Ferritin-dependent inactivation of microsomal glucose-6-phosphatase

Ferritin-dependent radical generation in rat liver homogenates

The hypothesis of this study was that mammalian ferritin (FER) has the ability of releasing Fe in the tissue to catalyze the generation of free radicals, such as ascorbyl (A) and hydroxyl radical (OH), that might lead to the damage of FER itself. The rat liver homogenates exhibited an electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signal with the spectral features (a(H)=1.88 G, g=2.0054) of A. The addition to the reaction medium of isolated rat liver FER increased by 3-fold the EPR signal, as compared to the recorded value in its absence. Isolated microsomes from rat liver incubated during 10 min showed a signal with the spectral features (a(H)=15G, g=2.0062) of OH. The addition of FER in the presence of either ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA) or adenosine-5'-triphosphate (ATP) significantly increased the recorded spectra. The labile Fe pool (LIP) in the homogenate was assessed by EPR. The rat liver homogenates exhibited an EPR signal with the spectral features (g=4.3) of the Fe(2+) and was significantly increased by the addition of FER (3-fold). The oxidation profile of the isolated FER from rat liver was analyzed after incubation with 10 mM ascorbate (AH(-)). A drastic increase in the width of the band suggested alterations to the protein structure. The FER content of tryptophan (Trp) and thiols was significantly lower when the incubation was performed in the presence of AH(-) as compared to the recorded effect in its absence. The data in tissue homogenates presented here showed that radical generation is associated to FER Fe release, and moreover that the FER protein itself was affected during this process.

Importance of hereditary haemochromatosis in the care of diabetes mellitus

Szerzők a vas- és a szénhidrátanyagcsere kapcsolatait vizsgálták saját és irodalmi eredmények tükrében. Különös hangsúlyt fektettek a szabad gyökös folyamatok ismertetésére, mivel a hereditaer haemochromatosis és a diabetes mellitus is, mint a vas- és a szénhidrátanyagcsere-zavarok leggyakoribbjai oxidatív stressz keltése révén vezetnek szövődményekhez. A nagy vér és szöveti glükózkoncentráció elektronfelesleget eredményez. Ez redukálhatja a redox ciklusban részt vevő, transzport- vagy raktárfehérjéhez nem kötött vasat, és ez vezet az oxidatív stresszhez. A hereditaer haemochromatosis mind a válogatás nélküli, mind pedig a diabeteses populációban a szöveti redox-aktív vas szintjének emelkedését okozhatja. A hereditaer haemochromatosis leggyakoribb mutációit hordozók aránya hazánkban, szelekció nélküli népességben 30,4%-ot és diabetesben 35,8%-ot tesz ki. Az irodalom adatai szerint feltételezhető, hogy már a hereditaer haemochromatosis leggyakoribb mutációi (HFE-C282Y és HFE-H63D) szempontjából heterozigotákban is megemelkedik a szöveti vasszint, bár a fenotípusban a hereditaer haemochromatosis ilyenkor általában nem jelenik meg, mivel penetranciája alacsony. Mégis, ez a megemelkedett vas-ellátottság a már más okból – például diabetes mellitus miatt – károsodott szövetek betegségének progresszóját okozhatja. Másrészt a hereditaer haemochromatosis olyan endothelkárosodáshoz vezethet, ami miatt – a diabetes mellitus manifesztálódását megelőzően – hypertonia alakulhat ki. Feltételezhető, hogy a vérnyomásemelkedés a hereditaer haemochromatosis egyik legkorábbi klinikai jele. Nehezen beállítható hypertonia és szénhidrátanyagcsere-zavar esetén érdemes gondolni a hereditaer haemochromatosis lehetőségére.

Iron, oxidative stress and human health

The amount of iron within the cell is carefully regulated in order to provide an adequate level of the micronutrient while preventing its accumulation to toxic levels. Iron excess is believed to generate oxidative stress, understood as an increase in the steady state concentration of oxygen radical intermediates. The main aspects of cellular metabolism of iron, with special emphasis on the role of iron with respect to oxidative damage to lipid membranes, are briefly reviewed here. Both in vitro and in vivo models are examined. Finally, a discussion of iron overload and its impact on human health is included. Overall, further studies are required to assess more effective means to limit iron-dependent damage, by minimizing the formation and release of free radicals in tissues when the cellular iron steady state concentration is increased either as a consequence of disease or by therapeutic iron supplementation.

Possible role of free radicals generated by pseudohypoxia in the regulation of hepatic glucose output. An in vitro model using rat liver microsomal glucose 6-phosphatase

Hepatic glucose output is decreased by hyperglycaemia through an unknown mechanism. We hypothesize that free radicals generated by hyperglycaemic pseudohypoxia might cause glucose output to decrease by inhibiting glucose 6-phosphatase - a key enzyme of gluconeogenesis. To prove this a model experiment was performed on a microsome fraction of rat liver. One of the characteristic features of pseudohypoxia due to hyperglycaemia is an increase in the ratio of NADH/NAD+, so in the present study the changes in NADH - induced glucose 6-phosphatase activity were investigated as related to the release of inorganic phosphate (Pi) derived from glucose 6-phosphate. After incubation for 50 min, Pi release was significantly reduced by NADH (4.026 +/- 0.189 vs 2.696 +/- 0.429 micromol x l(-1) x mg protein(-1), control vs NADH samples, p < 0.01). The decrease in the activity of glucose 6-phosphatase generated by NADH was prevented by using desferrioxamine, an irreversible ferric chelator, butylated hydroxytoluene and Trolox, two agents which inhibit lipid peroxidation, and reduced glutathione, a non-specific radical scavenger. Superoxide dismutase, catalase and the hydroxyl radical scavenger dimethyl sulphoxide proved to be ineffective. When the above investigations were carried out in the presence of a ferric-EDTA complex the inhibition of glucose 6-phosphatase was found to be inducible by hydrogen peroxide and/or hydroxyl free radicals. These investigations seem to indicate that pseudohypoxia due to hyperglycaemia can inhibit the activity of glucose 6-phosphatase both by lipid peroxidation and by inducing hydrogen peroxide and/or hydroxyl free radicals and thus it may play a part in the glucose-induced decrease of hepatic glucose output.

Age-associated increase in ferritin content of male rat liver: implication for diquat-mediated oxidative injury

Our previous studies in rat hepatocytes demonstrated an age-dependent increase in sensitivity to diquat-induced cytotoxicity, possibly as a result of increased iron availability. The present study was conducted to determine whether quantitative or qualitative changes in hepatic ferritin occur as a consequence of aging and whether diquat-mediated oxidation is intensified by elevated ferritin concentrations. Hepatic ferritins were isolated from male Fischer 344 rats ages 5, 15, and 25 months. Age-associated increases were observed in amounts of ferritin protein and ferritin iron per gram of liver, but there were no differences in proportions of H to L subunits or in rates of diquat-mediated iron release. The consequences of a threefold increase in ferritin content for diquat-mediated lipid peroxidation and protein carbonyl formation were examined in microsomal incubation systems. The addition of isolated rat liver ferritin augmented diquat-mediated oxidative damage in a time- and concentration-dependent manner, and the inclusion of deferoxamine completely inhibited the stimulation by ferritin. The results indicate that availability of ferritin iron is an important determinant of diquat-mediated oxidative injury and support the hypothesis that elevated hepatic ferritin content is responsible, at least in part, for the age-associated enhancement of diquat-induced toxicity.

Horse spleen ferritin inhibits superoxide production by equine blood monocytes in vitro

The effect of horse spleen ferritin (HFR) on the production of superoxide anion (O2.-) by equine blood monocytes was investigated. Preincubation of monocytes with HFR resulted in pronounced inhibition of O2.- production in response to phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP), and opsonized zymosan (OZ). The inhibitory effect of HFR upon stimulation of monocytes with PMA was both dose and time dependent. Maximum inhibition (90%) was observed after preincubation of monocytes with HFR (2 mg/ml) for 18 h before stimulation with PMA. ApoHFR at the same concentration showed only about one-third of the inhibitory effect of iron-saturated HFR. Various iron complexes, such as iron dextran, hemin, or ferric ammonium sulfate, had no significant effect on O2.- production by monocytes. Neither catalase (Cat) nor desferrioxamine (DFO) changed the inhibitory effect of HFR. These findings suggest that HFR may play an important role in inhibition of superoxide generation by equine monocytes. Although the mechanism of this inhibition remains unknown, the results obtained suggest that it is not due to ferritin-dependent oxidative inactivation of the NADPH-oxidase system in stimulated monocytes.