Immunochemical characterization of human lung epoxide hydrolases

Epoxide hydrolases: their roles and interactions with lipid metabolism

The epoxide hydrolases (EHs) are enzymes present in all living organisms, which transform epoxide containing lipids by the addition of water. In plants and animals, many of these lipid substrates have potent biologically activities, such as host defenses, control of development, regulation of inflammation and blood pressure. Thus the EHs have important and diverse biological roles with profound effects on the physiological state of the host organisms. Currently, seven distinct epoxide hydrolase sub-types are recognized in higher organisms. These include the plant soluble EHs, the mammalian soluble epoxide hydrolase, the hepoxilin hydrolase, leukotriene A4 hydrolase, the microsomal epoxide hydrolase, and the insect juvenile hormone epoxide hydrolase. While our understanding of these enzymes has progressed at different rates, here we discuss the current state of knowledge for each of these enzymes, along with a distillation of our current understanding of their endogenous roles. By reviewing the entire enzyme class together, both commonalities and discrepancies in our understanding are highlighted and important directions for future research pertaining to these enzymes are indicated.

Production of monospecific antiserum to a cytosolic epoxide hydrolase from human liver

A method for the purification to apparent homogeneity of cytosolic trans-stilbene oxide hydrolase from human liver is presented. The method employed ion exchange and gel filtration chromatography. From 50 g of human liver, 4.9 mg of homogenous enzyme protein was obtained. Although the enzyme had lost much of its catalytic activity during purification, it was nevertheless suitable for the preparation of antibodies to the enzyme. Only one immunogenic species was present in the antigen preparation, but some antibodies that were cross-reactive to sites on catalase were present in the antiserum. These catalase-specific antibodies were removed by immunoaffinity chromatography, and an IgG fraction that is monospecific to the cytosolic epoxide hydrolase was obtained. The usefulness of antibodies to this enzyme in immunoblotting experiments, following either sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis or isoelectric focussing, as well as in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, is demonstrated.

Similarities between catalase and cytosolic epoxide hydrolase

Cytosolic epoxide hydrolase, measured as trans-stilbene oxide hydrolase activity, was isolated and purified from human and guinea pig liver cytosol. Antiserum to the guinea pig liver preparation reacted strongly with bovine liver catalase. We determined that this lack of selectivity of the antiserum was due to catalase contamination of the epoxide hydrolase preparation. We also determined that several commercial catalase preparations are contaminated with cytosolic epoxide hydrolase. Our human epoxide hydrolase preparation contained no detectable catalase contamination, yet antiserum to this protein also cross-reacted slightly with catalase, indicating some intrinsic similarity between the two enzymes. We conclude that catalase and cytosolic epoxide hydrolase contain some similar immunogenic epitopes, and we surmise that similarities between the subunits of these two enzymes may lead to their partial copurification. Functional similarities between the two enzymes are also demonstrated, as several compounds that inhibit catalase are also shown to inhibit cytosolic epoxide hydrolase activity in the same concentration range and rank order.

Human liver cytosolic epoxide hydrolases

Human liver epoxide hydrolases were characterized by several criteria and a cytosolic cis-stilbene oxide hydrolase (cEHCSO) was purified to apparent homogeneity. Styrene oxide and five phenylmethyloxiranes were tested as substrates for human liver epoxide hydrolases. With microsomes activity was highest with trans-2-methylstyrene oxide, followed by styrene 7,8-oxide, cis-2-methylstyrene oxide, cis-1,2-dimethylstyrene oxide, trans-1,2-dimethylstyrene oxide and 2,2-dimethylstyrene oxide. With cytosol the same order was obtained for the first three substrates, whereas activity with 2,2-dimethylstyrene oxide was higher than with cis-1,2-dimethylstyrene oxide and no hydrolysis occurred with trans-1,2-dimethylstyrene oxide. Generally, activities were lower with cytosol than with microsomes. The isoelectric point for both microsomal styrene 7,8-oxide and cis-stilbene oxide hydrolyzing activity was 7.0, whereas cEHCSO had an isoelectric point of 9.2 and cytosolic trans-stilbene oxide hydrolase (cEHTSO) of 5.7. The cytosolic epoxide hydrolases could be separated by anion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration. The latter technique revealed a higher molecular mass for cEHCSO than for cEHTSO. Both cytosolic epoxide hydrolases showed higher activities at pH 7.4 than at pH 9.0, whereas the opposite was true for microsomal epoxide hydrolase. The effects of ethanol, methanol, tetrahydrofuran, acetonitrile, acetone and dimethylsulfoxide on microsomal epoxide hydrolase depended on the substrate tested, whereas both cytosolic enzymes were not at all, or only slightly, affected by these solvents. Effects of different enzyme modulators on microsomal epoxide hydrolase also depended on the substrates used. Trichloropropene oxide and styrene 7,8-oxide strongly inhibited cEHCSO whereas cEHTSO was moderately affected by these compounds. Immunochemical investigations revealed a close relationship between cEHCSO and rat liver microsomal, but not cytosolic, epoxide hydrolase. Interestingly, cEHTSO has no immunological relationship to rat microsomal, nor to rat cytosolic epoxide hydrolase. cEHTSO from human liver differed also from its counterpart in the rat in that it was only moderately affected by tetrahydrofuran, acetonitrile and trichloropropene oxide. Five steps were necessary to purify cEHCSO. The enzyme has a molecular mass (49 kDa) identical to that of rat liver microsomal epoxide hydrolase.