The immunosuppressant SR 31747 blocks cell proliferation by inhibiting a steroid isomerase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

SR 31747 is a novel immunosuppressant agent that arrests cell proliferation in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, SR 31747-treated cells accumulate the same aberrant sterols as those found in a mutant impaired in delta 8- delta 7-sterol isomerase. Sterol isomerase activity is also inhibited by SR 31747 in in vitro assays. Overexpression of the sterol isomerase-encoding gene, ERG2, confers enhanced SR resistance. Cells growing anaerobically on ergosterol-containing medium are not sensitive to SR. Disruption of the sterol isomerase-encoding gene is lethal in cells growing in the absence of exogenous ergosterol, except in SR-resistant mutants lacking either the SUR4 or the FEN1 gene product. The results suggest that sterol isomerase is the target of SR 31747 and that both the SUR4 and FEN1 gene products are required to mediate the proliferation arrest induced by ergosterol depletion.

Plant sterol biosynthesis: 7-oxo-obtusifoliol analogues as potential selective inhibitors of cytochrome P-450 dependent obtusifoliol 14 alpha-demethylase.

A series of 7-oxo-obtusifoliol analogues have been synthetized and investigated as potential inhibitors of cytochrome P-450 dependent obtusifoliol 14 alpha-demethylase (P-450OBT.14DM) from higher plant microsomes. 7-Oxo-24 xi(24')-dihydro-obtusifoliol and 7-oxo-24(25)-dihydro-29-nor-lanosterol were potent competitive inhibitors for P-450OBT.14DM, binding 125-200 times more tightly than the substrates obtusifoliol and 24(25)-dihydro-29-nor-lanosterol. Inhibition of P-450OBT.14DM by these analogues showed strict structural requirements including the 8-en-7-one system which was compulsory for binding. 7-Oxo-24(25)-dihydro-lanosterol possessing an additional 4 beta-methyl substituent, did not have such inhibitory effects. Treatment of cultures of suspended bramble cells with 7-oxo-24(25)-dihydro-29-nor-lanosterol resulted in a strong decrease of [14C]acetate incorporation into the demethylsterols fraction and in an accumulation of [14C]obtusifoliol. This confirms that P-450OBT.14DM is the main in vivo target of 7-oxo-24(25)-dihydro-29-nor-lanosterol in the sterol-biosynthetic pathway.

Mitogenic, dedifferentiating, and scattering effects of hepatocyte growth factor on dog thyroid cells.

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF)/scatter factor (SF) is a potent mitogenic factor or motility factor in different cells, acting through the tyrosine kinase receptor encoded by the met protooncogene. In the present work, we demonstrate the powerful mitogenic activity of this growth factor on dog thyroid cells in primary culture. This effect, maximal at 50 ng/ml, was superior to those of other thyroid mitogenic agents, such as TSH, forskolin, and epidermal growth factor (EGF). HGF inhibited both TSH- and forskolin-stimulated iodide uptake (a thyroid-specific differentiation marker) in the same way as EGF. However, as with basic fibroblast growth factor, this dedifferentiating action appeared only during the growing phase concomitantly with the enhanced proliferation. HGF treatment also markedly decreased TSH receptor and thyroglobulin messenger RNA levels, two other markers of differentiated thyrocytes. Besides its proliferative and dedifferentiating effects, HGF enhanced the motility of the cultured thyroid cells. Concerning the mechanism of its action, we showed that HGF had no effect on basal cAMP levels, but like EGF and 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol 13-acetate, it induced the rapid tyrosine phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases p42 and p44. These data establish HGF as the strongest mitogenic agent for dog thyroid cells and may explain the important role of met oncogene expression in human thyroid tumors.

Mitogenic effects of thyrotropin and adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate in differentiated normal human thyroid cells in vitro.

Previous studies of human thyroid cells in culture (mostly from pathological tissues) failed to demonstrate a mitogenic effect of TSH, leading to the proposal that the growth effect of TSH in vivo might be indirect. To reexamine the influence of TSH on DNA synthesis and cell proliferation, we established primary cultures of normal thyroid tissue from nine subjects. When seeded in a 1% serum-supplemented medium, thyroid follicles released by collagenase/dispase digestion developed as a cell monolayer that responded to TSH by rounding up and by cytoplasmic retraction. When seeded in serum-free medium, the cells remained associated in dense aggregates surrounded by few slowly spreading cells. In the latter condition, the cells responded to TSH and other stimulators of cAMP production, such as cholera toxin and forskolin, by displaying very high iodide-trapping levels. Exposure to serum irreversibly abolished this differentiated function. TSH stimulated the proliferation (as shown by DNA content per culture dish) of 1% serum cultured cells (doubling times were reduced from 106 to 76 h) and increased by 100% the [3H]thymidine labeling indices. In serum-free cultured cells (dense aggregates or cell monolayers after initial seeding with serum), control levels of DNA synthesis were lower, and up to 8-fold stimulation of DNA synthesis occurred in response to 100 mU/L TSH (stimulation was consistently detected with 20 mU/L), based on measurements of [3H]thymidine incorporation into acid-precipitable material and counts of labeled nuclei on autoradiographs (up to 40% labeled nuclei within 24 h). The mitogenic effect of TSH required a high insulin concentration (8.3 X 10(-7) mol/L) or a low insulin-like growth factor I concentration. The mitogenic effects of TSH were mimicked in part by cholera toxin, forskolin, and dibutyryl cAMP. Epidermal growth factor and phorbol myristate ester also stimulated thyroid cell proliferation and DNA synthesis, but they potently inhibited TSH-stimulated iodide transport. We conclude that TSH, acting at least in part through cAMP, is a potent growth factor for human thyroid cells and thus provide an experimental basis in vitro for the well established in vivo goitrogenic action of TSH.

Regulation and metabolic role of phospholipase D activity in human thyroid and cultured dog thyrocytes.

The actions of TSH, ATP, the ionophore A23187, the endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor thapsigargin, and phorbol dibutyrate (PDBu) on 3H-cytidine-monophosphate phosphatidic acid (3H-CMP-PA) accumulation were studied in human thyroid slices to evaluate PA generation and inositol recycling towards phosphatidyl-inositol synthesis. The effects of the same agonists also were measured on phosphatidylbutanol (PtdBut) generation in 3H-palmitate or 3H-myristate prelabeled slices to assess the activity of phospholipase D (PLD). The phospholipid target of this PLD was determined on 3H-choline prelabeled human thyroid slices by measuring 3H-choline release in incubation medium and slices and 3H-choline incorporation in phospholipids. TSH (10 U/L) stimulated 3H-CMP-PA accumulation in an LiCl-and propranolol-insensitive way, as well as 2H-fatty acids incorporation into PA, diacylglycerol, and phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) with on evidence of dose-dependent effects and had no detectable action on PLD activity. The effects of TSH were not reproduced by Bu2cAMP or forskolin. Thapsigargin and A23187 both increased CMP-PA accumulation and PtdBut generation, whereas ATP only stimulated PLD activity. The phorbol ester PDBu (5 x 10(-7) mol/L) increased PtdBut formation and 3-H-fatty acid incorporation into PtdCho, but had no effect on CMP-PA generation. Staurosporine (STSP) (5 x 10(-6) mol/L), a nonspecific inhibitor of protein kinase C, unexpectedly reproduced the effects of PDBu. The increase of 3H-choline in slices' supernatant and the decrease of 3H-choline-labeled PtdCho induced by PDBu, ATP, thapsigargin, and STSP indicate that the activated PLD hydrolyzed PtdCho. We suggest that the PA generation induced by PLD stimulation could contribute to the stimulated H2O2 formation and iodide organification observed with the agonists inducing PtdBut accumulation. Indeed, Bu2cAMP and forskolin, known to decrease iodide organification in human thyroid, inhibited the PLD stimulation induced by ATP and PDBu. In cultured dog thyrocytes, phorbol esters, and STSP induced DNA synthesis and dedifferentiation, whereas thapsigargin inhibited TSH-induced growth and killed phorbol esters stimulated cells, suggesting a positive role of PLD stimulation towards dedifferentiated growth and of simultaneously raised [Ca2+)i and stimulated protein kinase C-PLD towards growth arrest and cellular death.

Intrathyroidal cytokine gene expression profiles in autoimmune thyroiditis.

Cytokines are thought to mediate the initiation and perpetuation of autoimmune thyroiditis. However, this concept is mainly based on in vitro findings and to date only interleukin (IL)-6 and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) have been detected in Graves' disease in vivo. The cytokine pattern produced by T-helper (Th) cells has important regulatory effects on the nature of the immune response. We therefore determined these cytokine mRNAs in Graves' disease and Hashimoto's thyroiditis. RNA was extracted by cesium chloride gradient centrifugation from the thyroid tissue of 12 patients undergoing thyroid resection for Graves' disease and from two patients being treated for Hashimoto's thyroiditis. Two patients with parathyroid adenomas and one patient with a goiter were used as controls. RNA was also extracted from normal human thyroid epithelial cells in primary culture. The cDNAs were prepared by reverse transcription and amplified for IL-2, -4, -5, -6 and -10 and IFN-gamma by polymerase chain reaction. All the cytokine mRNAs were detected in the Hashimoto's thyroid glands in large quantities. Six of the 12 Graves' disease thyroid glands showed, when compared with controls, an increased accumulation of transcripts for: IFN-gamma, IL-2, -4 and -10 or IL-2, -4 and IFN-gamma or IL-2 and IFN-gamma or IFN-gamma alone, each in one case or IL-2 alone in two cases. These cytokine profiles were not representative of a Th1 or Th2 phenotype. Increased amounts of cytokine mRNA in thyroid glands from Graves' disease patients were mostly associated with high microsomal antibody titres and/or prominent intrathyroidal lymphocytic infiltration.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Potent inhibition of cholesterol biosynthesis in 3T3 fibroblasts by N-[(1,5,9)-trimethyldecyl]-4 alpha,10-dimethyl-8-aza-trans-decal-3 beta-ol, a new 2,3-oxidosqualene cyclase inhibitor.

N-[(1,5,9)-trimethyldecyl]-4 alpha,10-dimethyl-8-aza-trans-decal-3 beta-ol, a new compound rationally designed to inhibit the 2,3-oxidosqualene cyclase (M. Taton et al., Biochem. biophys. Res. Commun. 138, 764, 1986) was studied as an inhibitor of cholesterol biosynthesis in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts. Treatment of cells, which were grown for 2 days in a delipidated medium, resulted in a dramatic decrease of [14C]acetate incorporation into the C27-sterol fraction. An IC50 of 20 nM was calculated, which classes this drug amongst the most powerful cholesterol biosynthesis inhibitors acting at the 2,3-oxidosqualene-lanosterol cyclase tested so far on mammalian cells. The inhibition of the C27-sterols synthesis was correlated with the accumulation of 2,3-[14C]oxidosqualene and of 2,3:22,23-[14C]dioxidosqualene indicating that the cyclase was indeed an intracellular target of the drug. A minor secondary target was identified as the sterol-8-ene isomerase. Cells treated with the inhibitor also accumulated sterols more polar than cholesterol which could originate, for example, from the metabolization of 2,3:22,23-dioxidosqualene. Treatment of the cells with increasing concentrations of the drug resulted in a progressive reduction of the HMG-CoA reductase activity (up to 50% of control). The drug affected normal growth of the fibroblasts and growth arrest was correlated with a decrease in cellular cholesterol content to less than 50% of control. This work indicates that N-[(1,5,9)-trimethyldecyl]-4 alpha,10-dimethyl-8-aza-trans-decal-3 beta-ol is a potent and promising new tool in the inhibition of cholesterol biosynthesis in mammalian cells.

Control of protein synthesis by thyrotropin and epidermal growth factor in human thyrocytes: role of morphological changes.

UNLABELLED: The effect of thyrotropin (TSH) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) on the synthesis of proteins has been studied using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis in primary cultures of thyroid cells developing as a monolayer or that remained associated as dense aggregates. (1) A 4-day treatment of monolayer cells by TSH or dibutyryl cAMP enhanced the synthesis of 26 proteins and decreased that of 19 others. (2) The synthesis of 29 proteins was similarly modified by TSH and dibutyryl cAMP in both types of culture organizations. Both agents stimulated the synthesis of thyroperoxidase and of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)/cyclin and decreased that of actin and of a high Mr isoform of tropomyosin. (3) TSH induced the retraction of monolayer cells. Its effect on the synthesis of many proteins was mimicked by culturing unstimulated cells as dense aggregates instead of monolayers which similarly affected cell morphology. (4) EGF alone had no effect on protein synthesis in monolayer cells but it inhibited both the morphological changes induced by TSH and dibutyryl cAMP and the effect of these agents on the synthesis of 23 proteins including thyroperoxidase. IN CONCLUSION: (1) TSH and cAMP induce both proliferation and the expression of differentiation in thyroid cells while EGF has a small mitogenic effect but a marked inhibitory action on differentiation expression; (2) many TSH (cAMP) and EGF effects on the pattern of protein synthesis might be related to morphological changes; (3) the expression of the differentiation marker thyroperoxidase and of the mitogenic marker PCNA/cyclin appears independent of cell configuration and morphology.

General inhibition by transforming growth factor beta 1 of thyrotropin and cAMP responses in human thyroid cells in primary culture.

Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF beta 1) mRNA has previously been identified in human thyroid cells and this agent has been shown to inhibit DNA synthesis in thyroid cells of some other species. In normal human thyroid cells in primary culture, TGF beta 1 inhibited inconstantly the low basal DNA synthesis and strongly the stimulation of DNA synthesis by epidermal growth factor (EGF) and serum, and by thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) acting through cAMP. This inhibition, by TGF beta 1, of the TSH and cAMP-dependent DNA synthesis was associated with an inhibition of PCNA (proliferating cell nuclear antigen) synthesis. TGF beta 1 almost completely abolished the cAMP induced stimulation of iodide uptake and thyroperoxidase synthesis. It thus, like EGF, also acts as a dedifferentiating agent. Investigation of the pattern of protein synthesis by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis revealed that while TGF beta 1, by itself, increased the synthesis of only one protein, a tropomyosin isoform, it inhibited most of the effects of cAMP on protein synthesis (35 out of 45 cAMP-regulated proteins were affected). It also reversed the effect of cAMP on the morphology of the thyrocytes. The fact that TGF beta 1 did not affect the increase in cAMP provoked by TSH in human thyroid cells while inhibiting most of the effects of dibutyryl cAMP in these cells suggests an action at a step distal to cAMP generation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

IGF-1 or insulin, and the TSH cyclic AMP cascade separately control dog and human thyroid cell growth and DNA synthesis, and complement each other in inducing mitogenesis.

The regular doubling of cell mass, and therefore of cell protein content, is required for repetitive cell divisions. Preliminary observations have shown that in dog thyrocytes insulin induces protein accumulation but not DNA synthesis, while TSH does not increase protein accumulation but triggers DNA synthesis in the presence of insulin. We show here that EGF and phorbol myristate ester complement insulin action in the same way. HGF is the only factor activating both protein accumulation and DNA synthesis. The effects of insulin on protein accumulation and in permitting the TSH effect are reproduced by IGF-1 and are mediated, at least in part by the IGF-1 receptor. The concentration effect curves are similar for both effects. Similar results are obtained in human thyrocytes. They reflect true cell growth, as shown by increases in RNA content and cell size. Carbachol and fetal calf serum also stimulate protein synthesis and accumulation without triggering DNA synthesis, but they are not permissive for the mitogenic effects of TSH or of the general adenylate cyclase activator, forskolin. Moreover the mitogenic effect of TSH greatly decreased in cells deprived of insulin for 2 days although these cells remain hypertrophic. Hypertrophy may therefore be necessary for cell division, but it is not sufficient to permit it. Three different mechanisms can therefore be distinguished in the mitogenic action of TSH: (1) the increase of cell mass (hypertrophy) induced by insulin or IGF-1; (2) the permissive effect of insulin or IGF-1 on the mitogenic effect of TSH which may involve both the increase of cell mass and the induction of specific proteins such as cyclin D3 and (3) the mitogenic effect of the TSH cyclic AMP cascade proper.

Design of high energy intermediate analogues to study sterol biosynthesis in higher plants.

Several enzymes of plant sterol biosynthesis involve during their catalysis postulated or demonstrated carbocationic high energy intermediates (HEI). The aim of this study was to interfere with plant sterol biosynthesis by means of rationally designed species able to mimic these carbocationic HEI. It has been demonstrated previously that the design of transition state (TS) or HEI analogues could lead to powerful and specific inhibitors of enzymes. We applied this approach to the following target enzymes: 2,3-epoxy-2,3-dihydroqualene cyclase, AdoMet-cycloartenol-C-24-methyltransferase (AdoMet CMT), cycloeucalenol-obtusifoliol isomerase (COI) and Δ(8)-Δ(7)-sterol isomerase. Very potent inhibitors have been obtained in the four cases. As an example, analogues of cycloartenol substituted at C-25 by a charged heteroatom (N, As, S) have been synthesized and shown to be able to mimic the C-25 carbocationic HEI involved in the reaction catalyzed by the AdoMet CMT. These compounds were shown to be very potent and specific inhibitors of this enzyme both in vitro (Ki=2.10(-8) M, Ki/Km=10(-3)) and in vivo. The potent inhibitors described are powerful tools to control in vivo the sterol profile of plant cells and therefore to study the structural and functional roles of sterols in cell membranes. Moreover, these compounds constitute leader molecules of a new class of rationally designed inhibitors which could be of value in plant protection.

The 14 alpha-demethylation of obtusifoliol by a cytochrome P-450 monooxygenase from higher plants' microsomes.

Microsomes isolated from corn embryos (Zea mays) can demethylate the 14 alpha-methyl group of obtusifoliol 2. An enzymatic assay has been developed for obtusifoliol 14 alpha-methyl-demethylase in higher plants. The enzymatic reaction was shown to occur sequentially, converting obtusifoliol 2 to 4 alpha-methyl-5 alpha-ergosta-8,24(28)-dien-3 beta-ol 4 via the trienol 4 alpha-methyl-5 alpha-ergosta-8,14,24(28)-trien-3 beta-ol 3 which was thoroughly identified. This enzymatic reaction is dependent of NADPH and molecular oxygen. It is inhibited by CO, menadione and specific inhibitors of cytochrome P-450, the CO inhibition being partially reversed by light. It is concluded that in Zea mays microsomes, obtusifoliol is demethylated at C-14 by a cytochrome P-450 containing monooxygenase system.

Properties and structural requirements for substrate specificity of cytochrome P-450-dependent obtusifoliol 14 alpha-demethylase from maize (Zea mays) seedlings.

The biochemical properties of cytochrome P-450-dependent obtusifoliol 14 alpha-demthylase (P-450OBT.14DM) from maize (Zea mays) seedlings were defined. In particular, the enzyme was shown by differential centrifugation to be localized in the endoplasmic reticulum. P-450OBT.14DM had an apparent Km of 160 +/- 5 microM and an apparent Vmax of 65 +/- 5 pmol/min per mg of protein for its best substrate, obtusifoliol. The substrate specificity of P-450OBT.14DM was thoroughly investigated by comparing the demethylation of obtusifoliol with that of a series of 15 natural or novel synthetic analogues of obtusifoliol. The results obtained clearly indicate that three distinct domains of the sterol substrate are governing obtusifoliol demethylation by P-450OBT.14DM. They revealed that (i) P-450OBT.14DM has probably a specific apolar binding site for the side chain, (ii) the delta 8-double bond is an absolute requirement for substrate demethylation and (iii) the 3-hydroxy group plays a critical role in the enzyme-substrate interaction. Interestingly the binding site, beyond the C-3 position, contains a cleft which cannot accommodate a 4 beta-methyl substituent present in lanosterol or eburicol, the precursors of 14-desmethylsterols respectively in mammals and yeast. This result indicates that P-450OBT.14DM is a novel constitutive cytochrome P-450 with a high degree of substrate and product specificity.

Identification of delta 5,7-sterol-delta 7-reductase in higher plant microsomes.

A microsomal preparation from seedlings of Zea mays catalyzed the NADPH dependent reduction of the delta 7-bond of delta 5,7-cholestadienol (1) giving the first in vitro evidence for the intermediacy of delta 5,7-sterols in plant sterol biosynthesis. Using a GC assay developed to detect the cholesterol (2) produced, the properties of the microsomal enzyme have been established with respect to cofactor requirements and kinetics. The potent in vitro inhibition of the plant delta 5,7-sterol-delta 7-reductase by the ammonium-ion containing fungicides, tridemorph2 (3), fenpropimorph (4) and AY 9944 (5) was demonstrated. The high affinities observed for these derivatives, especially for (4) (I50 = 8 x 10(-8) M, I50/Km = 2 x 10(-4)), are in full accordance with the previously proposed cationic mechanism involved in this reduction reaction.

Plant sterol biosynthesis: identification and characterization of higher plant delta 7-sterol C5(6)-desaturase.

Microsomes obtained from maize seedlings catalyzed the introduction of the delta5-bond into delta7-sterols to yield the corresponding delta 5,7-sterols. Enzymatic bioassay conditions have been developed for the first time for delta 7-sterol C5(6)-desaturase in photosynthetic organisms. The properties of the microsomal system have been studied and the kinetics of the desaturation reaction has been established. The desaturation reaction requires molecular oxygen and NADH. Coenzyme efficiency studies indicate that NADH is more efficient that NADPH and that in the presence of NADH, NAD+ stimulates the desaturation process but cannot sustain the reaction by itself. The desaturation is strongly inhibited by cyanide, is sensitive to 1,10-phenanthroline and to salicylhydroxamic acid, but is insensitive to carbon monoxide, suggesting the involvement of a metal ion, presumably iron, in an enzyme-bound form in the desaturating system. From a series of incubations with delta 7-sterols and other sterol analogs, the substrate specificity for desaturation was determined. Our data indicate the substrate selectivity of the C5(6)-desaturation for 4-desmethyl-delta 7-sterols. Moreover, the results show that specificity of maize C5(6)-desaturase favored delta 7-sterols possessing a C24-methylene or ethylidene substituent compared to 24-ethyl-substituted delta 7-sterols. Finally, the results demonstrate directly that during plant sterol synthesis the delta 5-bond is introduced via the sequence delta 7-sterol-->delta 5,7-sterol-->delta 5-sterol.

Sterol biosynthesis: strong inhibition of maize delta 5,7-sterol delta 7-reductase by novel 6-aza-B-homosteroids and other analogs of a presumptive carbocationic intermediate of the reduction reaction.

A series of mono- and diazasteroids have been synthesized as analogs of a predicted carbocationic intermediate of delta 5,7-sterol delta 7-reductase (delta 7-SR). 6-Aza-B-homo-5 alpha-cholest-7-en-3 beta-ol (4), a novel compound whose synthesis is described for the first time, and 6,7-diaza-5 alpha-cholest-8(14)-en-3 beta-ol (6) were shown to be very powerful inhibitors of delta 7-SR in a preparation isolated from maize (Zea mays) (K(i),app = 50-70 nM, Ki,app/Km,app = 1.0 x 10(-4) to 1.3 x 10(-4). The data are consistent with a carbonium ion mechanism for the reduction; compounds 4 and 6 probably act as reaction intermediate analogs. Compound 4, in contrast to compound 6, displayed in the same microsomal preparation more than 50-fold selectivity for inhibition of the delta 7-SR versus delta 8-delta 7-sterol isomerase, cycloeucalenol isomerase, and delta 8,14-sterol delta 14-reductase, the mechanism of these four enzymes involving presumptive cationic intermediates centered respectively at C7, C8, C9, and C14. These observations highlight the paramount importance of the location of the positively charged nitrogen atom(s) in the B-ring structure for selectivity among these enzymes involving structurally close cationic reaction intermediates. Efficient in vivo inhibition of sterol biosynthesis in bramble cell suspension cultures by a low concentration of compound 4 was demonstrated and confirmed the in vitro properties of this derivative.)

Oxidative C4-demethylation of 24-methylene cycloartanol by a cyanide-sensitive enzymatic system from higher plant microsomes.

Microsomes isolated from corn embryos (Zea mays) were shown to catalyse the C-4 monodemethylation of 28-[3H],24-methylene cycloartanol 1, leading to the corresponding 4 alpha-methyl sterol, cycloeucalenol 5. An enzymatic assay has been developed for the 4,4-dimethyl sterol 4-demethylase in higher plants. The demethylation process was shown to involve a 4-methyl, 4-hydroxymethyl derivative 2 which can be considered as the immediate metabolite of 1 by the 4-methyl oxidase. Compound 2 is further metabolized into 5 through a 4-methyl-4-carboxylic acid 3 and a 3-keto-4 alpha-methyl intermediate 4 which were identified. The conversion of 1 into 5 requires NADPH and molecular oxygen. The initial oxidative step was strictly dependent upon molecular oxygen, NADPH or NADH, and strongly inhibited by cyanide, whereas the overall process was completely insensitive to CO and to specific inhibitors of cytochrome P-450. It is concluded that in Zea mays microsomes, the C-4 demethylation of 1 results from a multistep process involving a terminal oxygenation system sensitive to cyanide which is distinct from cytochrome P-450 and in particular from that involved in the 14 alpha-demethylation of obtusifoliol.

Plant sterol biosynthesis: identification of a NADPH dependent sterone reductase involved in sterol-4 demethylation.

Microsomes obtained from maize embryos were shown to catalyze the reduction of various sterones to produce stereoselectively the corresponding 3 beta-hydroxy derivatives. Enzymatic assay conditions have been developed to characterize this reduction step and the kinetics of the microsomal system has been established. Sterone reduction shows exclusive dependence on NADPH and is inactive with NADH. It is not sensitive to the azole inhibitors pyrifenox, ketoconazole, and itraconazole nor to phenobarbital nor pyrazole. Based on these coenzyme requirements and inhibitor susceptibility, and according to the common pattern of their classification, the maize microsomal sterone-reducing enzyme belongs to the family of ketone reductases. From a series of incubations with natural or synthetic sterones, the substrate specificity of the reduction at C-3 was determined. Our data indicate particularly that 4 alpha-methyl-9 beta,19-cyclo-C30-sterones and 4-desmethyl-delta 7-C27- or C30-sterones are preferentially reduced, while 4,4-dimethyl-C30- or C31-sterones react poorly. The results support the conclusion that the reductase activity identified is a constitutive component of the microsomal sterol 4-demethylation complex recently identified in photosynthetic organisms (S. Pascal et al., 1993, J. Biol. Chem. 268, 11639). They are consistent with the conclusion that 4 alpha-methylsterones are demethylation products of 4,4-gem-dimethylsterols rather than early intermediates in the 4 alpha-monomethyl-sterols-4-demethylation process.

N-[(1,5,9)-trimethyl-decyl]-4 alpha,10-dimethyl-8-aza-trans-decal-3 beta-ol a novel potent inhibitor of 2,3-oxidosqualene cycloartenol and lanosterol cyclases.

N-[(1,5,9)-trimethyl-decyl)]-4 alpha,10-dimethyl-8-aza-trans-decal-3 beta-ol 9 was designed to mimic the C9 or C8 high energy carbocationic intermediates postulated during the enzymic cyclization of 2,3-oxidosqualene to different triterpenes. The structurally new molecule 9 inhibits strongly cycloartenol and lanosterol cyclases in maize seedlings and rat liver microsomes respectively, whereas it does not inhibit beta-amyrin cyclase in the plant system. For the first time 2,3-oxidosqualene cycloartenol cyclase and beta-amyrin cyclase have been differentiated in the same plant material by use of a specific inhibitor.