Characterization of human liver cytochromes P450 by combining the biochemical and proteomic approaches.

Highly purified human liver microsomes were processed by a combination of the biochemical and proteomic methods. Microsomes were purified from the morphologically normal liver tissue obtained from the resected and discarded masses of surrounding liver upon surgical treatment for hemangioma (control) or hepatic metastases arising from colon cancer (pathology). Proteins of each sample were separated by two-dimensional (2-DE) and one-dimensional electrophoresis (1-DE); selected gel regions were excised, in-gel digested and analyzed by matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. Analysis of collected fingerprints has revealed a total of 13 microsomal membrane proteins involved in the biotransformation of xenobiotics. These were disulfide isomerase, flavine monooxygenase, NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase and 10 cytochrome P450 forms, namely: CYPs 1B1, 2A6, 2E1, 2C8, 2C9, 2C10, 2D6, 3A4, 4A11, 4F2. These same samples were characterized by the enzymatic assays using the marker substrates for CYPs 1A, 2B, 3A4, 2C and 2E1. Correlations between mass spectrometric data and enzymatic activities were investigated to demonstrate the manner in which the functional and structural aspects of proteomics meet each other in the field of cytochromes P450.

Production of carbon monoxide by cytochrome P450 during iron-dependent lipid peroxidation.

Carbon monoxide (CO) formation was studied in the process of lipid peroxidation in phenobarbital-induced rabbit liver microsomes. The reaction was NADPH-dependent and required Fe(2+), which occurs in microsomes as being protein bound and is not a consequence of heme destruction. Zn-protoporphyrin IX, an inhibitor of the heme oxygenase activity, proved to have no effect on CO production, suggesting that heme oxygenase is not involved into the CO generation reaction. At the same time, the addition of cytochrome P450 typical inhibitors SKF 525A and metyrapone to the reaction mixture had an inhibitory effect on the CO formation rate. Antioxidants such as alpha-tocopherol and desferal inhibited lipid peroxidation in phenobarbital-induced rabbit liver microsomes, and in this case the CO production was not registered. Thus, on the basis of the results presented here it is possible to assert that the process of NADPH, Fe(2+)-dependent carbon monoxide formation in microsomes is a result of lipid peroxidation with cytochrome P450 2B4 participation.

Heme and apoprotein modification of cytochrome P450 2B4 during its oxidative inactivation in monooxygenase reconstituted system.

The mechanism of the cytochrome P450 2B4 modification by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) formed as a result of partial coupling of NADPH-dependent monooxygenase reactions has been studied in the monooxygenase system reconstituted from the highly purified microsomal proteins: cytochrome P450 2B4 (P450) and NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase in the presence of detergent Emulgen 913. It was found, that H2O2-mediated P450 self-inactivation during benzphetamine oxidation is accompanied by heme degradation and apoenzyme modification. The P450 heme modification involves the heme release from the enzyme under the action of H2O2 formed within P450s active center via the peroxycomplex decay. Additionally, the heme lost is destroyed by H2O2 localized outside of enzyme's active center. The modification of P450 apoenzyme includes protein aggregation that may be due to the change in the physico-chemical properties of the inactivated enzyme. The modified P450 changes the surface charge that is confirmed by the increasing retention time on the DEAE column. Oxidation of amino acid residues (at least cysteine) may lead to the alteration into the protein hydrophobicity. The appearance of the additional ionic and hydrophobic attractions may lead to the increase of the protein aggregation. Hydrogen peroxide can initiate formation of crosslinked P450 dimers, trimers, and even polymers, but the main role in this process plays nonspecific radical reactions. Evidence for the involvement of hydroxyl radical into the P450 crosslinking is carbonyl groups formation.