicity testing of the preformed metabolite may be misleading and fail to characterize the true toxicological contribution of the metabolite when formed from the parent. It is anticipated that such complications would be evident in situations where (a) differences exist in the accumulation of the preformed versus generated metabolites in specific tissues, and (b) the metabolite undergoes sequential metabolism to a downstream product that is toxic, leading to differences in tissue-specific toxicity. Owing to the complex nature of this subject, there is a need to treat drug metabolite issues in safety assessment on a case-by-case basis, in which a knowledge of metabolite kinetics is employed to validate experimental paradigms that entail administration of preformed metabolites to animal models.

Acyl-coenzyme a formation of simvastatin in mouse liver preparations

Formation of an acyl-CoA thioester has been proposed, but not directly demonstrated, to be a key step in mediating both lactonization and atypical beta-oxidation of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase inhibitors. Here, we describe studies to characterize formation of acyl-CoA thioesters in vitro in mouse liver preparations using the hydroxy acid form of simvastatin (SVA) as a model substrate. With an optimized chromatography method, three new products were detected in addition to the dehydration product (P1) and the lactone form of simvastatin, which have been characterized previously (Prueksaritanont et al., 2001). Based on high-pressure liquid chromatography analysis, UV spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and NMR spectral characterization, two metabolites were identified as acyl-CoA thioester conjugates of SVA and P1, respectively, whereas the third metabolite (M1) was confirmed to be the L-beta-hydroxy isomer of simvastatin. M1 was probably formed by stereospecific hydration, a previously reported reaction, and subsequent lactonization of P1-S-acyl CoA. Among all the mouse liver subcellular fractions, microsomes exhibited the highest capacity to catalyze the CoASH-dependent metabolism of SVA, whereas such activity was totally absent in cytosol. Together, these results provide direct experimental evidence that SVA (and conceivably other statins as well) is able to form an acyl-CoA thioester, possibly by microsomal long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase(s), leading to formation of two parallel metabolic pathways, one resulting in the two diastereomers of statin lactones (simvastatin and M1) and the other to the beta-oxidation pathway of statin hydroxy acids.

The role Acyl-CoA thioesterases play in mediating intracellular lipid metabolism

Acyl-CoA thioesterases are a group of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of acyl-CoAs to the free fatty acid and coenzyme A (CoASH), providing the potential to regulate intracellular levels of acyl-CoAs, free fatty acids and CoASH. These enzymes are localized in almost all cellular compartments such as endoplasmic reticulum, cytosol, mitochondria and peroxisomes. Acyl-CoA thioesterases are highly regulated by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), and other nutritional factors, which has led to the conclusion that they are involved in lipid metabolism. Although the physiological functions for these enzymes are not yet fully understood, recent cloning and more in-depth characterization of acyl-CoA thioesterases has assisted in discussion of putative functions for specific enzymes. Here we review the acyl-CoA thioesterases characterized to date and also address the diverse putative functions for these enzymes, such as in ligand supply for nuclear receptors, and regulation and termination of fatty acid oxidation in mitochondria and peroxisomes.