Electron Transfer Pathways in Cholesterol Synthesis

Cholesterol synthesis in the endoplasmic reticulum requires electron input at multiple steps and utilizes both NADH and NADPH as the electron source. Four enzymes catalyzing five steps in the pathway require electron input: squalene monooxygenase, lanosterol demethylase, sterol 4α-methyl oxidase, and sterol C5-desaturase. The electron-donor proteins for these enzymes include cytochrome P450 reductase and the cytochrome b5 pathway. Here I review the evidence for electron donor protein requirements with these enzymes, the evidence for additional electron donor pathways, and the effect of deletion of these redox enzymes on cholesterol and lipid metabolism.

Rapid suppression of 7-dehydrocholesterol reductase activity in keratinocytes by vitamin D

7-Dehydrocholesterol (7DHC) serves as the sterol substrate for both cholesterol and vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) synthesis. The pivotal enzyme in these two pathways is 7-dehydrocholesterol reductase (DHCR7), which converts 7DHC to cholesterol. Treatment of adult human epidermal keratinocytes (HEKa) with 10μM cholecalciferol resulted in a rapid decrease in DHCR7 activity (19% of control activity at 2h). This loss of activity was observed only in HEKa cells, a primary cell line cultured from normal human skin, and not in an immortalized skin cell line (HaCaT cells) nor in two hepatoma cell lines. The decrease in DHCR7 activity was not due to direct inhibition or to dephosphorylation of the enzyme, and enzyme protein levels were not decreased. 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 had a lesser effect on DHCR7 activity, while 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 had no effect on DHCR7, indicating that the vitamin D receptor is not involved. Treatment with cholecalciferol did not lead to the accumulation of 7-dehydrocholesterol, and a 50% decrease in lanosterol synthesis in these cells suggests that cholecalciferol down-regulates the entire cholesterolgenic pathway. As vitamin D has been reported to be an inhibitor of hedgehog (Hh) signaling through Smo, we tested the effect of cyclopamine, an established inhibitor of the Hh pathway, on DHCR7 activity. Cyclopamine (10μM) also rapidly decreased DHCR7 activity (50% of control activity at 3h), suggesting that vitamin D3 may modulate DHCR7 activity and cholesterol/vitamin D3 synthesis by inhibiting hedgehog signaling. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled '17th Vitamin D Workshop'.

Phosphorylation of hepatic AMP-activated protein kinase and liver kinase B1 is increased after a single oral dose of green tea extract to mice

We have previously shown that green and black tea extracts increase the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and HMG-CoA reductase in rat hepatoma cells in culture, concomitant with a decrease in cholesterol synthesis. In the present study, we evaluated the ability of a single oral dose of green or black tea extract to promote the phosphorylation of AMPK, liver kinase B1 (LKB1, an AMPK-kinase), and HMG-CoA reductase in mouse liver. Green tea extract administered by gavage at 50 and 100 mg/kg caused a 2- to 3-fold increase in hepatic AMPK phosphorylation at 3 and 6 hours after dosing and a 1.5- to 2-fold increase in LKB1 phosphorylation at these same time points. The phosphorylation of HMG-CoA reductase at these and later time points was not significantly increased. Black tea administered by gavage at up to 250 mg/kg was ineffective in increasing hepatic AMPK phosphorylation. Both green and black tea extracts increased LKB1 phosphorylation in hepatoma cells in culture at 15 μg/mL, and black tea also increased the phosphorylation of protein kinase A in hepatoma cells. These results suggest that compounds in both tea extracts activate AMPK by activating its upstream kinase, LKB1, and that black tea may do so by first activating protein kinase A, a known kinase for LKB1. Only green tea, at 50 and 100 mg/kg, was able to activate AMPK and LKB1 in mouse liver after oral dosing, suggesting that the polymerized catechins present in black tea do not reach the liver in sufficient concentration to affect AMPK activity.

NADPH-cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase: roles in physiology, pharmacology, and toxicology

This is a report on a symposium sponsored by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and held at the Experimental Biology 2012 meeting in San Diego, California, on April 25, 2012. The symposium speakers summarized and critically evaluated our current understanding of the physiologic, pharmacological, and toxicological roles of NADPH-cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase (POR), a flavoprotein involved in electron transfer to microsomal cytochromes P450 (P450), cytochrome b(5), squalene mono-oxygenase, and heme oxygenase. Considerable insight has been derived from the development and characterization of mouse models with conditional Por deletion in particular tissues or partial suppression of POR expression in all tissues. Additional mouse models with global or conditional hepatic deletion of cytochrome b(5) are helping to clarify the P450 isoform- and substrate-specific influences of cytochrome b(5) on P450 electron transfer and catalytic function. This symposium also considered studies using siRNA to suppress POR expression in a hepatoma cell-culture model to explore the basis of the hepatic lipidosis phenotype observed in mice with conditional deletion of Por in liver. The symposium concluded with a strong translational perspective, relating the basic science of human POR structure and function to the impacts of POR genetic variation on human drug and steroid metabolism.

7-Dehydrocholesterol reductase activity is independent of cytochrome P450 reductase

7-Dehydrocholesterol reductase (DHCR7) catalyzes the final step in cholesterol synthesis. The enzyme utilizes NADPH as a source of electrons and has been reported to require NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase (POR) as its redox partner. To test this hypothesis, microsomes were prepared from the livers of mice in which hepatic cytochrome P450 reductase expression was extinguished during maturation. These microsomes contained negligible levels of POR but had 2.5-fold greater DHCR7 activity than did microsomes from wild-type mice. Consistent with this greater activity, immunoblot analysis of DHCR7 expression indicated that DHCR7 protein levels were elevated 2-fold in POR-null microsomes. Addition of POR to these microsomes provided no stimulation of DHCR7 activity, confirming the lack of a role for POR in DHCR7 activity. Because the original observation that POR was necessary for DHCR7 activity was based, in part, on antibody inhibition studies with POR antibody, the ability of an antibody to the full-length POR protein to inhibit DHCR7 activity and cytochrome c reductase activity was tested; the antibody had no effect on DHCR7 activity but decreased cytochrome c reductase activity (a POR-catalyzed reaction) by 50%. Immunoblot analysis further demonstrated no cross-reactivity between POR and DHCR7 with antibodies to either protein. We conclude that cytochrome P450 reductase is not involved in 7-dehydrocholesterol reductase activity.

Suppression of cytochrome P450 reductase (POR) expression in hepatoma cells replicates the hepatic lipidosis observed in hepatic POR-null mice

Cytochrome P450 reductase (POR) is a microsomal electron transport protein essential to cytochrome P450-mediated drug metabolism and sterol and bile acid synthesis. The conditional deletion of hepatic POR gene expression in mice results in a marked decrease in plasma cholesterol levels counterbalanced by the accumulation of triglycerides in lipid droplets in hepatocytes. To evaluate the role of cholesterol and bile acid synthesis in this hepatic lipidosis, as well as the possible role of lipid transport from peripheral tissues, we developed a stable, small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated cell culture model for the suppression of POR. POR mRNA and protein expression were decreased by greater than 50% in McArdle-RH7777 rat hepatoma cells 10 days after transfection with a POR-siRNA expression plasmid, and POR expression was nearly completely extinguished by day 20. Immunofluorescent analysis revealed a marked accumulation of lipid droplets in cells by day 15, accompanied by a nearly 2-fold increase in cellular triglyceride content, replicating the lipidosis seen in hepatic POR-null mouse liver. In contrast, suppression of CYP51A1 (lanosterol demethylase) did not result in lipid accumulation, indicating that loss of cholesterol synthesis is not the basis for this lipidosis. Indeed, addition of cholesterol to the medium appeared to augment the lipidosis in POR-suppressed cells, whereas removal of lipids from the medium reversed the lipidosis. Oxysterols did not accumulate in POR-suppressed cells, discounting a role for liver X receptor in stimulating triglyceride synthesis, but addition of chenodeoxycholate significantly repressed lipid accumulation, suggesting that the absence of bile acids and loss of farnesoid X receptor stimulation lead to excessive triglyceride synthesis.

Chlorzoxazone hydroxylation in microsomes and hepatocytes from cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase-null mice

Previous studies have demonstrated that the NADH-dependent cytochrome b(5) electron transfer pathway can support some cytochrome P450 monooxygenases in vitro in the absence of their normal redox partner, NADPH-cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase. However, the ability of this pathway to support P450 activity in whole cells and in vivo remains unresolved. To address this question, liver microsomes and hepatocytes were prepared from hepatic cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase-null mice and chlorzoxazone hydroxylation, a reaction catalyzed primarily by cytochrome P450 2E1, was evaluated. As expected, NADPH-supported chlorzoxazone hydroxylation was absent in liver microsomes from oxidoreductase-null mice, whereas NADH-supported activity was about twofold higher than that found in normal (wild-type) liver microsomes. This greater activity in oxidoreductase-null microsomes could be attributed to the fourfold higher level of CYP2E1 and 1.4-fold higher level of cytochrome b(5). Chlorzoxazone hydroxylation in hepatocytes from oxidoreductase-null mice was about 5% of that in hepatocytes from wild-type mice and matched the results obtained with wild-type microsomes, where activity obtained with NADH was about 5% of that obtained when both NADH and NADPH were included in the reaction mixture. These results argue that the cytochrome b(5) electron transfer pathway can support a low but measurable level of CYP2E1 activity under physiological conditions.

Green and black tea extracts inhibit HMG-CoA reductase and activate AMP kinase to decrease cholesterol synthesis in hepatoma cells

Recent studies have demonstrated that green and black tea consumption can lower serum cholesterol in animals and in man, and suppression of hepatic cholesterol synthesis is suggested to contribute to this effect. To evaluate this hypothesis, we measured cholesterol synthesis in cultured rat hepatoma cells in the presence of green and black tea extracts and selected components. Green and black tea decreased cholesterol synthesis by up to 55% and 78%, respectively, as measured by a 3-h incorporation of radiolabeled acetate. Inhibition was much less evident when radiolabeled mevalonate was used, suggesting that the inhibition was mediated largely at or above the level of HMG-CoA reductase. Both extracts directly inhibited HMG-CoA reductase when added to microsomal preparations, although the extent of inhibition was considerably less than the decrease in cholesterol synthesis observed in whole cells. As HMG-CoA reductase activity also can be decreased by enzyme phosphorylation by AMP kinase, the phosphorylation state of HMG-CoA reductase and AMP kinase, which is activated by phosphorylation, was determined in lysates from cells treated with tea extracts. Both extracts increased AMP-kinase phosphorylation and HMG-CoA reductase phosphorylation by 2.5- to 4-fold, but with different time courses: maximal phosphorylation with green tea was evident within 30 min of treatment, whereas with black tea phosphorylation was slower to develop, with maximal phosphorylation occurring > or =3 hours after treatment. These results suggest that both green and black tea decrease cholesterol synthesis in whole cells by directly inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase and by promoting its inactivation by AMP kinase.

Hepatic cytochrome P450 reductase-null mice reveal a second microsomal reductase for squalene monooxygenase

Squalene monooxygenase is a microsomal enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of squalene to 2,3(s)-oxidosqualene, the immediate precursor to lanosterol in the cholesterol biosynthesis pathway. Unlike other flavoprotein monooxygenases that obtain electrons directly from NAD(P)H, squalene monooxygenase requires a redox partner, and for many years it has been assumed that NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase is this requisite redox partner. However, our studies with hepatic cytochrome P450-reductase-null mice have revealed a second microsomal reductase for squalene monooxygenase. Inhibition studies with antibody to P450 reductase indicate that this second reductase supports up to 40% of the monooxygenase activity that is obtained with microsomes from normal mice. Studies carried out with hepatocytes from CPR-null mice demonstrate that this second reductase is active in whole cells and leads to the accumulation of 24-dihydrolanosterol; this lanosterol metabolite also accumulates in the livers of CPR-null mice, indicating that cholesterol synthesis is blocked at lanosterol demethylase, a cytochrome P450.

Policosanol Inhibits Cholesterol Synthesis in Hepatoma Cells by Activation of AMP-Kinase

Policosanol is a mixture of long-chain primary alcohols that has been shown to decrease serum cholesterol in animals and in humans. The hypocholesterolemic effect results from a decrease in cholesterol synthesis by suppression of HMG-CoA reductase activity, but the mechanism of this suppression and the active components of policosanol have not been established. In the present study, we investigated the ability of policosanol and its principal components to inhibit cholesterol synthesis in cultured rat hepatoma cells. Maximal inhibition by policosanol yielded a 30% decrease in [(14)C]acetate incorporation without evidence of cellular toxicity. Octacosanol (C28, the major constituent of policosanol), heptacosanol (C27), and hexacosanol (C26) yielded smaller and statistically insignificant decreases in cholesterol synthesis, whereas triacontanol (1-hydroxytriacontane; C30) replicated the inhibition obtained with policosanol. At pharmacological concentrations (<5 microg/ml), policosanol and triacontanol decreased [(14)C]acetate incorporation into cholesterol without affecting the incorporation of [(14)C]mevalonate, indicating that these compounds act at or above HMG-CoA reductase. Policosanol and triacontanol did not directly inhibit HMG-CoA reductase, and incubation of these compounds with hepatoma cells did not affect reductase enzyme levels. However, reductase activity was decreased by up to 55% in lysates prepared from these cells, suggesting that HMG-CoA reductase activity was down-regulated by policosanol treatment. Consistent with this hypothesis, a 3-fold increase in AMP-kinase phosphorylation was noted in policosanol-treated cells. Because AMP-kinase is activated by phosphorylation and is well established to suppress HMG-CoA reductase activity, these results suggest that policosanol or a metabolite decreases HMG-CoA reductase activity by activating AMP-kinase.

NEW CYTOCHROME P4502D6*56ALLELE IDENTIFIED BY GENOTYPE/PHENOTYPE ANALYSIS OF CRYOPRESERVED HUMAN HEPATOCYTES

Genotype/phenotype analysis with human hepatocytes has identified a new inactive CYP2D6 allele, CYP2D6*56. Cryopreserved human hepatocytes from 51 livers were evaluated for CYP2D6 activity with dextromethorphan as the probe substrate. Hepatocyte lots that lacked CYP2D6 activity were further evaluated for CYP2D6 expression and known genetic variations, including CYP2D6*2, *3, *4, *5, *6, *7, *8, *9, *10, *11, *14, *15, *17, *18, *19, *20, *25, *26, *29, *30, *35, *40, *41, *43, and various multiple copy CYP2D6 alleles (*1xn, *2xn, and *4xn) by the AmpliChip CYP450 prototype microarray (Roche Molecular Systems, Inc., Branchburg, NJ). Two discrepancies were uncovered between the CYP2D6 genotype and activity by this approach. In one sample, a previously unreported 3201C 224 T transition in exon 7 resulted in Arg344(CGA) being replaced by a stop codon (TGA), resulting in a CYP2D6 enzyme lacking the terminal 153 amino acids. This allele was given the designation of CYP2D6*56 and the GenBank accession number DQ282162. The lack of CYP2D6 activity in cryopreserved hepatocytes and microsomes found in the second sample, despite a normal level of CYP2D6 expression and a genotype (*10/*1) predictive of normal CYP2D6 activity, was attributed to enzyme inactivation by an unknown metabolite. The identification and characterization of the CYP2D6*56 allele indicates that commercial cryopreserved human hepatocytes may provide a valuable means to rapidly identify genetic variations with functional relevance. This integrated approach of identifying alleles and examining allele relationships to gene expression and function could be of tremendous value to understanding the mechanism responsible for functional differences in gene variation. The commercial availability of human cryopreserved hepatocytes also makes this potential readily available to any who are interested in it, not just those with access to private liver banks.

Inhibition of sterol 4alpha-methyl oxidase is the principal mechanism by which garlic decreases cholesterol synthesis

Clinical and experimental evidence indicates that garlic ingestion lowers blood cholesterol levels, and treatment of cells in culture with garlic and garlic-derived compounds inhibits cholesterol synthesis. To identify the principal site of inhibition in the cholesterolgenic pathway and the active components of garlic, cultured hepatoma cells were treated with aqueous garlic extract or its chemical derivatives, and radiolabeled cholesterol and intermediates were identified and quantified. Garlic extract reduced cholesterol synthesis by up to 75% without evidence of cellular toxicity. Levels of squalene and 2,3-oxidosqualene were not altered by garlic, indicating that the site of inhibition was downstream of lanosterol synthesis, and identical results were obtained with 14C-acetate and 14C-mevalonate, confirming that 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase activity was not affected in these short-term studies. Several methylsterols that accumulated in the presence of garlic were identified by coupled gas chromatography-mass spectrometry as 4,4'-dimethylzymosterol and a possible metabolite of 4-methylzymosterol; both are substrates for sterol 4alpha-methyl oxidase, pointing to this enzyme as the principal site of inhibition in the cholesterolgenic pathway by garlic. Of 9 garlic-derived compounds tested for their ability to inhibit cholesterol synthesis, only diallyl disulfide, diallyl trisulfide, and allyl mercaptan proved inhibitory, each yielding a pattern of sterol accumulation identical with that obtained with garlic extract. These results indicate that compounds containing an allyl-disulfide or allyl-sulfhydryl group are most likely responsible for the inhibition of cholesterol synthesis by garlic and that this inhibition is likely mediated at sterol 4alpha-methyl oxidase.

Supernatant protein factor requires phosphorylation and interaction with Golgi to stimulate cholesterol synthesis in hepatoma cells

Supernatant protein factor (SPF) is a poorly characterized cytosolic protein that stimulates HMG-CoA reductase and squalene monooxygenase in vitro and cholesterol synthesis when expressed in hepatoma cells. The activation of SPF by protein kinases A (PKA) and Cdelta enhances its ability to stimulate these cholesterolgenic enzymes in microsomal preparations. The present studies demonstrate that the ability of SPF to stimulate cholesterol synthesis in cell culture is also modulated by phosphorylation. Addition of dibutyryl-cAMP, a PKA activator, to hepatoma cells expressing SPF increased cholesterol synthesis by 62%, whereas addition of a cell-permeable PKA inhibitor blocked the SPF-mediated increase in cholesterol synthesis. To confirm a role for PKA in the regulation of SPF, substitution of alanine for serine-289 (a putative PKA recognition site) blocked the stimulation of cholesterol synthesis by SPF. Serine-289 is located at the junction of the proposed lipid-binding domain and the carboxyl-terminal Golgi dynamics domain, suggesting that phosphorylation may alter the interaction of these two domains. In a test of this hypothesis, deletion of the Golgi dynamics domain blocked the ability of SPF to stimulate cholesterol synthesis, supporting a role for Golgi in SPF function; this finding was buttressed by the observation that addition of brefeldin A, which disrupts Golgi formation, also abolished the ability of SPF to stimulate cholesterol synthesis. The activation of SPF by PKA suggests that cholesterol synthesis can be rapidly modulated in response to external stimuli by changes in cAMP levels, and that this regulation is dependent on an as yet undefined interaction with Golgi.

Supernatant protein factor stimulates HMG-CoA reductase in cell culture and in vitro

Supernatant protein factor (SPF) is a 46-kDa cytosolic protein that stimulates squalene monooxygenase in vitro and, unexpectedly, cholesterol synthesis in cell culture. Because squalene monooxygenase is not thought to be rate-limiting with regard to cholesterol synthesis, we investigated the possibility that SPF might stimulate other enzymes in the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway. Substitution of [(14)C]mevalonate for [(14)C]acetate in McARH7777 hepatoma cells expressing SPF reduced the 1.8-fold increase in cholesterol synthesis by half, suggesting that SPF acted on or prior to mevalonate synthesis. This conclusion was supported by the finding that substitution with [(14)C]mevalonate completely blocked an SPF-induced increase in squalene synthesis. Evaluation of 2,3-oxidosqualene synthesis from [(14)C]mevalonate demonstrated that SPF also stimulated squalene monooxygenase (1.3-fold) in hepatoma cells. Immunoblot analysis showed that SPF did not increase HMG-CoA reductase or squalene monooxygenase enzyme levels, indicating a direct effect on enzyme activity. Addition of purified recombinant SPF to rat liver microsomes stimulated HMG-CoA reductase by about 1.5-fold, and the SPF-concentration/activation curve paralleled that for the SPF-mediated stimulation of squalene monooxygenase. These results reveal that SPF directly stimulates HMG-CoA reductase, the rate-limiting step of the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway, as well as squalene monooxygenase, and suggest a new means by which cholesterol synthesis can be rapidly modulated in response to hormonal and environmental signals.

Rat supernatant protein factor-like protein stimulates squalene monooxygenase and is activated by protein kinase A

Rat supernatant protein factor-like protein (SPF2) shares 90% sequence identity with rat SPF and 77% identity with human SPF, both of which have been shown to stimulate squalene monooxygenase in the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway. SPF2 appears to be predominantly expressed in respiratory and epithelial tissues, whereas SPF is expressed in liver. To determine if SPF2 was also able to stimulate squalene monooxygenase activity, we have cloned, expressed, and purified the protein following heterologous expression in Escherichia coli. SPF2 was only half as effective as SPF in stimulating squalene epoxidation and was more strongly inhibited by GTP and GDP. The inhibition by guanine nucleotides was fully prevented by alpha-tocopherol, a reported ligand for these proteins. Incubation of SPF2 with protein kinase A and ATP increased its activity by about twofold, has been found for SPF. These results indicate that SPF2 activity is modulated by guanine nucleotides and alpha-tocopherol, as well as by phosphorylation.

JUD COON: 35 YEARS OF P450 RESEARCH, A SYNOPSIS OF P450 HISTORY

The year 2004 marks the 50th anniversary of the discovery of cytochrome P450. Minor J. (Jud) Coon has been a leader in this field for the last 35 years. This review summarizes his contributions to P450 research by discussing six of his most significant publications; not surprisingly, these papers serve as landmarks for the major directions followed in P450 research.

The roles of cytochrome b5 in cytochrome P450 reactions

Cytochrome b(5), a 17-kDa hemeprotein associated primarily with the endoplasmic reticulum of eukaryotic cells, has long been known to augment some cytochrome P450 monooxygenase reactions, but the mechanism of stimulation has remained controversial. Studies in recent years have clarified this issue by delineating three pathways by which cytochrome b(5) augments P450 reactions: direct electron transfer of both required electrons from NADH-cytochrome b(5) reductase to P450, in a pathway separate and independent of NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase; transfer of the second electron to oxyferrous P450 from either cytochrome b(5) reductase or cytochrome P450 reductase; and allosteric stimulation of P450 without electron transfer. Evidence now indicates that each of these pathways is likely to operate in vivo.

Cytochrome b5 reductase and cytochrome b5 support the CYP2E1-mediated activation of nitrosamines in a recombinant Ames test

With CYP2E1 in vitro both the first and the second electron of the catalytic cycle can come from cytochrome b(5) via either NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase or NADH-cytochrome b(5) reductase, and the presence of cytochrome b(5) stimulates CYP2E1 turnover both in vitro and in vivo. To determine whether electron input via the NADH-dependent pathway was similarly functional in whole cells and necessary for the stimulation by cytochrome b(5), we constructed five plasmids designed to express human CYP2E1 in various combinations with cytochrome b(5) reductase, cytochrome b(5), and cytochrome P450 reductase. CYP2E1 activity in Salmonella typhimurium cells transformed with each plasmid was assessed by mutagenic reversion frequency in the presence of dimethylnitrosamine. A fivefold increase in reversion frequency when cytochrome b(5) was coexpressed with P450 reductase was abolished by disruption of heme-binding in cytochrome b(5) by site-directed mutagenesis (His68Ala), suggesting that electron transfer to cytochrome b(5) was necessary for the stimulation. Addition of cytochrome b(5) reductase to the cytochrome b(5)/P450 reductase coexpression plasmid did not further increase the stimulation by cytochrome b(5), but b(5) reductase could support CYP2E1 activity in the absence of P450 reductase at a level equivalent to that obtained with just CYP2E1 and P450 reductase. Neither cytochrome b(5) reductase nor cytochrome b(5) alone could support CYP2E1 activity. These results demonstrate that the cytochrome b(5) reductase/cytochrome b(5) pathway can support CYP2E1 activity in bacterial cells.

Phosphorylation of supernatant protein factor enhances its ability to stimulate microsomal squalene monooxygenase

Supernatant protein factor is a 46-kDa cytosolic protein that stimulates squalene monooxygenase, a downstream enzyme in the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway. The mechanism of stimulation is poorly understood, although supernatant protein factor belongs to a family of lipid-binding proteins that includes Sec14p and alpha-tocopherol transfer protein. Because recombinant human supernatant protein factor purified from Escherichia coli exhibited a relatively weak ability to activate microsomal squalene monooxygenase, we investigated the possibility that cofactors or post-translational modifications were necessary for full activity. Addition of ATP to rat liver cytosol increased supernatant protein factor activity by more than 2-fold and could be prevented by the addition of inhibitors of protein kinases A and C. Incubation of purified recombinant supernatant protein factor with ATP and protein kinases A or C delta similarly increased activity by more than 2-fold. Addition of protein phosphatase 1 gamma, a serine/threonine phosphatase, to rat liver cytosol reduced activity by 50%, suggesting that supernatant protein factor is partially phosphorylated in vivo. To determine whether dietary cholesterol influenced the phosphorylation state, cytosols were prepared from livers of rats fed a high fat diet. Although supernatant protein factor activity was reduced by more than one-half, it could not be restored by the addition of ATP or protein kinase C delta with ATP, suggesting that dietary cholesterol reduced the expression of this protein. Supernatant protein factor thus appears to be regulated both post-translationally through phosphorylation and at the level of expression. Phosphorylation may provide a means for the rapid short term modulation of cholesterol synthesis.

Supernatant protein factor and tocopherol-associated protein: an unexpected link between cholesterol synthesis and vitamin E (review)

Supernatant protein factor (SPF) is a recently cloned member of a family of cytosolic lipid-binding proteins that includes Sec14p, alpha-tocopherol transfer protein, and cellular retinal-binding protein. SPF stimulates the conversion of squalene to lanosterol in the downstream pathway for cholesterol biosynthesis, and overexpression of cloned SPF in hepatoma cells increases cholesterol synthesis. The mechanism of this stimulation has yet to be defined, but SPF appears to facilitate the transfer of squalene into and between intracellular membranes. The recent identification of SPF as alpha-tocopherol-associated protein (TAP) has called into question its long-standing association with cholesterol biosynthesis. TAP binds alpha-tocopherol, but not other isomers of tocopherol, with high affinity; in the presence of alpha-tocopherol TAP translocates to the nucleus and activates reporter gene transcription. Given the ability of alpha-tocopherol to down-regulate the expression of two scavenger lipoprotein receptors, SR-A and CD36, these observations raise some interesting questions regarding the role of SPF/TAP and vitamin E in cholesterol metabolism.

Modification of the nucleotide cofactor-binding site of cytochrome P-450 reductase to enhance turnover with NADH in Vivo

NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase is the electron transfer partner for the cytochromes P-450, heme oxygenase, and squalene monooxygenase and is a component of the nitric-oxide synthases and methionine-synthase reductase. P-450 reductase shows very high selectivity for NADPH and uses NADH only poorly. Substitution of tryptophan 677 with alanine has been shown to yield a 3-fold increase in turnover with NADH, but profound inhibition by NADP(+) makes the enzyme unsuitable for in vivo applications. In the present study site-directed mutagenesis of amino acids in the 2'-phosphate-binding site of the NADPH domain, coupled with the W677A substitution, was used to generate a reductase that was able to use NADH efficiently without inhibition by NADP(+). Of 11 single, double, and triple mutant proteins, two (R597M/W677A and R597M/K602W/W677A) showed up to a 500-fold increase in catalytic efficiency (k(cat)/K(m)) with NADH. Inhibition by NADP(+) was reduced by up to 4 orders of magnitude relative to the W677A protein and was equal to or less than that of the wild-type reductase. Both proteins were 2-3-fold more active than wild-type reductase with NADH in reconstitution assays with cytochrome P-450 1A2 and with squalene monooxygenase. In a recombinant cytochrome P-450 2E1 Ames bacterial mutagenicity assay, the R597M/W677A protein increased the sensitivity to dimethylnitrosamine by approximately 2-fold, suggesting that the ability to use NADH afforded a significant advantage in this in vivo assay.

Inhibition of human squalene monooxygenase by selenium compounds

Selenosis in animals is characterized by a variety of neurological abnormalities, but the chemical species of selenium and the molecular targets that mediate this neurotoxicity are unknown. We have previously shown that selenite is a potent inhibitor of squalene monooxygenase, the second enzyme in the committed pathway for cholesterol biosynthesis; inhibition of this enzyme by dimethyltellurium leads to a peripheral demyelinating neuropathy similar to that seen in selenosis. To evaluate the role methylation plays in selenium toxicity, we examined the ability of three methylselenium compounds, methylselenol, dimethylselenide, and trimethylselenonium iodide, to inhibit purified recombinant human squalene monooxygenase. IC(50) values for methylselenol (95 microM) and dimethylselenide (680 microM) were greater than that previously obtained for selenite (37 microM), and inhibition by trimethylselenonium iodide was evident only at concentrations above 3 mM. Inhibition by methylselenol as well as by selenite was slow and irreversible, suggestive of covalent binding to the enzyme, and thiol-containing compounds could prevent and reverse this inhibition, indicating that these compounds were reacting with sulfhydryl groups on the protein. Monothiols such as glutathione and beta-mercaptoethanol provided better protection than did dithiols, suggesting that these selenium compounds bind to only one of the two proposed vicinal cysteines on squalene monooxygenase. Unexpectedly, the inhibition by selenite was significantly enhanced by dithiols, indicating that a more toxic species, possibly selenide, was formed in the presence of these dithiol reductants.

Cytochrome b(5) coexpression increases the CYP2E1-dependent mutagenicity of dialkylnitrosamines in methyltransferase-deficient strains of Salmonella typhimurium

Addition of cytochrome b(5) to recombinant cytochrome P450 2E1 systems has been shown to enhance the metabolism of dialkylnitrosamines in vitro. To determine if this effect could be observed with recombinant expression systems in vivo, we have constructed mutagenicity tester strains that coexpress full-length human cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1), rat cytochrome P450 reductase, and human cytochrome b(5) in Salmonella typhimurium lacking ogt and ada methyltransferases (YG7104, ogt(-); and YG7108, ogt(-), ada(-)). These new recombinant strains exhibit a four- to five-fold greater mutagenic response to dimethylnitrosamine, diethylnitrosamine, and dipropylnitrosamine than strains that contain only CYP2E1 and reductase, and are over 100-fold more sensitive to nitrosamines than the parental strains in the presence of an exogenous activating system (S9 fraction). The four-fold increase in mutagenicity in the presence of cytochrome b(5) was consistent with increasing alkyl chain length up to dibutylnitrosamine, which was poorly activated by CYP2E1. The greatest enhancement was obtained with a tricistronic construct in which the b(5) cDNA preceded the P450 and reductase cDNAs; placing the b(5) cDNA after the reductase cDNA was substantially less effective. These new, highly sensitive strains may prove useful in the detection of nitrosamine contamination of food and environmental samples.

Garlic and garlic-derived compounds inhibit human squalene monooxygenase

Although extracts of garlic inhibit cholesterol biosynthesis in cultured hepatocytes, the inhibitory components of garlic and the site or sites of inhibition in the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway have not been established. To elucidate potential mechanisms of inhibition, we examined the effect of fresh garlic extract and 16 water- or lipid-soluble compounds derived from garlic on purified recombinant human squalene monooxygenase. Squalene monooxygenase catalyzes the second and likely rate-limiting step in the downstream pathway for cholesterol biosynthesis. A 50% inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) of squalene epoxidation was achieved with 1 g/L of fresh garlic extract; of the 16 garlic compounds tested, only selenocystine (IC(50) = 65 micromol/L), S-allylcysteine (IC(50) = 110 micromol/L), alliin (IC(50) = 120 micromol/L), diallyl trisulfide (IC(50) = 195 micromol/L), and diallyl disulfide (IC(50) = 400 micromol/L) substantially inhibited the enzyme. Kinetic analysis showed that the inhibition by garlic and by these compounds was slow and irreversible, suggestive of covalent binding to the enzyme; the ability of thiol-containing compounds such as glutathione and 2,3-dimercaptopropanol to prevent and reverse the inhibition indicated that the garlic compounds were reacting with sulfhydryl groups on the protein. Dithiols were better reversal agents than monothiols, further suggesting that these inhibitors bind to the proposed vicinal sulfhydryls present on this enzyme. These results indicate that squalene monooxygenase may be one of the target enzymes through which garlic inhibits cholesterol biosynthesis.

Inhibition of human squalene monooxygenase by tellurium compounds: evidence of interaction with vicinal sulfhydryls

Squalene monooxygenase is a flavin adenine dinucleotide-containing, microsomal enzyme that catalyzes the second step in the committed pathway for cholesterol biosynthesis. Feeding weanling rats a diet containing 1% elemental tellurium causes a transient, peripheral demyelination due to the disruption of cholesterol synthesis in Schwann cells secondary to inhibition of squalene monooxygenase. The tellurium species responsible for the inhibition is unknown, as is the mechanism of inhibition. To study the potential mechanisms of tellurium toxicity in humans, three likely in vivo metabolites of tellurium (tellurite, dimethyltellurium dichloride, and dimethyltelluride) were tested as inhibitors of purified human squalene monooxygenase. All three inhibitors reacted with the enzyme slowly and the resulting interaction was not freely reversible. The 50% inhibitory concentration for the methyltellurium compounds (approximately 100 nM) after a 30-min preincubation was 100-fold lower than that of tellurite, indicating a role for hydrophobicity in the enzyme-inhibitor interaction. The ability of glutathione and 2,3-dimercaptopropanol to prevent and reverse the inhibition indicated that the tellurium compounds were reacting with sulfhydryls on squalene monooxygenase, and the ability of phenylarsine oxide, which reacts specifically with vicinal sulfhydryls, to inhibit the enzyme indicated that these sulfhydryls are located proximal to one another on the enzyme. These results suggest that the unusual sensitivity of squalene monooxygenase to tellurium compounds is due to the binding of these compounds to vicinal cysteines, and that methylation of tellurium in vivo may enhance the toxicity of tellurium for this enzyme.

Mutagenicity of nitrosamines in methyltransferase-deficient strains of Salmonella typhimurium coexpressing human cytochrome P450 2E1 and reductase

Although dialkylnitrosamines are environmentally significant carcinogens, the use of short-term bioassays to assess the mutagenic potential of these compounds is problematic. The Ames test, a mutagenicity assay based on the reversion of Salmonella typhimurium histidine auxotrophs, is the most widely used bioassay in genetic toxicology, but the traditional Ames tester strains are largely insensitive to dialkylnitrosamine mutagenicity. We have constructed two mutagenicity tester strains that co-express full-length human cytochrome P450 2E1 and P450 reductase in S. typhimurium lacking ogt and ada methyltransferases (YG7104ER, ogt- and YG7108ER, ogt-, ada-). These new strains are susceptible to dialkylnitrosamine mutagenicity in the absence of an exogenous metabolic activating system (S9 fraction). Mutagenicity is dependent upon the coexpression of P450 2E1 with P450 reductase and is similar to or greater than that obtained with the parental strains in the presence of S9 fraction from ethanol-induced rat liver. These strains were also sensitive to nitrosamines with longer alkyl side chains including diethylnitrosamine, dipropylnitrosamine and dibutylnitrosamine. Mutagenicity decreased with alkyl chain length, consistent with the stringency of the ada-encoded enzyme for methyl and ethyl DNA adducts. These new strains may prove useful in the evaluation of nitrosamine contamination of food and environmental samples.

Cloning, heterologous expression, and enzymological characterization of human squalene monooxygenase

The cDNA for human squalene monooxygenase, a key enzyme in the committed pathway for cholesterol biosynthesis, was amplified from a human liver cDNA library and cloned, and the protein was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. Kinetic analysis of the purified enzyme revealed an apparent K(m) for squalene of 7.7 microM and an apparent k(cat) of 1.1 min(-1). For FAD the apparent K(m) is 0.3 microM, consistent with a loosely bound flavin. The apparent K(m) for NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase, the requisite electron transfer partner, is 14 nM. The amount of reductase needed for maximal activity is about threefold less than the amount of squalene monooxygenase present in the assay; thus, electron transfer to the monooxygenase is not likely to be rate limiting. Previous reports have implicated inhibition of this enzyme as the cause of a peripheral demyelination seen in weanling rats fed a diet containing tellurium. As no data were available for humans, the ability of a number of tellurium and related elemental compounds to inhibit the recombinant human enzyme was examined. Tellurite, tellurium dioxide, selenite, and selenium dioxide were inhibitory; the tellurium compounds were more potent than the selenium compounds, as indicated by their IC(50) values (17 and 37 microM, respectively). Kinetic analysis of the inhibition by tellurite suggests multiple sites of interaction with the enzyme in a noncompetitive manner with respect to squalene.

Coexpression of mammalian cytochrome P450 and reductase in Escherichia coli

cDNAs for human cytochrome P450 2E1 and rat NADPH-cytochrome-P450 reductase were cloned separately and in tandem into bacterial expression vectors, and expression of the two proteins in Escherichia coli was monitored by immunoblotting, spectroscopy, and catalytic assays. The cDNAs were separated on the coexpression plasmid by 22 nucleotides, with the P450 cDNA preceding the reductase cDNA. P450 content in solubilized cell membranes, whether expressed alone or coexpressed with P450 reductase, was approximately 0.11 nmol/mg of protein, and approximately 0.8 nmol could be obtained per liter of culture. Reductase content was five- to sixfold greater than P450 content when coexpressed, but severalfold less than that obtained when expressed without the upstream P450 cDNA, indicating differences in both stability and translatability between the two proteins. Solubilized membranes from cells expressing both proteins catalyzed aniline hydroxylation, p-nitrophenol hydroxylation, and N-nitrosodimethylamine demethylation at rates equivalent to those obtained by combining P450 and reductase preparations; addition of purified reductase to these membranes did not augment the activity. However, in contrast to results obtained with P450 2E1 expressed in other heterologous systems, addition of rabbit liver cytochrome b5 to preparations catalyzing p-nitrophenol or N-nitrosodimethylamine oxidation did not increase turnover, and, although activity could be shown with unsolubilized membranes, oxidation of these substrates in vivo could not be demonstrated. Nonetheless, the ability to coexpress P450 and reductase in E. coli so as to generate a functional monooxygenase system in vitro enhances the utility of this organism for the expression and characterization of cloned P450 isoforms.

Correlation between codon usage, regional genomic nucleotide composition, and amino acid composition in the cytochrome P-450 gene superfamily

The codon usage bias of 110 mammalian cytochrome P-450 genes has been determined and analyzed in relation to a variety of genetic, biochemical, and physiological parameters. In those P-450 genes exhibiting biased usage the preferred codons generally do not differ among the four species examined (rat, rabbit, man, and mouse) or from the predominantly used codons identified for all sequenced genes in a recent data base analysis (Wada et al. (1992) Nucleic Acids Res. 20 (Suppl.), 2111-2118). Codon usage bias does not correlate with evolutionary relationships, evolutionary age, or with the extent of evolutionary conservation of orthologous proteins; there is no obvious correlation with the level of expression of a given P-450, with its inducibility, nor with its physiologic role; and neither the preferred codons nor the degree of bias differ for P-450s expressed in different tissues. Codon usage bias does correlate with the C+G content at the codon third position, and thus preferred codons usually end in C or G; for those P-450s for which gene sequences are available this bias also correlates with the C + G content of the intronic and flanking regions of these genes. Moreover, a lesser increase in the C + G content at the codon first and second positions is also evident in genes located in regions of high C + G content; this leads to predictable differences in the amino acid compositions of P-450 enzymes that correlate with genomic nucleotide composition and the degree of bias in codon usage.

Mutagenesis at a highly conserved phenylalanine in cytochrome P450 2E1 affects heme incorporation and catalytic activity

The phenylalanine corresponding to Phe-429 of rabbit cytochrome P450 2E1 is 1 of approximately 10 highly conserved residues in this superfamily of over 200 sequenced enzymes. This nearly invariant residue has been postulated to be involved in electron transfer between the heme of cytochrome P450cam and its redox partners [Stayton, P.S., Poulos, T. L., & Sligar, S.G. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 8201-8205]. To test this hypothesis, oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis was used to replace this amino acid in rabbit P450 2E1 with aspartate, arginine, leucine, tryptophan, or tyrosine, and the mutant proteins were expressed in Escherichia coli. Although immunoblot analysis of whole cell lysates demonstrated that all P450 proteins (mutants and wild-type) were equally well expressed on a per cell basis, in solubilized membranes only the tryptophan and tyrosine mutants yielded ferrous-CO difference spectra characteristic of P450. The specific content (nanomoles per milligram of membrane protein) and yield per liter of the Trp mutant holoenzyme were approximately one-third those of the native enzyme, suggesting that heme incorporation was hindered by tryptophan at this position, whereas the specific content and yield per liter of the Tyr mutant were significantly greater than those of the native preparation. The stability of the Trp and Tyr mutants, as judged by thermal denaturation studies, was not different from that of the native enzyme. The Trp mutant had 38% of the aniline hydroxylase activity, 25% of the p-nitrophenol hydroxylase activity, and 39% of the N-nitrosodimethylamine demethylase activity of the native enzyme, demonstrating that this substitution also decreased catalytic activity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Purification and properties of a shortened form of cytochrome P-450 2E1: deletion of the NH2-terminal membrane-insertion signal peptide does not alter the catalytic activities

As reported previously, alcohol-inducible cytochrome P-450 2E1 lacking the hydrophobic NH2-terminal segment is located primarily in the inner cell membrane when expressed in Escherichia coli and is active with a typical substrate. To study the catalytic properties in detail, we have purified the truncated P-450 lacking residues 3-29 to electrophoretic homogeneity from the solubilized bacterial membrane fraction in the presence of 4-methylpyrazole as a stabilizing agent. The resulting heme protein with a specific content of 15.8 nmol of P-450 per mg of protein has a reduced CO difference spectrum identical to that of the full-length enzyme, with a Soret maximum at 452 nm. The rates of catalysis of four reactions in the reconstituted enzyme system, including the oxygenation of ethanol to give acetaldehyde, the oxidative dealkylation of N-nitrosodiethylamine to give ethylene and acetaldehyde, and the ring hydroxylation of aniline and p-nitrophenol, are the same with the shortened and full-length enzymes. The apparent Km of p-nitrophenol is also the same, as is that for NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase and for cytochrome b5, which stimulates p-nitrocatechol formation about 3-fold. Moreover, the requirement for phosphatidylcholine for full catalytic activity is unchanged despite the absence of the NH2-terminal segment. Although this highly hydrophobic segment is believed to play a role in the intact cell as a membrane-insertion signal sequence, we conclude that it has no function in the catalytic activity of the cytochrome as an oxygenase, including interactions with the other components of the enzyme system.

Differences in the developmental expression of rabbit cytochromes P-450 2E1 and 2E2

The alcohol-inducible CYP2E subfamily in rabbits contains two genes; CYP2E1 encodes the cytochrome earlier termed P-450 3a, and CYP2E2 encodes a cytochrome that is 97% identical in amino acid sequence to cytochrome P-450 (P-450) 2E1. In the present studies, the ontogenic expression of these two cytochromes was examined. In liver, P-450 2E2 mRNA is detectable immediately after birth and reaches slightly greater than the adult level at 2 weeks of age; in contrast, P-450 2E1 mRNA is not detectable until day 14 and increases rapidly to approximately twice the adult level at 5 weeks of age. P-450 2E protein is present in liver immediately after birth, coincident with the appearance of P-450 2E2 mRNA, peaks at 2 weeks, and then, despite the continued elevation in P-450 2E mRNA, decreases to the adult level at 5 weeks. In kidney, P-450 2E2 mRNA is not detectable at any age; P-450 2E1 mRNA, however, is present at 1 week, and the level increases to about half the adult level at 5 weeks of age. P-450 2E protein in this tissue is elevated at 2 weeks, relative to mRNA levels, and reaches approximately half the adult level at 5 weeks. The lack of close correlation between mRNA and protein levels in the liver and kidney of newborn rabbits indicates that the posttranscriptional control of P-450 2E enzyme levels that predominates in adult animals is also operative during the neonatal period. Monooxygenase activities with ethanol and p-nitrophenol as substrates reflect the developmental increase in P-450 2E protein, as well as the appearance and levels of spectrally detectable P-450, cytochrome b5, and NADPH-P-450 reductase in hepatic microsomes. The expression of P-450 2E2, but not P-450 2E1, in early neonates suggests that these two closely related cytochromes may have functional differences that are important during the first few weeks of life.

Alcohol-inducible cytochrome P-450IIE1 lacking the hydrophobic NH2-terminal segment retains catalytic activity and is membrane-bound when expressed in Escherichia coli

We have expressed in Escherichia coli a cDNA encoding rabbit liver cytochrome P-450IIE1, the ethanol-inducible P-450. The expressed P-450 is located primarily in the bacterial inner cell membrane and comprises 3% of the E. coli total membrane protein. The partially purified cytochrome exhibits a reduced CO difference spectrum with a maximum at 452 nm, characteristic of P-450IIE1, and solubilized membranes or partially purified P-450 preparations reconstituted with NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase and phosphatidylcholine catalyze the deethylation of N-nitrosodiethylamine with a turnover number equal to that of purified liver P-450IIE1 (approximately 4.5 nmol/min/nmol of P-450). A modified IIE1 cDNA that encodes a protein lacking amino acids 3-29, a proposed membrane anchor for cytochrome P-450, was also expressed in E. coli and, unexpectedly, the shortened protein was also found to be predominantly located in the bacterial inner membrane rather than the cytosol. Like the full-length protein, this truncated cytochrome has a reduced CO difference spectrum characteristic of P-450IIE1 and is fully active in the deethylation of N-nitrosodiethylamine. These results demonstrate that the NH2-terminal hydrophobic segment is not solely responsible for attachment to the membrane and evidently is not required for proper protein folding or catalytic activity.

An unusual yet strongly conserved flavoprotein reductase in bacteria and mammals

The recent determination of the amino acid sequences of the Bacillus megaterium cytochrome P-450 and the flavoprotein component of Salmonella typhimurium NADPH-sulfite reductase revealed that these enzymes contain a flavoprotein moiety remarkably similar to mammalian NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase. The presence of this oxidoreductase in these very different enzymes suggests that this flavoprotein arose early in evolution and was utilized as an enzymological building block. The multi-domain structure of the reductase further suggests that it arose through a fusion of genes encoding simple flavin electron-transport proteins.

cDNA and derived amino acid sequence of rabbit nasal cytochrome P450NMb (P450IIG1), a unique isozyme possibly involved in olfaction

Olfactory-specific cytochrome P450NMb was previously purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from microsomes of rabbit nasal mucosa in this laboratory. In the present study, a cDNA library made from poly(A)+ RNA from rabbit nasal mucosa was screened with antibodies to this P450, and eight immunopositive clones were isolated and characterized. The sequence determined from two overlapping clones contained an open reading frame of 1446 nucleotides, with the predicted first 39 amino acids corresponding to residues 12 to 50 of purified NMb, except for position 46, where Leu was encoded instead of the Glu residue that was found earlier by Edman degradation analysis. The complete polypeptide, including residues 1 to 11, contains 494 amino acid residues and has a molecular weight of 56,640. Sequence comparisons indicated that NMb is more than 50% identical to members of the rabbit P450 gene II family, including IIB4, IIC3, IIC5, IIE1, and IIE2, and 83% identical to rat P450olf1 (IIG1). Hybridization of NMb to electrophoretically fractionated rabbit nasal poly(A)+ RNA revealed 3.6- and 2.1-kb species, but with a probe derived from the 3'-nontranslated portion of the cDNA only the 3.6-kb band was observed, suggesting the use of alternate polyadenylation sites or splicing. In agreement with the known tissue-specific distribution of NMb protein, NMb transcripts were found in olfactory mucosa, but not in liver, lung, intestine, or kidney. Genomic hybridization analysis indicated that there may be only one copy of the NMb gene present in the rabbit genome.

Expression of rabbit cytochrome P-450IIE2 in yeast and stabilization of the enzyme by 4-methylpyrazole

A rabbit cytochrome P-450IIE2 full-length cDNA was cloned into a yeast episomal plasmid (YEp13) between the copper-responsive yeast metallothionein gene promoter (CUP1) and the iso-1-cytochrome c gene terminator (CYC1), and the cytochrome P-450 was expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The microsomal fraction prepared from copper-treated cells exhibited a ferrous carbonyl difference spectrum with an absorption maximum at 451 nm and contained approximately 0.07 nmol of P-450IIE2 per mg of protein. The P-450IIE2 protein expressed in yeast microsomes was catalytically competent as judged by the NADPH-dependent deethylation of N-nitrosodiethylamine and by the oxidation of butanol. Cholate solubilization and polyethylene glycol fractionation of yeast microsomal P-450IIE2 yielded a preparation with a markedly lower specific content than that of intact microsomes, but, when 4-methylpyrazole was included during solubilization, the holoenzyme was completely stabilized.

NADPH-cytochrome P-450 oxidoreductase gene organization correlates with structural domains of the protein

cDNA clones to rat liver NADPH-cytochrome P-450 oxidoreductase were used to isolate genomic clones from a Wistar-Furth inbred rat genomic DNA library. Fifteen exons containing the coding region and 3'-nontranslated segment of the P-450 reductase gene were identified, spanning 20 kilobases of DNA contained in 3 lambda-Charon 35 clones. The organization of this single copy gene reveals a general correspondence between exons and structural domains of the protein, with the segment responsible for anchoring the reductase to the microsomal membrane and several segments involved in FMN, FAD, and NADPH binding encoded by discrete exons.

Induction and tissue-specific expression of rabbit cytochrome P450IIE1 and IIE2 genes

Treatment of rabbits with a variety of dissimilar chemicals, including ethanol, acetone, and imidazole, results in elevated levels of hepatic and renal cytochrome P-450 form 3a, also designated P-450ALC or P-450IIE. The P450IIE1 subfamily in rabbits is composed of two genes that encode proteins with 97% sequence identity; the mRNAs from these genes can be distinguished by their differing electrophoretic mobilities. In the present studies, examination of the expression of these genes revealed that P450IIE1 (gene 1) mRNA is present in greatest abundance in the liver, is present in kidney and nasal mucosa at approximately 10% of the level in liver, and is present in lung at approximately 5% of the level in liver. P450IIE2 (gene 2) mRNA is present in liver and lung at approximately 50% of the level of gene 1 mRNA in these tissues but cannot be detected in kidney or nasal mucosa. Neither gene is expressed in testis, ovary, small intestine, or adrenal tissue. Treatment of rabbits with acetone or imidazole results in elevated levels of P-450 3a-immunoreactive protein in liver and kidney without concomitant increases in P450IIE gene mRNAs. Moreover, various lengths of ethanol treatment elevated the level of immunoreactive protein in liver and kidney, with a rapid reduction of gene 1 mRNA and, at 14 days, gene 2 mRNA to approximately 50% of control levels. In contrast to these chemical inducers of 3a, fasting for 48 hr significantly increases gene 1 and 2 mRNA in liver but does not increase the level of immunoreactive protein. These results indicate that the rabbit P450IIE genes are not coordinately expressed or regulated and, as found with the rat ortholog P-450j, chemical inducers of 3a evidently act through changes in the rate of synthesis or degradation of the enzyme, rather than through increased gene transcription.

Structural analysis of the FMN binding domain of NADPH-cytochrome P-450 oxidoreductase by site-directed mutagenesis

Comparison of the amino acid sequence of rat liver NADPH-cytochrome P-450 oxidoreductase with that of flavoproteins of known three-dimensional structure suggested that residues Tyr-140 and Tyr-178 are involved in binding of FMN to the protein. To test this hypothesis, NADPH-cytochrome P-450 oxidoreductase was expressed in Escherichia coli using the expression-secretion vector pIN-III-ompA3, and site-directed mutagenesis was employed to selectively alter these residues and demonstrate that they are major determinants of the FMN-binding site. Bacterial expression produced a membrane-bound 80-kDa protein containing 1 mol each of FMN and FAD per mol of enzyme, which reduced cytochrome c at a rate of 51.5 mumol/min/mg of protein and had absorption spectra and kinetic properties very similar to those of the rat liver enzyme. Replacement of Tyr-178 with aspartate abolished FMN binding and cytochrome c reductase activity. Incubation with FMN increased catalytic activity to a maximum of 8.6 mumol/min/mg of protein. Replacement of Tyr-140 with aspartate did not eliminate FMN binding, but reduced cytochrome c reductase activity about 5-fold, suggesting that FMN may be bound in a conformation which does not permit efficient electron transfer. Substitution of phenylalanine at either position 140 or 178 had no effect on FMN content or catalytic activity. The FAD level in the Asp-178 mutant was also decreased, suggesting that FAD binding is dependent upon FMN; FAD incorporation may occur co-translationally and require prior formation of an intact FMN domain.