Metabolic effects of carbenoxolone in rat liver

The action of carbenoxolone on hepatic energy metabolism was investigated in the perfused rat liver and isolated mitochondria. In perfused livers, carbenoxolone (200-300 microM) increased oxygen consumption, glucose production and glycolysis from endogenous glycogen. Gluconeogenesis from lactate or fructose, an energy-dependent process, was inhibited. This effect was already evident at a concentration of 25 microM. The cellular ATP levels and the adenine nucleotide content were decreased by carbenoxolone, whereas the AMP levels were increased. In isolated mitochondria, carbenoxolone stimulated state IV respiration and decreased the respiratory coefficient with the substrates beta-hydroxybutyrate and succinate. The ATPase of intact mitochondria was stimulated, the ATPase of uncoupled mitochondria was inhibited, and the ATPase of disrupted mitochondria was not altered by carbenoxolone. These results indicate that carbenoxolone acts as an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation and, possibly, as an inhibitor of the ATP/ADP exchange system. The inhibitory action of carbenoxolone on mitochondrial energy metabolism could be contributing to induce the mitochondrial permeability transition (MPT), a key phenomenon in apoptosis. The results of the present study can explain, partly at least, the in vivo hepatotoxic actions of carbenoxolone that were found in a previous clinical evaluation.     

Effect of a single dose of dimethylnitrosamine on biosynthesis of nucleic acid and protein in rat liver and kidney

1. Administration of a single dose of dimethylnitrosamine to rats temporarily fed on a protein-deficient diet causes a high incidence of kidney tumours. The effect of such a dose of dimethylnitrosamine (40mg/kg body wt.) on metabolism of nucleic acids and protein in rat liver and kidneys was examined during the week immediately after administration. 2. Incorporation of [(14)C]leucine and [(14)C]orotate into hepatic macromolecules was inhibited within 5h of injection of dimethylnitrosamine, and did not recover for at least 5 days. Interpretation of these results is complicated by the concomitant extensive hepatic necrosis. 3. Renal RNA synthesis was assayed by incorporation of [(14)C]orotate in vivo and measurement of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase activity in vitro. Both systems indicate biphasic inhibition; minimal activity was recorded 9h and 3 days after treatment. Changes in incorporation of [(14)C]leucine into renal protein were similar but less marked. 4. Sucrose-density-gradient analysis of renal cytoplasmic RNA indicated increased synthesis of rRNA 24h after injection of the nitrosamine. The rate of loss of radioactivity from kidney ribosomes pre-labelled with [(14)C]orotate was not modified by dimethylnitrosamine. 5. Dimethylnitrosamine increased incorporation of [(3)H]-thymidine into renal DNA. The three distinct periods of stimulated synthesis observed are discussed, with particular reference to recently published morphological studies of the sequential development of kidney tumours induced by dimethylnitrosamine in protein-depleted rats.     

Dimethylnitrosamine inhibits the glucagon-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity of rat liver plasma membranes and decreases plasma membrane fluidity

The effect of the hepatocarcinogen dimethylnitrosamine on rat liver plasma membrane adenylate cyclase activity and lipid fluidity was assessed. Glucagon-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity exhibited a complex response to increasing concentrations of dimethylnitrosamine, whereas fluoride-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity was progressively inhibited. Maximal inhibitory effects were observed at a concentration of 15 mM in both cases. The activity of detergent-solubilized adenylate cyclase was unaffected by dimethylnitrosamine. ESR analysis using a fatty acid spin probe showed that dimethylnitrosamine produced a marked, dose-dependent reduction in the fluidity of the plasma membrane with a maximal effect occurring at 20 mM. Dimethylnitrosamine also elevated the temperature at which the lipid phase separation occurred in rat liver plasma membranes, from 28 degrees C to 31 degrees C. The non-carcinogenic but structurally similar compound, dimethylamine hydrochloride neither inhibited adenylate cyclase nor decreased plasma membrane fluidity. It is suggested that the decrease in membrane fluidity, induced by dimethylnitrosamine, via its effects on membrane fluidity, could influence plasma membrane function and cellular regulation.     

The inhibitory effects in vitro of phenothiazines and other drugs on lipid-peroxidation systems in rat liver microsomes, and their relationship to the liver necrosis produced by carbon tetrachloride

1. The effects of several phenothiazine derivatives on lipid-peroxidation systems in rat liver microsomes were studied and the results are considered in relation to the hepatotoxic action of carbon tetrachloride. 2. The lipid-peroxidation system coupled to NADPH(2) oxidation and stimulated by an ADP-Fe(2+) mixture is strongly inhibited in vitro by promethazine (50% inhibition at 29mum). Chlorpromazine and Stelazine also inhibit the peroxidation system but are less effective than promethazine. 3. The effects of promethazine on three other systems involving oxygen uptake (sulphite oxidation, orcinol oxidation and mitochondrial succinate oxidation) were also studied. Promethazine does not inhibit these systems to the same extent as it does the NADPH(2)-ADP-Fe(2+) lipid-peroxidation system. 4. Promethazine also produces an inhibition of the NADPH(2)-ADP-Fe(2+) system in liver microsomes after administration in vivo. It is concluded that the inhibition involves the interaction of the drug (or a metabolite of it) with the microsomal electron-transport chain. 5. Several other compounds known to protect the rat against liver necrosis after the administration of carbon tetrachloride were tested for inhibitory action on the NADPH(2)-ADP-Fe(2+) system. No clear correlation was observed between effectiveness in vivo as a protective agent and inhibitory effects on the NADPH(2)-ADP-Fe(2+) system in vitro. 6. Promethazine was found to inhibit the stimulation of lipid peroxidation produced in rat liver microsomes by low concentrations of carbon tetrachloride. This effect occurs at a concentration similar to that observed in vivo after administration of a normal clinical dose.     

The effect of tetrahydrofuran on the microsomal monooxygenase system in vitro and in vivo]

The effects of tetrahydrofuran (THF) on rat liver microsomes in vitro and in vivo were opposite. In vitro THF inhibited the p-nitrophenol (PNP) hydroxylase activity of microsomes from control rats and from rats treated with PB, acetone, and isoniazide--by 50, 20, 60, and 80%, respectively. THF inhibited dimethylnitrosamine (NDMA) demethylation in control and induced microsomes in a lesser degree. THF increased the total cytochrome P-450 content as well as the contents of cytochromes P-450IIE1 and P-450IIB1/B2. The activities of PNP-hydroxylation and NDMA-demethylation increased also, whereas the PR-dealkylation activity was unchanged. An increase in the THF dose caused inhibition of the rat liver microsomal monooxygenase system.     

Liver nucleotides in acute experimental liver injury induced by dimethylnitrosamine and by thioacetamide

1. The concentrations of the nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotides in rat liver have been determined at intervals during the period 1-24hr. after feeding adult female rats with dimethylnitrosamine or thioacetamide. 2. The administration of dimethylnitrosamine resulted in a rapid decrease in the sum of NAD+NADH(2). This sum was decreased by 40% 3hr. after dosing. 3. Dimethylnitrosamine administration also produced an overall decrease in the NADP+NADPH(2) but this decrease was not so early nor as marked as that found for NAD+NADH(2). 4. The changes produced by thioacetamide were quite different from those obtained with dimethylnitrosamine. Thioacetamide produced a temporary rise in the NAD+NADH(2) followed by a small fall. The NADP+NADPH(2) was little changed in the early hours after dosing with thioacetamide but had decreased by approx. 15% 18hr. after administration. 5. These changes are discussed in terms of the known hepatotoxic actions of dimethylnitrosamine and thioacetamide, and are compared with previously reported changes found after the administration of carbon tetrachloride.     

Single administration of hepatotoxic chemicals transiently decreases the gap-junction-protein levels of connexin 32 in rat liver.

Effects of a single administration of hepatotoxic chemicals on the major gap-junction protein of liver (connexin 32) were studied in rats. The connexin-32 content was analyzed by immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry using an affinity-purified monoclonal antibody against connexin 32. The connexin-32 content decreased dramatically to less than 10% of the control value 24 h after injection of 25 mg/kg dimethylnitrosamine and returned to the normal level 240 h later. Injection of CCl4 at a dose of 1 ml/kg also caused a transient reduction of connexin-32 content in the liver, as seen after the dimethylnitrosamine injection. The decrease in hepatic connexin-32 content was inversely correlated to the increase in plasmic alanine-aminotransferase activity which has been used as an index of acute liver injury. The changes in connexin 32 were essentially similar to those observed in regenerating liver after partial hepatectomy. However, incorporation of [3H]thymidine into liver DNA after dimethylnitrosamine injection was significantly less than that obtained after partial hepatectomy. The 5'-nucleotidase activity of the plasma-membrane fraction of the liver was not significantly altered by the injection of dimethylnitrosamine. These results suggest that liver gap-junction protein is specifically reduced by acute liver injury and that this kind of decrease in connexin 32 is not simply related to cell proliferation, unlike the decrease after partial hepatectomy.     

Correlations between common tests for assessment of liver damage: indices of the hepatoprotective activity of promethazine in carbon tetrachloride hepatotoxicity

The effects of promethazine (PM) on different aspects of the hepatotoxic action of CCl4 in the rat were investigated with the objective of finding rapid and reliable indicators of hepatoprotective effects. The study was based on definitive histological assessment of liver damage caused by CCl4 in the presence and absence of PM: PM (78 mumol kg-1, i.p.) protected against CCl4-induced hepatic necrosis 24 h after a low dose of CCl4 (1.3 mmol kg-1) but not against a higher dose (13.0 mmol kg-1). The large increases in plasma activities of GOT, GPT and LDH produced by dosing with CCl4 were partially inhibited by the administration of PM. PM and CCl4 caused a synergistic and long-lasting decrease in body temperature (2-3 degrees C for 8-10 h). Modifying the toxicity with PM, together with a low dose of CCl4, helped to minimize secondary effects of CCl4, to clarify the sequence of toxic events, and to assess the sensitivity of some standard tests of hepatotoxicity. Simultaneous measurement of over 20 commonly used biochemical screening tests in individual animals 3 or 6 h after treatment permitted direct correlation of a wide variety of concentrations, activities and effects. For example, liver CHCl3 concentrations (as a measure of CCl4 metabolism) correlate strongly with increases in diene conjugation of microsomal lipids (as a measure of CCl4-induced lipid peroxidation); malonaldehyde production appears to be less sensitive as a measure of lipid peroxidation in vivo than diene conjugation. The changes induced in each parameter and the correlations between them are discussed with reference to the overall nature of the hepatotoxic reaction and its modification by PM.     

Methylation of nuclear proteins by dimethylnitrosamine and by methionine in the rat in vivo

1. The incorporation of methyl groups into histones from dimethylnitrosamine and from methionine was studied by injection of the labelled compounds, isolation of rat liver and kidney histones, and analysis of hydrolysates by column chromatography. 2. Labelled methionine gave rise to labelled in-N-methyl-lysine, di-in-N-methyl-lysine and an amino acid presumed to be omega-N-methyl-arginine. 3. Administration of labelled dimethylnitrosamine gave rise to labelled S-methylcysteine, 1-methylhistidine, 3-methylhistidine and in-N-methyl-lysine derived from the alkylating metabolite of dimethylnitrosamine. In addition, labelled formaldehyde released by metabolism of dimethylnitrosamine leads to the formation of labelled S-adenosylmethionine, and hence to labelling of in-N-methyl-lysine, di-in-N-methyl-lysine and omega-N-methylarginine by enzymic methylation. 4. The formation of in-N-methyl-lysine by alkylation of liver histones was confirmed by using doubly labelled dimethylnitrosamine to discriminate between direct chemical alkylation and enzymic methylation via S-adenosylmethionine. These experiments also suggested the possibility that methionine residues in the histones were alkylated to give methylmethionine sulphonium residues. 5. The extent of alkylation of liver histones was maximal at about 5h after dosing and declined between 5 and 24h. The methylated amino acids resulting from direct chemical alkylation were preferentially lost: this is ascribed to necrosis of the more highly alkylated cells. 6. Liver histones were about four times as alkylated as kidney histones; the extent of alkylation of liver histones was similar to that of liver total nuclear proteins. 7. Methyl methanesulphonate (120mg/kg) alkylated liver histones to a greater extent than did dimethylnitrosamine. Diethylnitrosamine also alkylated liver histones. 8. The results are discussed with regard to the possible effects of alkylation on histone function, and the possible role of histone alkylation in carcinogenesis by the three compounds.     

Increased activities of liver cathepsins T and D in carbon tetrachloride-treated rats

Changes in activities of a new proteinase cathepsin T as well as some other lysosomal acid proteinases and hydrolases were examined in liver homogenate from rats treated with a single hepatotoxic dose of carbon tetrachloride. The most striking changes were several-fold increases of liver cathepsin T and D activities over their levels in untreated rats 3 days after administration of the agent to rats. Increase of cathepsin T was greater than that of cathepsin D at all doses of the hepatotoxin examined. The activities of N alpha-benzoyl-DL-arginine 2-naphthylamide hydrolase, acid phosphatase, beta-galactosidase and beta-glucuronidase in poisoned rat liver were unchanged or only slightly increased. Cathepsin T and D activities were less enhanced in mitochondrial lysosomal fractions than in the homogenate, and were greatly elevated in the supernatant fractions of liver from the treated rats. As judged from the molecular weights, the elevated activities of cathepsins T and D in the treated rat liver could be attributable to the two cathepsins themselves and not to other proteinases. Administration to rats of other hepatotoxic agents, thioacetamide and dimethylnitrosamine, also induced the elevation of the two cathepsin activities in liver, but on partial hepatectomy the activities of liver cathepsins T and D did not show such marked increases. Nonparenchymal liver cell fractions were responsible for almost all the increased activities of liver cathepsins T and D. It is possible that cathepsins T and D play a role in the heterolytic breakdown of hepatocyte molecules following CCl4 poisoning.     

Effect of inhibitors of alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate-induced hepatotoxicity on the in vitro metabolism of alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate

The role of S-oxidation in the toxic bioactivation of alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate (ANIT) was investigated. The effects of several thione compounds, inhibitors and an inducer of the cytochrome P-450-dependent mixed function oxidase systems on the in vitro metabolism of ANIT and aminopyrine were determined. Ethionamide, sodium diethyldithiocarbamate (Na-DDTC) and S-methyl diethyldithiocarbamate (Me-DDTC), three agents known to undergo metabolism by an S-oxidative pathway and diminish ANIT's toxicity, inhibited the in vitro enzymatic metabolism of ANIT by rat liver microsomes. Methimazole failed to alter either the hyperbilirubinemic response of ANIT or the in vitro metabolism of ANIT. All four thione compounds (i.e., ethionamide, Me-DDTC, Na-DDTC and methimazole) inhibited the enzymatic metabolism of aminopyrine by rat liver microsomes. Me-DDTC was the most potent, whereas methimazole was the least potent inhibitor of aminopyrine metabolism. Phenobarbital, which potentiates, and SKF-525A, which inhibits the hepatotoxicity of ANIT in vivo, correspondingly stimulated or inhibited the NADPH-dependent metabolism of ANIT and aminopyrine by liver microsomes. N-Decylimidazole (NDI), another classical inhibitor of cytochrome P-450-dependent monooxygenase system, inhibited both the in vivo toxicity and in vitro metabolism of ANIT. NDI also diminished the enzymatic metabolism of aminopyrine by liver microsomes. Thus the results of this study indicate that metabolism of ANIT is intimately related to its toxicity and that ANIT probably undergoes its toxic bioactivation via a cytochrome P-450-dependent S-oxidative pathway.     

Effect of cycloheximide on dimethylnitrosamine-induced polyribosome disaggregation in rat liver

The simultaneous administration of a dose of 1.5 mg/kg body wt. cycloheximide with 20 mg/kg body wt. dimethylnitrosamine to rats did not affect the metabolism of the nitrosamine as deduced by following its concentration in the blood nor affect the level of alkylation by the nitrosamine of cytoplasmic RNA in the liver. Incorporation of [¹⁴C]leucine into hepatic protein, which was maximally inhibited 60% 3 h after administration of the same dose of dimethylnitrosamine alone, was reduced by 94% within 1 h in rats treated with dimethylnitrosamine and cycloheximide.Polyribosome structure was determined by sucrose gradient centrifugation. Disaggregation of hepatic polyribosomes as a result of administration of the nitrosamine alone was most marked at 4 h, but by 8 h there was a recovery of polyribosome structure and a relative decrease in the number of monomeric ribosomes. Administration of cycloheximide alone did not affect the structure of hepatic polyribosomes. When dimethylnitrosamine and cycloheximide were given simultaneously the immediate breakdown of polyribosomes that normally followed administration of dimethylnitrosamine was prevented for at least 4 h; however after 8 h there was considerable disaggregation of the polyribosomes in the liver. The implications of these observations for the mechanism of inhibition of protein synthesis by dimethylnitrosamine are discussed.     

Origin and formation of 1,7-dimethylguanosine in tRNA chemical and enzymatic methylation

tRNA chemical methylation: 1. 1,7-Dimethylguanosine was found in in vivo methylated tRNA from liver and kidney of rat after exposure to a low dose of dimethylnitrosamine (4 mg/kg body weight). 2. At 4 h after dimethylnitrosamine administration, the 1,7-dimethylguanosine:7-methylguanine ratio (product ratio) for liver and kidney tRNA was 0.017 and 0.091, respectively. At 24 h after dimethylnitrosamine administration, the product ratio was lower in both hepatic and renal tRNA. 3. When dimethylnitrosamine was given in four separate daily injections, the product ratio in hepatic tRNA 4 h after the last dose was the same as for the same total dose given by a single injection, but in renal tRNA it was lower. No dialkyl compound was found in liver and kidney tRNA 24 h after the last multiple injection. tRNA enzymatic methylation: 1. Base analyses of Escherichia coli B tRNA methylated in vitro, by using S-adenosylmethionine as physiological methyl donor and enzyme preparations from liver and kidney of normal rat, indicated that 1,7-dimethylguanosine was also a product of enzymatic methylation. 2. The amount of 1,7-dimethylguanosine formed by kidney enzyme preparation was 3-times that produced by the liver extract. 3. A second type of enzymatic methylation assay where chemically methylated tRNA was used as substrate indicated that the 7-methylguanosine residues in the nucleic acid are not the substrate of the methylase activity forming the 1,7-dimethylguanosine moieties. Analogous data were obtained for the origin of 1,7-dimethylguanosine residues in tRNA chemical methylation by dimethyl sulphate.     

Combined action of pyrazole and ethanol on a rat liver: histochemical and ultrastructural study

The effect on a rat liver of combined administration of pyrazole and ethanol was studied histochemically and by electron microscopy. The study revealed strong hepatotoxic action of pyrazole combined with ethanol. Feeding with ethanol alone induces slight alterations in the liver, pyrazole alone affects the liver but slightly, whereas a combined administration of pyrazole and ethanol both by light and electron microscopy examination revealed a strong toxic action leading to severe damage of the liver cells including necrosis.     

Effects of ventromedial and lateral hypothalamic stimulation on chemically-induced liver injury in rats

The effects of hypothalamic stimulation on experimental liver injury induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) or dimethylnitrosamine (DMN) were studied in rats, by measuring plasma alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity as an index of acute liver injury. Electrical stimulation of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) in CCl4-treated rats caused a marked increase in plasma ALT activity, accompanied by a significant decrease in ALT activity in the liver, although CCl4 treatment alone had no significant effect on plasma ALT activity. A similar effect of VMH stimulation on plasma ALT activity was observed in rats treated with DMN, another hepatotoxic chemical. No such exaggerated effect of VMH stimulation on plasma ALT activity was observed after stimulation of the lateral hypothalamic area (LH). Surgical sympathetic denervation of the liver greatly suppressed the increase in plasma ALT activity after CCl4 injection and VMH stimulation. Measurement of regional blood flow indicated that VMH stimulation did not produce a significant change in blood flow to the liver. These results suggest that the VMH is involved in the progress of chemically-induced liver injury through activation of the sympathetic nerve (hepatic nerves), possibly by affecting liver metabolism more than the blood flow change to the liver.     

Deuterium isotope effect in bioactivation and hepatotoxicity of chloroform

Cytochrome P-450 appears to catalyze the $\text{in}$$\text{vitro}$ formation of phosgene (COCl₂) from chloroform (CHCl₃) in rat liver microsomes, since this reaction is NADPH dependent and inhibited by carbon monoxide and SKF 525-A. Moreover, the cleavage of the C-H bond appears to be the rate-determining step in this process since deuterium labeled chloroform (CDCl₃) is biotransformed into COCl₂ slower than is CHCl₃. CDCl₃ was also less hepatotoxic than CHCl₃ suggesting that a similar pathway of metabolism is responsible for the hepatotoxic properties of chloroform.     

Stability of deoxyribonucleic acid methylated in the intact animal by administration of dimethylnitrosamine. Rate of breakdown in vivo and in vitro at different dosages

1. The effect of administration of various dosages of dimethylnitrosamine on the extent of methylation of liver and kidney nucleic acids in the intact rat was studied. Methylation of liver nucleic acids was linearly related to the dosage, but decreasing the dose produced relatively less lowering of the extent of alkylation of kidney nucleic acids. 2. The rates of disappearance of 7-methylguanine from DNA during the 2 days after administration of dimethylnitrosamine in the intact animal and on incubation under simulated physiological conditions in vitro were compared. At a high dosage this rate was greater in vivo than in vitro. At a low dosage the small difference between the two rates was not thought to be sufficient evidence for existence of a specific enzymic excision of the abnormal base.     

Near quantitative production of molecular nitrogen from metabolism of dimethylnitrosamine

Molecular nitrogen is produced stoichiometrically from the spontaneous decomposition of N-methyl-N-nitrosourea in phosphate buffer and is readily detected by gas chromatography. It is also generated in high yield from the oxidation of dimethylnitrosamine by mouse or rat liver microsomes. Gas chromatographic analysis for nitrogen generated from dimethylnitrosamine was more difficult because the amount of nitrogen generated was similar to that produced in control tubes which contained no dimethylnitrosamine.     

Ethanol inhibition of vinyl chloride metabolism in isolated rat hepatocytes.

Isolated rat liver cells convert [14C]vinyl chloride into non-volatile metabolites. The metabolism is not increased by in vivo pretreatment with phenobarbital. It is sensitive to inhibition by ethanol, which at a concentration of 4 mM inhibits vinyl chloride metabolism to 50% in hepatocyte suspensions. The metabolic activity is NADPH-dependent and is localized in the microsomal fraction of the liver. The enzyme is also strongly inhibited by tetrahydrofuran, indicating that it could be identical to an ethanol-inducible cytochrome P-450 described in the literature [1].     

Effects of pretreatment with pyrazole and inducers of mixed function oxidases on DNA repair elicited by dimethylnitrosamine in rat hepatocytes in vivo and in vitro

Experiments were performed to investigate the relationship between the rate of oxidative metabolism of dimethylnitrosamine (DMN) by rat liver microsomes (i.e., DMN demethylase activity, DMNd) and its genotoxicity in liver, as assessed by the in vitro and in vivo/in vitro rat hepatocyte primary culture/DNA repair (HPC/DR) assays. Pretreatment of rats with pyrazole (PYR) resulted in a 4-fold increase in DMNd and a 3-fold greater DNA repair response to in vivo administration of 5 mg DMN/kg body weight. Pretreatment with phenobarbital (PB), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), 3-methylcholanthrene (3-MC), beta-naphthoflavone (beta-NF) or Aroclor 1254 (ARO) produced a variable degree of inhibition of DMNd and had no significant effects on the response to DMN in the in vivo/in vitro HPC/DR assay. DNA repair elicited by DMN in vitro was decreased in hepatocytes from rats pretreated with 3-MC, while PB, DDT, beta-NF and ARO pretreatments had little effect on the response. In contrast, PYR pretreatment produced a 4.5-6.7-fold increase in the in vitro DNA repair response to DMN, and extended detection of positive responses to lower concentrations. Most of the inducers had no effect on DNA repair elicited by the direct acting alkylator, methyl methanesulfonate (MMS). Thus, the pretreatment-related changes in DMN-induced DNA repair were probably due to alterations in DMNd rather than to effects on the DNA repair capacity of the hepatocytes.