[3H]RS 57639, a high affinity, selective 5-HT4 receptor partial agonist, specifically labels guinea-pig striatal and rat cloned (5-HT4S and 5-HT4L) receptors.

RS 57639, by being a partial agonist in rat esophagus but a competitive antagonist in guinea-pig ileum, is one of several ligands which operationally discriminate among 5-HT4 receptors in different tissues. The discovery of splice variants of the 5-HT4 receptor, 5-HT4S and 5-HT4L, raises the possibility that this functional heterogeneity among 5-HT4 receptors may be due to differences in the interaction of ligands with different isoforms of the receptor. To test this idea, the functional and binding interactions of RS 57639 with rat 5-HT4S and 5-HT4L receptors were characterized. RS 57639 stimulated adenylate cyclase in cells expressing 5-HT4S or 5-HT4L receptors with similar potency (pEC50 = 7.9 +/- 0.1 and 7.6 +/- 0.1) and efficacy (71 +/- 3 and 59 +/- 4% of 5-HT). [3H]RS 57639 also bound to 5-HT4S and 5-HT4L receptors with similar affinity (Kd = 0.09 +/- 0.01 and 0.11 +/- 0.01 nM) and specificity (SB204070 > GR113808 > SDZ 205557 > cisapride > renzapride > alpha me-5-HT > 5-CT). Therefore, the operational differences among 5-HT4 receptors, detected with RS 57639, are not explained by differences in the interaction of the ligand with 5-HT4S and 5-HT4L receptors. [3H]RS 57639 binding to guinea-pig striatal membranes was also characterized. [3H]RS 57639 bound with high affinity (Kd = 0.25 +/- 0.07 nM) and a specificity similar to that of the 5-HT4 receptor antagonist, [3H]GR113808. Therefore, while the mechanism by which RS 57639 operationally distinguishes among 5-HT4 receptors was not determined, [3H]RS 57639 was shown to specifically label native and cloned 5-HT4 receptors. As the first selective agonist radioligand to be described for this receptor, [3H]RS 57639 may prove useful in further studies of receptor coupling and ligand interactions.

[3H]BIMU-1, a 5-hydroxytryptamine3 receptor ligand in NG-108 cells, selectively labels sigma-2 binding sites in guinea pig hippocampus.

The binding of [3H]endo-N-(8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3.2.1.]oct-3-yl)- 2,3-dihydro-3-ethyl-2-oxo-1H-benzimidazole-1-carboxamide hydrochloride ([3H]BIMU-1) a benzimidazolone with high affinity for 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)3 and 4 5-HT3 and 5-HT4 receptors, was characterized in NG-108 cells and guinea pig hippocampus. Specific, heat-sensitive, binding of [3H]BIMU-1 was detected in both NG-108 cells and guinea pig hippocampus. In NG-108 cell membranes, a portion of the specific binding was displaced by 5-HT3 receptor ligands with affinities and specificity consistent with the labeling of 5-HT3 receptors. The residual specific binding was insensitive to serotonin (Ki > 1 mM) but was displaced by haloperidol (Ki of 50 nM). In guinea pig hippocampal membranes [3H]BIMU-1 binding was insensitive to serotonin but was displaced by haloperidol, and 1,3-di-o-tolyl-guanidine with affinities appropriate for the labeling of a sigma binding site (Ki of 6.3 and 31 nM, respectively). The affinity profile of ligands displacing [3H] BIMU-1 binding in guinea pig hippocampus was consistent with the selective labeling of a sigma-2 binding site because the sigma-1 selective benzomorphans, (+)-pentazocine and (+)-N-allylnormetazocine, only weakly displaced the binding (Ki greater than 1 microM). The affinity of BIMU-1 for sigma-2 binding sites (Ki = 32 nM) was 200-fold greater than that for sigma-1 binding sites (Ki = 6.3 microM), dopamine (D1 and D2), other serotonin (5-HT1A, 5-HT2A, 5-HT2C) and muscarinic (M1, M2, M3 and M4) receptors (Ki > 10 microM). The distribution of haloperidol-sensitive [3H]BIMU-1 binding was also consistent with the labeling of sigma-2 binding sites. These data suggest that [3H]BIMU-1 selectively labels sigma-2 binding sites in guinea pig hippocampus. [3H]BIMU-1, under appropriate experimental conditions, is thus the first sigma-2 binding site radioligand to be characterized.

Different densities of 5-HT3 receptors are labeled by [3H]quipazine, [3H]GR 65630 and [3H]granisetron.

The binding of three, structurally distinct, 5-hydroxytryptamine3 (5-HT3) receptor radioligands was characterized in rat cerebral cortex, rabbit ileum myenteric plexus and NG-108-15 neuroblastoma cells. The density of sites labeled by the three ligands in rat cortex or in rabbit ileum was markedly different. [3H]Quipazine labeled more sites than [3H]GR 65630 in rat cortex (4.0-fold) and rabbit ileum (1.8-fold), but not in NG-108-15 cells. [3H]Quipazine also labeled a greater density of sites than [3H]granisetron in rat cortex (7-fold) but not in NG-108 cells. [3H]Quipazine binding in rat cortex and rabbit ileum, but not in NG-108-15 cells, was displaced by non-radiolabeled GR 65630 in a manner consistent with an interaction with more than one site. These data indicate that not all 5-HT3 receptor radioligands recognize the same population of 5-HT3 binding sites with equivalent density and further suggest the existence of subtypes of 5-HT3 receptor binding sites in rat cortical and rabbit myenteric plexus preparations.

Serum epoxide hydrolase (preneoplastic antigen) in human and experimental liver injury.

Reports of an increase in a serum epoxide hydrolase (sEH), immunochemically related to microsomal EH in humans and rats with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), suggested its use as a serum marker for this disease. We have now measured sEH levels (as either immunochemically determined content or enzyme activity) in a number of human and experimental models of liver disease. sEH was elevated above the normal range in at least 50% of individuals with HCC, including: 3 of 6 northern Californians; 4 of 7 Koreans with hepatitis B-associated HCC; hepatitis B-associated HCC in woodchucks; and male rats receiving chronic treatment with aflatoxin B1 or ciprofibrate. sEH was rarely elevated in other forms of chronic liver disease. Only 2 of 9 Koreans with hepatitis B-associated cirrhosis, 1 of 8 carriers, but none with chronic active hepatitis or infection with no apparent liver disease had elevated sEH. In addition, no elevations were found in woodchucks with noncancerous viral hepatitis. In aflatoxin B1- and M1-treated rats sEH was not elevated in those with only hyperplastic foci or hepatocellular adenomas, and in two rat initiation-promotion protocols sEH was elevated only in those rats which received the entire set of treatments. sEH was also increased during acute hepatotoxicity in rats treated with CCl4 or 1,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane. The mechanism of increase in sEH during hepatocarcinogenesis appears to be different from that of other markers of HCC, for in the Korean patients, there was no correlation between sEH concentrations and those of alpha-fetoprotein or ferritin, nor was there a correlation with alpha-fetoprotein concentrations in the aflatoxin-treated rats. Furthermore, the increase in sEH does not correlate with induction of microsomal EH in the liver of experimental animals. Studies to date indicate that sEH is selective for HCC and severe hepatonecrotic injury, and may be of some use in the diagnosis of HCC, particularly as a complement to other serum markers.

Characteristics of 5-HT3 binding sites in NG108-15, NCB-20 neuroblastoma cells and rat cerebral cortex using [3H]-quipazine and [3H]-GR65630 binding.

1. The biochemical and pharmacological properties of 5-HT3 receptors in homogenates of NG108-15 and NCB-20 neuroblastoma cells and rat cerebral cortex have been ascertained by the use of [3H]-quipazine and [3H]-GR65630 binding. 2. In NG108-15 and NCB-20 cell homogenates, [3H]-quipazine bound to a single class of high affinity (NG108-15: Kd = 6.2 +/- 1.1 nM, n = 4; NCB-20: Kd = 3.0 +/- 0.9 nM, n = 4; means +/- s.e.means) saturable (NG108-15: Bmax = 1340 +/- 220 fmol mg-1 protein; NCB-20: Bmax = 2300 +/- 200 fmol mg-1 protein) binding sites. In rat cortical homogenates, [3H]-quipazine bound to two populations of binding sites in the absence of the 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) uptake inhibitor, paroxetine (Kd1 = 1.6 +/- 0.5 nM, Bmax1 = 75 +/- 14 fmol mg-1 protein; Kd2 = 500 +/- 300 nM, Bmax2 = 1840 +/- 1040 fmol mg-1 protein, n = 3), and to a single class of high affinity binding sites (Kd = 2.0 +/- 0.5 nM, n = 3; Bmax = 73 +/- 6 fmol mg-1 protein) in the presence of paroxetine. The high affinity (nanomolar) component probably represented 5-HT3 binding sites and the low affinity component represented 5-HT uptake sites. 3. [3H]-paroxetine bound with high affinity (Kd = 0.02 +/- 0.003 nM, n = 3) to a site in rat cortical homogenates in a saturable (Bmax = 323 +/- 45 fmol mg-1 protein, n = 3) and reversible manner. Binding to this site was potently inhibited by 5-HT uptake blockers such as paroxetine and fluoxetine (pKi s = 8.6-9.9), while 5-HT3 receptor ligands exhibited only low affinity (pK; < 7). No detectable specific [3H]-paroxetine binding was observed in NG108-15 or NCB-20 cell homogenates. 4. [3H]-quipazine binding to homogenates of NG108-15, NCB-20 cells and rat cortex (in the presence of 0.1 microM paroxetine) exhibited similar pharmacological characteristics. 5-HT3 receptor antagonists competed for [3H]-quipazine binding with high nanomolar affinities in the three preparations and the rank order of affinity was: (S)-zacopride > quarternized ICS 205-930 2 granisetron > ondansetron > ICS 205-209 (R)-zacopride > quipazine > renzapride > MDL-72222 > butanopride > metoclopramide. 5. [3H]-GR65630 labelled a site in NCB-20 cell homogenates with an affinity (Kd = 0.7 + 0.1 nms n = 4) and density (B__ = 1800 + 1000 fmol mg- protein) comparable to that observed with [3H]-quipazine. Competition studies also indicated a good correlation between the pharmacology of 5-HT3 binding sites when [3H]-GR65630 and [3H]-quipazine were used in these cells. 6. In conclusion, [3H]-quipazine labelled 5-HT3 receptor sites in homogenates of NG108-15 cells, NCB-20 cells and rat cerebral cortex. In rat cortical homogenates, [3H]-quipazine also bound to 5-HT uptake sites, which could be blocked by 0.1 microM paroxetine. The pharmacological specificity of the 5-HT3 receptor labelled by [3H]-quipazine was similar in the neuroblastoma cells and rat cortex and was substantiated in NCB-20 cells by the binding profile of the selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, [3H]-GR65630.

Sodium cholate extraction of rat liver nuclear xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes.

DNA is the purported target of several carcinogenic and mutagenic agents. Nuclear enzymes which could generate or detoxify reactive metabolites are of major concern. Several such enzymes have been identified within nuclei, but obtaining samples with enriched content or activity is difficult, time-consuming, and uses harsh isolation techniques. Extraction of rat liver nuclear suspensions with cholate-containing buffer results in solubilization of 25-30% of the protein. Linear extraction was obtained for total protein and cytochromes P-450 and b5, NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase, NADH-cytochrome b5 reductase, DT-diaphorase, and microsomal-like epoxide hydrolase with specific activities comparable to values reported for isolated nuclear membrane, while the yield was five to ten times greater. Detergent extracts of rat liver nuclei were employed to study the comparative response of microsomal and nuclear enzymes to chemical treatment. While the responses to acute inductive (phenobarbital and 3-methylcholanthrene) and toxic (carbon tetrachloride and dibromochloropropane) treatments were qualitatively similar, an initiation-promotion protocol (diethylnitrosamine with phenobarbital promotion) resulted in divergent responses between the enzymes in the two subcellular fractions. Detergent extracts of nuclei offer an efficient means of recovering xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes from rat liver nuclei, and have been utilized to demonstrate a differential response of nuclear enzymes during preneoplastic development.

Epoxide metabolism in the liver of mice treated with clofibrate (ethyl-alpha-(p-chlorophenoxyisobutyrate)), a peroxisome proliferator.

An increase in cytosolic epoxide hydrolase (cEH) activity occurs in the livers of mice treated with peroxisome proliferating-hypolipidemic-nongenotoxic carcinogens. As increases in activity of epoxide metabolizing enzymes may reflect the carcinogenic mechanism, a detailed comparison of the response of cEH, microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mEH), and cytosolic glutathione S-transferase (cGST) activities using the geometrical isomers trans- and cis-stilbene oxide as substrates has been performed in livers from mice treated with clofibrate (ethyl-alpha-(p-chlorophenoxyisobutyrate]. The maximal increase of cEH activity occurred at lower dietary doses of clofibrate (0.5%) and within a shorter time (5 days) than mEH and cGST (2%, 14 days) activity. After 14 days at 0.5% clofibrate, cEH, mEH, and cGST activities were 250, 175, and 165% and 290, 220, and 75% of control values in male and female mice, respectively. Withdrawal of clofibrate from the diet resulted in a reversion of activities to control values within 7 days. Clofibrate treatment shifted the apparent subcellular compartmentation of all three enzymatic activities with an increase in the ratio of soluble to particulate activity. In particular, the relative specific activity of all three enzymes decreased in the light mitochondrial (peroxisomal) cell fraction, and an increase of a mEH-like activity (benzo[a]pyrene-4,5-oxide and cis-stilbene oxide hydrolysis) in the cytosol occurred. Both the increase of cEH activity and the appearance of mEH-like activity in the cytosol are novel responses of epoxide metabolizing enzymes, which may be related to the novel cellular responses that follow clofibrate treatment, peroxisome proliferation, hypolipidemia, and nongenotoxic carcinogenesis.

A methodology for the analysis of the preneoplastic antigen.

A highly sensitive assay for the epoxide hydrolase activity associated with the preneoplastic antigen (PNA) has been developed based on the synthesis of cis-stilbene oxide labeled with tritium at approximately 15 Ci/mmol. This assay allows the detection of elevated epoxide hydrolase activity in the serum of humans and rodents as well as in the culture medium bathing isolated hepatocytes. The integrity of the enzymatic assay was confirmed in rodents by precipitating the serum PNA activity using an antibody raised against the rat microsomal epoxide hydrolase. Methodology for the detection of PNA in serum will facilitate evaluation of this antigen as a marker for hepatic neoplasia in man and in experimental animals.

Effects of chronic exposure to aflatoxin B1 and aflatoxin M1 on the in vivo covalent binding of aflatoxin B1 to hepatic macromolecules.

Induction of resistance to aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) binding to cellular macromolecules in the rat by chronic exposure to AFB1 and aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) was investigated. The binding of [14C]AFB1 to liver macromolecules was measured in F-344 rats fed 0.5 ppb or 50 ppb AFM1 or 50 ppb AFB1 for 41 wk. The animals then received an intragastric dose of [14C]AFB1 at 5 micrograms/kg and were sacrificed 6 h later. Hepatic DNA, RNA, and protein were isolated by chloroform-phenol extraction and hydroxylapatite chromatography. In animals preexposed to 50 ppb AFB1, labeled AFB1 binding to DNA, RNA, and protein was decreased by 72%, 74%, and 61%, respectively. Preexposure to AFM1 resulted in a small reduction in binding to nucleic acids. Glutathione transferase activity was increased by 133% in animals fed 50 ppb AFB1, by 48% in those preexposed to 50 ppb AFM1, and remained at control values in rats fed 0.5 ppb AFM1. These results suggest that the induction of detoxification enzymes following chronic exposure to aflatoxin might contribute to the reduction in covalent binding of AFB1 to macromolecules.