Dose-related inhibition of the drug-metabolizing enzymes of rat liver by the pyrrolizidine alkaloid, monocrotaline

Retrorsine, but not monocrotaline, is a mechanism-based inactivator of P450 3A4

Retrorsine (RTS) and monocrotaline (MCT) cause severe toxicities via P450-mediated metabolic activation. The screening of mechanism-based inhibitors showed RTS inactivated 3A4 in the presence of NADPH. Unlike RTS, MCT failed to inhibit P450 3A4 and other enzymes tested. Further studies showed the loss of P450 3A4 activity occurred in a time- and concentration-dependent way, which was not recovered after dialysis. Dextromethorphan, a P450 3A4 substrate, protected the enzyme from the inactivation. Exogenous nucleophile glutathione (GSH) and reactive oxygen species scavengers catalase and superoxide dismutase did not protect P450 3A4 from the inactivation. GSH trapping experiments showed both P450 3A4 and 2C19 converted RTS and MCT to the corresponding electrophilic metabolites which could be trapped by GSH to form 7-GSH-DHP conjugate. We conclude that RTS and MCT are metabolically activated by P450 3A4 and 2C19, and that RTS, but not MCT, is a mechanism-based inactivator of P450 3A4.

Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids—Genotoxicity, Metabolism Enzymes, Metabolic Activation, and Mechanisms

Pyrrolizidine alkaloid-containing plants are widely distributed in the world and are probably the most common poisonous plants affecting livestock, wildlife, and humans. Because of their abundance and potent toxicities, the mechanisms by which pyrrolizidine alkaloids induce genotoxicities, particularly carcinogenicity, were extensively studied for several decades but not exclusively elucidated until recently. To date, the pyrrolizidine alkaloid-induced genotoxicities were revealed to be elicited by the hepatic metabolism of these naturally occurring toxins. In this review, we present updated information on the metabolism, metabolizing enzymes, and the mechanisms by which pyrrolizidine alkaloids exert genotoxicity and tumorigenicity.

Temporal analysis of hepatocyte differentiation by small hepatocyte-like progenitor cells during liver regeneration in retrorsine-exposed rats

Liver regeneration after two-thirds surgical partial hepatectomy (PH) in rats treated with the pyrrolizidine alkaloid retrorsine is accomplished through the activation, expansion, and differentiation of a population of small hepatocyte-like progenitor cells (SHPCs). We have examined expression of the major liver-enriched transcription factors, cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, and other markers of hepatocytic differentiation in SHPCs during the protracted period of liver regeneration after PH in retrorsine-exposed rats. Early-appearing SHPCs (at 3-7 days after PH) express mRNAs for all of the major liver-enriched transcription factors at varying levels compared to fully differentiated hepatocytes. In addition, SHPCs lack (or have significantly reduced) expression of mRNA for hepatocyte markers tyrosine aminotransferase and alpha-1 antitrypsin, but their expression levels of mRNA and/or protein for WT1 and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) are increased. With the exception of AFP expression, SHPCs resembled fully differentiated hepatocytes by 14 days after PH. Expression of AFP was maintained by most SHPCs through 14 days after PH, gradually declined through 23 days after PH, and was essentially absent from SHPC progeny by 30 days after PH. Furthermore, early appearing SHPCs lack (or have reduced expression) of hepatic CYP proteins known to be induced in rat livers after retrorsine exposure. The resistance of SHPCs to the mitoinhibitory effects of retrorsine may be directly related to a lack of CYP enzymes required to metabolize retrorsine to its toxic derivatives. These results suggest that SHPCs represent a unique parenchymal (less differentiated) progenitor cell population of adult rodent liver that is phenotypically distinct from fully differentiated hepatocytes, biliary epithelial cells, and (ductular) oval cells.

Induction of cytochrome P450 enzymes in the livers of rats treated with the pyrrolizidine alkaloid retrorsine

Retrorsine is a member of the pyrrolizidine alkaloid (PA) family of naturally occurring compounds found in a large number of plant species worldwide. The cytotoxic, mutagenic, and antimitotic effects of PAs have made them targets for studies designed to determine their potential contributions to carcinogen esis and their usefulness for anticancer therapy. Evidence from the literature suggests that bioactivation of PAs by liver cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes is required for their toxicity. However, the specific CYP isozymes that are involved in retrorsine metabolism have not been identified. To address this issue, we administered retrorsine to a cohort of young adult male rats and examined induction or enhanced expression of mRNA and protein for widely studied hepatic CYP isoforms spanning four families together with the essential enzyme CYP reductase. The protein levels of normally expressed CYPs 1A2, 2B1/2, and 2E1 increase significantly in rat liver microsomes from retrorsine-treated rats compared to untreated control rats (P < 0. 05), but protein levels of CYP 4A3, CYP 3A1, and CYP reductase were unchanged after retrorsine treatment. In addition, CYP 1A1 mRNA and protein, which are not detectable in the livers of control rats, were induced after retrorsine exposure. The results of the present study demonstrate enhanced or induced expression of hepatic CYPs 1A1, 1A2, 2E1, and 2B1/2 in response to retrorsine exposure in rats, suggesting that one or more of these enzymes may be involved in retrorsine metabolism.

Monocrotaline metabolism and distribution in Fisher 344 and Sprague-Dawley rats

The metabolism and distribution of 14C-monocrotaline in Fisher 344 (F344) rats was compared with that in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. In vitro microsomal preparations, in situ isolated perfused livers and in vivo excretion and distribution studies were used to discern any differences between these two strains. These strains have previously been shown to differ in their susceptibility to monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension. Hepatic phase I metabolism appears to be similar in both strains with N-oxidation and dehydrogenation to the reactive pyrroles as the major pathways. During the liver perfusions, SD rats generated more monocrotalic acid than F344 rats, but the microsome and excretion studies demonstrated no significant differences in the amount of monocrotalic acid. Monocrotalic acid is a stable byproducer of dehydromonocrotaline reacting with cellular nucleophiles and indicates the amount of monocrotaline dehydrogenation when carboxylesterase activity is negligible. These data suggest that the differences in strain susceptibility to pulmonary vascular toxicity is most likely due to differences in their response to the toxic metabolites.

Induction of hepatic microsomal drug metabolizing enzyme system by levamisole in male mice

To examine the effect of levamisole on the hepatic drug metabolizing enzyme system of mice, levamisole at a dose of 20 mg kg-1 day-1 was administered i.p. for 5 days. Compared with the control values, the levamisole treatment significantly increased the amount of cytochrome P450 and cytochrome b5 and the in-vitro activities of aminopyrine N-demethylase, benzphetamine N-demethylase and aniline hydroxylase. In contrast, there was no change in microsomal NADPH-cytochrome c reductase activity in-vitro or in the relative liver weight and microsomal protein content compared with the corresponding values for control mice. Furthermore, in-vivo induction of drug metabolism was demonstrated by decreased pentobarbitone sleeping times after levamisole pretreatment. These results indicate that certain hepatic microsomal mixed function oxidases of mice are induced by levamisole, the drug that is frequently used as an anthelmintic in veterinary medicine and as an immunostimulant drug in human medicine.