Modulation of aldose reductase activity through S-thiolation by physiological thiols

The glutathionyl-modified aldose reductase (GS-ALR2) is unique, among different S-thiolated enzyme forms, in that it displays a lower specific activity than the native enzyme (ALR2). Specific interactions of the bound glutathionyl moiety (GS) with the ALR2 active site, were predicted by a low perturbative molecular modelling approach. The outcoming GS allocation, involving interactions with residues relevant for catalysis and substrate allocation, explains the rationale behind the observed differences in the activity between GS-ALR2 and other thiol-modified enzyme forms. The reversible S-glutathionylation of ALR2 observed in cultured intact bovine lens undergoing an oxidative/non oxidative treatment cycle is discussed in terms of the potential of ALR2/GS-ALR2 inter-conversion as a response to oxidative stress conditions.     

Induction of aldose reductase activity inCandida guilliermondii by pentose sugars

Summary Cell extracts ofCandida guilliermondii grown ind-xylose,l-arabinose,d-galactose,d-glucose,d-mannose and glycerol as sole carbon sources possessed NADPH-dependent aldose reductase activity, but no NADH-dependent activity was detected.d-xylose andl-arabinose were the best inducers of aldose reductase activity. The highest enzyme activity ind-xylose orl-arabinose-grown cells was observed first withl-arabinose followed byd-xylose as substrates of the enzymatic reaction. However, only low activity was found ind-glucose,d-mannose andd-galactose-grown cells, indicating that these carbon sources cause catabolite repression. Enzyme activities induced ind-xylose-grown cells were twice as high as those obtained from the cells under resting conditions. Furthermore, the level of induction of aldose reductase activity depended on the initial concentration ofd-xylose. The present study shows that aldose reductase activity may be efficiently induced by pentose sugars of hemicellulosic hydrolysates and weakly by hemicellulosic hexoses.     

Metabolic regulation of aldose reductase activity by nitric oxide donors

Regulation of aldose reductase (AR), a member of the aldo–keto reductase superfamily, by nitric oxide (NO) donors was examined. Incubation of human recombinant AR with S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) led to inactivation of the enzyme and the formation of an AR-glutathione adduct. In contrast, incubation with S-nitroso-N-acetyl penicillamine (SNAP) or N-(β-d-glucopyranosyl)-SNAP (GlycoSNAP) led to an increase in enzyme activity which was accompanied by the direct nitrosation of the enzyme and the formation of a mixed disulfide with the NO-donor. To examine in vivo modification, red blood cells (RBC) and rat aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) were incubated with 1 mM GSNO or SNAP. Exposure of VSMC to SNAP and GSNO for 2 h at 37°C led to ∼71% decrease in the enzyme activity with dl-glyceraldehyde as the substrate. Similarly, exposure of RBC in 5 mM glucose to NO-donors for 30 min at room temperature, followed by increasing the glucose concentration to 40 mM, resulted in >75% decrease in the formation of sorbitol. These investigations indicate that NO and/or its bioactive metabolites can regulate cellular AR, leading to either activation (by nitrosation) or inactivation (by S-thiolation).     

Metabolic regulation of aldose reductase activity by nitric oxide donors

Regulation of aldose reductase (AR), a member of the aldo-keto reductase superfamily, by nitric oxide (NO) donors was examined. Incubation of human recombinant AR with S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) led to inactivation of the enzyme and the formation of an AR-glutathione adduct. In contrast, incubation with S-nitroso-N-acetyl penicillamine (SNAP) or N-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-SNAP (GlycoSNAP) led to an increase in enzyme activity which was accompanied by the direct nitrosation of the enzyme and the formation of a mixed disulfide with the NO-donor. To examine in vivo modification, red blood cells (RBC) and rat aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) were incubated with 1 mM GSNO or SNAP. Exposure of VSMC to SNAP and GSNO for 2 h at 37 degrees C led to approximately 71% decrease in the enzyme activity with DL-glyceraldehyde as the substrate. Similarly, exposure of RBC in 5 mM glucose to NO-donors for 30 min at room temperature, followed by increasing the glucose concentration to 40 mM, resulted in >75% decrease in the formation of sorbitol. These investigations indicate that NO and/or its bioactive metabolites can regulate cellular AR, leading to either activation (by nitrosation) or inactivation (by S-thiolation).     

WY 14,643 inhibits human aldose reductase activity

Aldose reductase (AR) is implicated to play a critical role in diabetes and cardiovascular complications because of the reaction it catalyzes. Our data reveal that peroxisome proliferator WY 14,643, follows a pure non-competitive inhibition pattern in the aldehyde reduction activity as well as in the alcohol oxidation activity of AR. This finding communicates for the first time a novel feature of WY 14,643 in regulating AR activity. In addition, this observation indicates that AR, AR-like proteins and aldo-keto reductase (AKR) members may be involved in the WY 14,643 mechanism of action when it is administered as PPAR agonist.     

Low apparent aldose reductase activity produced by monosaccharide autoxidation.

Low apparent aldose reductase activity, as measured by NADPH oxidation, can be produced by the spontaneous autoxidation of monosaccharides. NADPH is oxidized to metabolically active NADP+ in a solution of autoxidizing DL-glyceraldehyde at rates of up to 15 X 10(-4) A340/min. The close parallelism between the effects of buffer salt type and concentration, monosaccharide structure and temperature activation on autoxidation and NADPH oxidation imply that autoxidation is a prerequisite for the NADPH oxidation, probably via the hydroperoxy radical. Nucleotide-binding proteins enhanced NADPH oxidation induced by DL-glyceraldehyde, up to 10.6-fold with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase. Glutathione reductase-catalysed NADPH oxidation in the presence of autoxidizing monosaccharide showed many characteristics of the aldose reductase reaction. Aldose reductase inhibitors acted as antioxidants in inhibiting this NADPH oxidation. These results indicate that low apparent aldose reductase activities may be due to artifacts of monosaccharide autoxidation, and could provide an explanation for the non-linear steady-state kinetics observed with DL-glyceraldehyde and aldose reductase.     

WY 14,643 inhibits human aldose reductase activity

Aldose reductase (AR) is implicated to play a critical role in diabetes and cardiovascular complications because of the reaction it catalyzes. Our data reveal that peroxisome proliferator WY 14,643, follows a pure non-competitive inhibition pattern in the aldehyde reduction activity as well as in the alcohol oxidation activity of AR. This finding communicates for the first time a novel feature of WY 14,643 in regulating AR activity. In addition, this observation indicates that AR, AR-like proteins and aldo-keto reductase (AKR) members may be involved in the WY 14,643 mechanism of action when it is administered as PPAR agonist.     

Chaperone-like activity of alpha-crystallin toward aldose reductase oxidatively stressed by copper ion

The protective action of alpha-crystallin against copper-induced protein stress is studied using bovine lens aldose reductase (ALR2) as protein model. The oxidative inactivation of ALR2 induced by CuCl2 at the stoichiometric Cu2+/ALR2 ratio of 2/1 [I. Cecconi, M. Moroni, P.G. Vilardo, M. Dal Monte, P. Borella, G. Rastelli, L. Costantino, D. Garland, D. Carper, J.M. Petrash, A. Del Corso, U. Mura, Biochemistry 37 (1998) 14167-14174] is accompanied by protein aggregation phenomena when the metal ion concentration is increased (Cu2+/ALR2>3). Protein oxidation precedes protein precipitation. Both inactivation and precipitation of ALR2 are prevented by alpha-crystallin in a concentration-dependent manner. The rationale for the stabilization of ALR2 exerted by alpha-crystallin at low metal concentration is given on the basis of the ability of alpha-crystallin to chelate copper. However, the overall protective action exerted by alpha-crystallin at higher copper concentration may be explained invoking the contribution of the special features of alpha-crystallin to easily interact with target proteins undergoing structural rearrangement.     

In vitro modification of bovine lens aldose reductase activity

Bovine lens aldose reductase can be activated in crude extracts upon incubation at 37 degrees C at relatively high ionic strength. This phenomenon shows a seasonal occurrence, the enzyme being susceptible to activation only in lenses of animals sacrified in summer. Systems generating oxygen activated species induce the enzyme activation, whereas scavengers of "oxygen radicals" preserve the activated state of the enzyme. Glutathione and other thiol compounds appear to prevent the enzyme activation.     

Inhibition of lens aldose reductase by flavonoids

The inhibitory activities of 73 flavonoids against rat aldose reductase were systematically investigated and cosmosiin, luteolin-7-glucuronide, lonicerin, 6-hydroxyluteolin, kaempferol-3-rhamnoside and avicularin were newly found to be highly active. The degree of inhibition appears to depend on the solvent system used. In general flavones are more active than flavonols and flavanones, glycosides are more active than aglycones, and the number of sugars present affects the activity.     

Dihydrobenzoxazinone derivatives as aldose reductase inhibitors with antioxidant activity

Dihydrobenzoxazinone based design and synthesis produced two series of compounds as aldose reductase (ALR2) inhibitor candidates. In particular, phenolic residues were embodied into the compounds for the combination of strengthening the inhibitory acitvity and antioxidant ability to retard the progression of diabetic complications. Most of the derivatives with styryl side chains exhibited excellent activities on selective ALR2 inhibition with IC₅₀ values ranging from 0.082 to 0.308 μM, and {8-[2-(4-hydroxy-phenyl)-vinyl]-2-oxo-2,3-dihydro-benzo[1,4]oxazin-4-yl}-acetic acid (3a) was the most potent. More significantly, most of dihydrobenzoxazinone compounds revealed not only good inhibitory effect on ALR2, but also showed powerful antioxidant activity. Notably, phenolic compound 3a was even comparable to the well-known antioxidant Trolox, confirming that the C8 p-hydroxystyryl substitution was key structure of lowering oxidative stress. Therefore, these results provided an achievement of multifunctional ALR2 inhibitors possessing capacities for both ALR2 inhibition and as antioxidants.     

Modulation of HMG-CoA reductase activity by pantetheine/pantethine

The ability of pantetheine/pantethine to modulate the activity of HMG-CoA reductase (EC 1.1.1.34) was determined in vitro with rat liver microsomes. The decay of the activity was obtained with pantethine in the 10(-5)-10(-4) M range, whereas stimulation by pantetheine occurred at 10(-3)-10(-2) M, as previously reported for GSSG and GSH, respectively. Inhibition of HMG-CoA by pantethine in isolated liver cells was also investigated by measuring the enzyme activity in microsomes isolated from hepatocytes incubated without or with 1 mM pantethine under conditions previously shown by us to induce inhibition of cholesterol synthesis from acetate. The enzyme amount was not modified by pantethine, but in cells treated with the disulphide, the relative amounts of the thiolic active forms of the enzyme, both phosphorylated and dephosphorylated, were decreased to about half compared to controls.     

Developmental and physiological pattern of aldose reductase mRNA expression in lens and retina

Aldose reductase (AR), an enzyme which converts glucose to sorbitol, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetic cataracts and retinopathy. The normal physiological role of this enzyme in ocular tissue, however, remains unclear. In a developmental study in the rat using in situ and Northern hybridization analyses, we have found that there is a high level of AR mRNA expression in optic cup and lens as early as embryonic day 13. Serial sections through whole embryos at this stage showed that the eye was the only site of AR mRNA hybridization. Levels of AR mRNA declined in the retina as differentiation proceeded and were very sparse there postnatally. As lens development progressed, epithelial AR mRNA levels remained high, especially in the germinative zone, which is the source of the cells that will become lens fibers, and in the bow region, where these cells undergo a dramatic morphogenetic differentiation into lens fibers. AR mRNA was undetectable in terminally differentiated lens fibers. Since it has been suggested that AR-catalyzed sorbitol production could be an osmoprotective device of lens epithelium during systemic hyperosmolar stress, AR mRNA levels from dehydrated hyperosmolar rats were compared with euvolemic control values, and no difference was found. In summary, AR appears to be of particular importance in the development of the eye, with its retinal role receding relative to lens as differentiation is completed. A continued high level of expression in lens epithelium in adulthood may be explained by the fact that lens tissue, unlike retina, normally continues to proliferate and differentiate after birth. The temporal and spatial pattern of distribution of AR mRNA is strongly suggestive of a role for this enzyme in lens fiber morphogenesis.     

Effect of bovine small intestine thioredoxin on aldose reductase activity

Under oxidative stress mediated by H₂O₂, significant activation of purified aldose reductase from bovine small intestine was observed in the presence of purified thioredoxin from bovine small intestine.     

Effect of bovine small intestine thioredoxin on aldose reductase activity

Under oxidative stress mediated by H(2)O(2), significant activation of purified aldose reductase from bovine small intestine was observed in the presence of purified thioredoxin from bovine small intestine.     

Multiplicity of dog kidney high-Km aldose reductase and conversion mechanism into aldose reductase

• 1.1. High-K_m, aldose reductase purified from dog kidney inner medulla was easily converted into aldose reductase by incubation in the neutral buffer solution.
• 2.2. High-K_m, aldose reductase was found to be in multiple forms, and was separated into three kinds of species designated as a-, b- and c-forms by HPLC.
• 3.3. The a-form observed as a single peak by HPLC was assumed to be present in three forms (al-, a2- and a3-forms), one was aldose reductase (a 1-form) and the others were the precursors of aldose reductase (a2- and a3-form).
• 4.4. The b-form was rapidly converted into the a3-form, followed slowly by the a2-form and finally into the a 1-form.
• 5.5. The c-form was either directly converted into the al-form, or indirectly into the a2-form followed by the al-form.
• 6.6. Four kinds of species (a2-, a3-, b- and c-forms) of high-Ap, aldose reductase were finally converted into aldose reductase (al-form).

     

The inhibitory activity of aldose reductase in vitro by constituents of Garcinia mangostana Linn

We investigated aldose reductase inhibition of Garcinia mangostana Linn. from Indonesia. Dichloromethane extract of the root bark of this tree was found to demonstrate an IC₅₀ value of 11.98 µg/ml for human aldose reductase in vitro. From the dichloromethane fraction, prenylated xanthones were isolated as potent human aldose reductase inhibitors. We discovered 3-isomangostin to be most potent against aldose reductase, with an IC₅₀ of 3.48 µM.     

Selective recognition of glutathiolated aldehydes by aldose reductase

In this study, the selectivity and specificity of aldose reductase (AR) for glutathionyl aldehydes was examined. Relative to free aldehydes, AR was a more efficient catalyst for the reduction of glutathiolated aldehydes. Reduction of glutathionyl propanal [gammaGlu-Cys(propanal)-Gly] was more efficient than that of Gly-Cys(propanal)-Gly and gamma-aminobutyric acid-Cys(propanal)-Gly suggesting a possible interaction between alpha-carboxyl of the conjugate and AR. Two active site residues, Trp20 or Ser302, were identified by molecular modeling as potential sites of this interaction. Mutations containing tryptophan-to-phenylalanine (W20F) and serine-to-alanine (S302A) substitutions did not significantly affect reduction of free aldehydes but decreased the catalytic efficiency of AR for glutathiolated aldehydes. Combined mutations indicate that both Trp20 and Ser302 are required for efficient catalysis of the conjugates. The decrease in efficiency due to W20F mutation with glutathionyl propanal was not observed with gamma-aminobutyric-Cys(propanal)-Gly or Gly-Cys-(propanal)-Gly, indicating that Trp20 is involved in binding the alpha-carboxyl of the conjugate. The effect of the S302A mutation was less severe when gammaGlu-Cys(propanal)-Glu rather than glutathionyl propanal was used as the substrate, consistent with an interaction between Ser302 and Gly-3 of the conjugate. These observations suggest that glutathiolation facilitates aldehyde reduction by AR and enhances the range of aldehydes available to the enzyme. Because the N-terminal carboxylate is unique to glutathione, binding of the conjugate with the alpha-carboxyl facing the bottom of the alpha/beta-barrel may assist in the exclusion of unrelated peptides and proteins.     

Synthesis and aldose reductase inhibitory activity of 5-arylidene-2,4-thiazolidinediones

Several (Z)-5-arylidene-2,4-thiazolidinediones were synthesized and tested as aldose reductase inhibitors (ARIs). The most active of the N-unsubstituted derivatives (2) exerted the same inhibitory activity of Sorbinil. The introduction of an acetic side chain on N-3 of the thiazolidinedione moiety led to a marked increase in lending inhibitory activity, conducting to the discovery of a very potent ARI (4c), whose activity level (IC50=0.13 microM) was in the same range of Tolrestat. Moreover, the corresponding methyl esters (3), devoid of any acidic functionality, showed appreciable inhibitory activity similar to that of the N-unsubstituted compounds. It was also found that the substitution pattern on the 5-benzylidene moiety markedly influenced the activity of N-unsubstituted 2,4-thiazolidinediones 2, compounds with substituents at the meta position being generally more effective than the para-substituted ones; however, this SAR was not evidenced in acetates 3 and acids 4.