Monkey liver cytochrome P450 2C19 is involved in R- and S-warfarin 7-hydroxylation

Identification of cytochrome P450 2C18 and 2C76 in tree shrews: P450 2C18 effectively oxidizes typical human P450 2C9/2C19 chiral substrates warfarin and omeprazole with less stereoselectivity

Cytochromes P450 (P450s or CYPs), especially the CYP2C family, are important drug-metabolizing enzymes that play major roles in drug metabolism. Tree shrews, a non-rodent primate-like species, are used in various fields of biomedical research, notably hepatitis virus infection; however, its drug-metabolizing enzymes have not been fully investigated. In this study, tree shrew CYP2C18, CYP2C76a, CYP2C76b, and CYP2C76c cDNAs were identified and contained open reading frames of 489 or 490 amino acids with high sequence identities (70-78 %) to human CYP2Cs. Tree shrew CYP2C76a, CYP2C76b, and CYP2C76c showed higher sequence identities (79-80 %) to cynomolgus CYP2C76 and were not orthologous to any human CYP2C. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that tree shrew CYP2C18 and CYP2C76s were closely related to rat CYP2Cs and cynomolgus CYP2C76, respectively. Tree shrew CYP2C genes formed a gene cluster similar to human CYP2C genes. All four tree shrew CYP2C mRNAs showed predominant expressions in liver, among the tissue types examined; expression of CYP2C18 mRNA was also detected in small intestine. In liver, CYP2C18 mRNA was the most abundant among the tree shrew CYP2C mRNAs. In metabolic assays using human CYP2C substrates, all tree shrew CYP2Cs showed metabolic activities toward diclofenac, R,S-omeprazole, paclitaxel, and R,S-warfarin, with the activity of CYP2C18 exceeding that of the other CYP2Cs. Moreover, tree shrew CYP2C76 enzymes metabolized progesterone more efficiently than human, cynomolgus, or marmoset CYP2Cs. Therefore, these novel tree shrew CYP2Cs are expressed abundantly in liver, encode functional enzymes that metabolize human CYP2C substrates, and are likely responsible for drug clearances.

Metabolites Identification of Chemical Constituents From the Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) Calyx in Rats by UPLC/ESI/qTOF-MS Analysis and Their Cytotoxic Activities

Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) Calyx is a medicinal and edible traditional Chinese medicine with anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-cancer properties. However, the pharmacodynamic components and metabolic characteristics remain unclear. Amide and phenylpropanoid were the two main constituents, and four amides, including n-trans-p-coumaroyltyramine (1), n-trans-p-coumaroyloctopamine (2), n-trans-p-coumaroylnoradrenline (3), n-trans-feruloyloctopamine (4), and a phenylpropanoid neochlorogenic acid (5) were selected. In this study, these five representative compounds showed cytotoxic activities on A549, HCT116, and MCF7 cells. In addition, the metabolites of 1–5 from the eggplant calyx in rats were identified. In total, 23, 37, 29, and 17 metabolites were separately characterized in rat plasma, urine, feces, and livers, by UPLC/ESI/qTOF-MS analysis. The metabolism of amides and phenylpropanoid was mainly involved in hydroxylation, methylation, glucuronidation, or sulfation reactions. Two hydroxylated metabolites (1-M2 and 2-M3) were clearly identified by comparison with reference standards. Rat liver microsome incubation experiments indicated that P450 enzymes could hydroxylate 1–5, and the methylation reaction of the 7-hydroxyl was also observed. This is the first study on the in vivo metabolism of these compounds, which lays a foundation for follow-up studies on pharmacodynamic evaluations and mechanisms.

Survey of Drug Oxidation Activities in Hepatic and Intestinal Microsomes of Individual Common Marmosets, a New Nonhuman Primate Animal Model

Background:

Common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) are potentially useful non-human primate models for preclinical studies. Information for major drug-metabolizing cyto-chrome P450 (P450) enzymes is now available that supports the use of this primate species as an animal model for drug development. Here, we collect and provide an overview of infor-mation on the activities of common marmoset hepatic and intestinal microsomes with respect to 28 typical human P450 probe oxidations.

Results:

Marmoset P450 2D6/8-dependent R-metoprolol O-demethylation activities in hepatic microsomes were significantly correlated with those of midazolam 1′- and 4-hydroxylations, testosterone 6β-hydroxylation, and progesterone 6β-hydroxylation, which are probe reactions for marmoset P450 3A4/5/90. In marmosets, the oxidation activities of hepatic microsomes and intestinal microsomes were roughly comparable for midazolam and terfenadine. Overall, multiple forms of marmoset P450 enzymes in livers and intestines had generally similar sub-strate recognition functionalities to those of human and/or cynomolgus monkey P450 enzymes.

Conclusion:

The marmoset could be a model animal for humans with respect to the first-pass extraction of terfenadine and related substrates. These findings provide a foundation for un-derstanding individual pharmacokinetic and toxicological results in nonhuman primates as pre-clinical models and will help to further support understanding of the molecular mechanisms of human P450 function.

Cytochrome P450 1A1, 2C9, 2C19, and 3A4 Polymorphisms Account for Interindividual Variability of Toxicological Drug Metabolism in Cynomolgus Macaques

Cytochromes P450 (P450s) and their genetic variants in humans are important drug-metabolizing enzymes partly accounting for interindividual variations in drug metabolism and toxicity. However, these genetic variants in P450s have not been fully investigated in cynomolgus macaques, a nonhuman primate species widely used in toxicological studies. In this study, genetic variants found in cynomolgus CYP1A1, CYP2C9 (formerly CYP2C43), CYP2C19 (CYP2C75), and CYP3A4 (CYP3A8) were assessed on functional importance. Resequencing of CYP1A1 in cynomolgus macaques found 18 nonsynonymous variants, of which M121I and V382I were located in SRSs, domains potentially important for P450 function. By further analyzing these two variants, V382I was significantly associated with lower drug-metabolizing activities in the liver for the heterozygotes than the wild types. Similarly, the heterozygotes or homozygotes of CYP2C9 variants (A82V and H344R) and CYP2C19 variant (A490V) showed significantly lower drug-metabolizing activities in the liver than the wild types. Moreover, the homozygotes of CYP3A4 variant (S437N) showed significantly higher activities than the wild type in the liver. Kinetic analyses using recombinant proteins revealed that CYP2C9 variants (A82V and H344R) showed substantially lower  K_s values than the wild type, although CYP1A1 variant (V382I) showed kinetic parameters similar to the wild type. Likewise, CYP2C19 variant (A490V) showed substantially a lower  V_max/ K_m value than the wild type, whereas CYP3A4 variant (S437N) showed a higher V_max/ K_m value than the wild type. These results suggest the toxicologically functional importance of CYP2C9 variants (A82V and H344R), CYP2C19 variant (A490V), and CYP3A4 variant (S437N) for hepatic drug metabolism in cynomolgus macaques.

Development of genotyping method for functionally relevant variants of cytochromes P450 in cynomolgus macaques

In cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis), widely used in drug metabolism studies, CYP2C9, CYP2C76, CYP2D6, CYP3A4, and CYP3A5, important drug-metabolizing enzymes, are abundantly expressed in liver and metabolize cytochrome P450 substrates. CYP2C9 (c.334A>C), CYP2C76 (c.449TG>A), CYP2D6 (c.891A>G), CYP3A4 (IVS3 + 1G>del), and CYP3A5 (c.625A>T) substantially influence metabolic activity of enzymes, and thus are important variants in drug metabolism studies. In this study, a real-time PCR method was developed for genotyping these variants. The validity of the methods was verified by genotyping two wild type, two heterozygous, and two homozygous DNAs and was used to genotype 41 cynomolgus macaques (from Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, or Vietnam) for the five variants, along with another important variant CYP2C19 (c.308C>T). The CYP2C9 and CYP2C19 variants were found only in Cambodian and Vietnamese animals, while the CYP2C76 and CYP2D6 variants were found only in Indonesian and Philippine animals. The CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 variants were not found in any of the animals analyzed. Mauritian animals, genotyped using next-generation sequencing data for comparison, possessed the CYP2C19 and CYP2D6 variants, but not the other variants. These results indicated differences in prevalence of these important variants among animal groups. Therefore, the genotyping tool developed is useful for drug metabolism studies using cynomolgus macaques.

Development of a genotyping tool for a functionally relevant CYP2C19 allele (Phe100Asn, Ala103Val and Ile112Leu) in cynomolgus macaques

In cynomolgus macaques, which are widely used in drug metabolism studies, CYP2C19 (formerly known as CYP2C75) is abundantly expressed in liver, metabolizes human CYP2C substrates and is thus an important drug-metabolizing enzyme. One of the cynomolgus CYP2C19 alleles (p.Phe100Asn, p.Ala103Val and p.Ile112Leu) results in substantially reduced metabolic activity and thus is an important allele in drug metabolism studies. For this allele, a genotyping tool was developed using allele-specific TaqMan probe. Genotyping 40 Cambodian cynomolgus macaques using this tool found 1 homozygote, 17 heterozygotes and 22 wild type animals, and the result was confirmed by direct-sequencing. Interestingly, this allele frequency was similar to that of Chinese cynomolgus macaques. The genotyping tool established is useful for drug metabolism studies using cynomolgus macaques.

Novel Marmoset Cytochrome P450 2C19 in Livers Efficiently Metabolizes Human P450 2C9 and 2C19 Substrates, S-Warfarin, Tolbutamide, Flurbiprofen, and Omeprazole

The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus), a small New World monkey, has the potential for use in human drug development due to its evolutionary closeness to humans. Four novel cDNAs, encoding cytochrome P450 (P450) 2C18, 2C19, 2C58, and 2C76, were cloned from marmoset livers to characterize P450 2C molecular properties, including previously reported P450 2C8. The deduced amino acid sequence showed high sequence identities (>86%) with those of human P450 2Cs, except for marmoset P450 2C76, which has a low sequence identity (∼70%) with any human P450 2Cs. Phylogenetic analysis showed that marmoset P450 2Cs were more closely clustered with those of humans and macaques than other species investigated. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that all of the marmoset P450 2C mRNAs were predominantly expressed in liver as opposed to the other tissues tested. Marmoset P450 2C proteins were detected in liver by immunoblotting using antibodies against human P450 2Cs. Among marmoset P450 2Cs heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli, marmoset P450 2C19 efficiently catalyzed human P450 2C substrates, S-warfarin, diclofenac, tolbutamide, flurbiprofen, and omeprazole. Marmoset P450 2C19 had high Vmax and low Km values for S-warfarin 7-hydroxylation that were comparable to those in human liver microsomes, indicating warfarin stereoselectivity similar to findings in humans. Faster in vivo S-warfarin clearance than R-warfarin after intravenous administration of racemic warfarin (0.2 mg/kg) to marmosets was consistent with the in vitro kinetic parameters. These results indicated that marmoset P450 2C enzymes had functional characteristics similar to those of humans, and that P450 2C-dependent metabolic properties are likewise similar between marmosets and humans.

Monkey liver cytochrome P450 2C9 is involved in caffeine 7-N-demethylation to form theophylline

Caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine) is a phenotyping substrate for human cytochrome P450 1A2. 3-N-Demethylation of caffeine is the main human metabolic pathway, whereas monkeys extensively mediate the 7-N-demethylation of caffeine to form pharmacological active theophylline. Roles of monkey P450 enzymes in theophylline formation from caffeine were investigated using individual monkey liver microsomes and 14 recombinantly expressed monkey P450 enzymes, and the results were compared with those for human P450 enzymes. Caffeine 7-N-demethylation activity in microsomes from 20 monkey livers was not strongly inhibited by α-naphthoflavone, quinidine or ketoconazole, and was roughly correlated with diclofenac 4'-hydroxylation activities. Monkey P450 2C9 had the highest activity for caffeine 7-N-demethylation. Kinetic analysis revealed that monkey P450 2C9 had a high Vmax/Km value for caffeine 7-N-demethylation, comparable to low Km value for monkey liver microsomes. Caffeine could dock favorably with monkey P450 2C9 modeled for 7-N-demethylation and with human P450 1A2 for 3-N-demethylation. The primary metabolite theophylline was oxidized to 8-hydroxytheophylline in similar ways by liver microsomes and by recombinant P450s in both humans and monkeys. These results collectively suggest a high activity for monkey liver P450 2C9 toward caffeine 7-N-demethylation, whereas, in humans, P450 1A2-mediated caffeine 3-N-demethylation is dominant.