Hepatic metabolism of artemisinin drugs--I. Drug metabolism in rat liver microsomes.

1. In this communication, metabolism of the semisynthetic antimalarial drugs of the artemisinin class (beta-arteether, beta-artelinic acid and dihydroartemisinin) in rat liver microsomes, is reported. 2. Dihydroartemisinin was the major early metabolite of arteether (57%) and artelinic acid (80%); in addition, arteether was hydroxylated in the positions 9 alpha- and 2 alpha- of the molecule. 3. Dihydroartemisinin was further metabolized by extensive hydroxylation of its molecule; we were able to identify four hydroxylated derivatives of DQHS, but not the exact positions of the hydroxyl groups. 4. The rates of NADPH-supported metabolism of arteether, artelinic acid and dihydroartemisinin in rat liver microsomes were: 4.0, 2.5 and 1.3 nmol/min/mg of microsomal protein, respectively. 5. The apparent affinity constants of arteether and artelinic acid for the microsomal metabolizing system, calculated from the rates of product formation, were 0.54 mM and 0.33 mM (for arteether) and 0.11 mM (for artelinic acid), respectively. The appearance of two affinity constants indicated that arteether was metabolized by two different isoenzymes of cytochrome P-450 in rat liver microsomes.     

The role of elongation factors in protein synthesis rate variation in white teleost muscle

Summary Protein synthesis-stimulating activity was assayed in the cytosolic fraction of white muscle from teleost fish (rainbow trout, carp) and of rat liver. In vitro protein synthesis-stimulating activity in the cytosolic fraction is reduced by food deprivation. The addition of elongation factors EF1, EF2, or EF1+EF2 compensates for the starvation-induced loss of protein synthesis-stimulating activity in trout muscle cytosol. The action of EF2 is stronger than that of EF1 in this respect. However, EF1 enhances in vitro protein synthesis-stimulating activity in rat liver cytosol more than EF2. The EF2 concentration in the cytosolic fraction of white muscle from starved trout is significantly lower than in fed specimens.Abbreviations EF elongation factor(s) - SGR specific growth rate - TCA trichloroacetic acid     

Metabolic transformations of antitumor imidazoacridinone, C-1311, with microsomal fractions of rat and human liver

The imidazoacridinone derivative C-1311 is an antitumor agent in Phase II clinical trials. The molecular mechanism of enzymatic oxidation of this compound in a peroxidase model system was reported earlier. The present studies were performed to elucidate the role of rat and human liver enzymes in metabolic transformations of this drug. C-1311 was incubated with different fractions of liver cells and the reaction mixtures were analyzed by RP-HPLC. We showed that the drug was more sensitive to metabolism with microsomes than with cytosol or S9 fraction of rat liver cells. Incubation of C-1311 with microsomes revealed the presence of four metabolites. Their structures were identified as dealkylation product, M0, as well as a dimer-like molecule, M1. Furthermore, we speculate that the hydroxyl group was most likely substituted in metabolite M3. It is of note that a higher rate of transformation was observed for rat than for human microsomes. However, the differences in metabolite amounts were specific for each metabolite. The reactivity of C-1311 with rat microsomes overexpressing P450 isoenzymes, of CYP3A and CYP4A families was higher than that with CYP1A and CYP2B. Moreover, the M1 metabolite was selectively formed with CYP3A, whereas M3 with CYP4A. In conclusion, this study revealed that C-1311 varied in susceptibility to metabolic transformation in rat and human cells and showed selectivity in the metabolism with P450 isoenzymes. The obtained results could be useful for preparing the schedule of individual directed therapy with C-1311 in future patients.     

Enzymatic reduction of shogaol: a novel biotransformation pathway for the alpha,beta-unsaturated ketone system.

A novel reductive metabolism of 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-deca-4-ene-3-one (shogaol), a pungent principle of ginger, was investigated in rat liver in vitro. Ethyl acetate-extractable metabolites of shogaol formed by incubation of this alpha,beta-unsaturated ketone with rat liver cytosolic fraction fortified with NADPH or NADPH-generating system were isolated, and two major metabolites were identified as 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-decan-3-one (paradol) and 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxy)-decan-3-ol (reduced paradol). 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-deca-1-ene-3-one (dehydroparadol), a non-pungent analog of shogaol, formed the same metabolites as did shogaol under similar incubation conditions. Paradol appears to be an intermediate in the reductive metabolism of the alpha,beta-unsaturated ketone moiety of shogaol to the corresponding saturated alcohol.     

Inhibitory effects of flavonoids on the reduction of progesterone to 20alpha-hydroxyprogesterone in rat liver

The first aim of this study is to characterize the reduction of progesterone in rat liver. Progesterone was mainly reduced to 20alpha-hydroxyprogesterone in the cytosolic fraction of rat liver. The amount of 20alpha-hydroxyprogesterone formed from progesterone in the cytosolic fraction was significantly larger in the males than in the females and this enzyme reaction proceeded not only in the presence of NADPH, but also in the presence of NADH. Furthermore, we attempted to evaluate the inhibitory effects of 15 flavonoids on the NADPH-dependent reduction of progesterone to 20alpha-hydroxyprogesterone in liver cytosol of male rats. The order of the inhibitory potencies was luteolin>apigenin>quercetin>myricetin=fisetin=kaempferol. Other flavonoids exhibited lower inhibitory potencies. Energy-minimized molecular models demonstrated that a planar benzopyrone ring (A and C rings) with a coplanar phenyl ring (B ring) is a structural characteristic determining the inhibitory effects of flavonoids other than isoflavones.     

Characteristics and inhibition by flavonoids of 20alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity in mouse tissues

Progesterone was stereoselectively reduced to a metabolite 20alpha-hydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one in the cytosolic fraction from the liver of male mice, indicating that the reduction of progesterone is catalyzed by 20alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (20alpha-HSD). The cytosolic 20alpha-HSD activity was observed not only in the liver, but also in the kidney and lung. In liver cytosol, both NADPH and NADH were effective as cofactors for 20alpha-HSD activity, although NADPH was better than NADH for the enzyme activity. On the other hand, 20alpha-HSD activity in kidney cytosol required only NADPH as a cofactor. No significant sex-related difference of 20alpha-HSD activity was observed in liver and kidney cytosols. Flavonoids have been reported to inhibit the biosynthesis and metabolism of steroids. However, little is known about inhibitory effects of flavonoids on 20alpha-HSD activity. Thus, the effects of 16 flavonoids on 20alpha-HSD activity were examined, using liver cytosol of male mice. Among flavonoids tested, fisetin, apigenin, naringenin, luteolin, quercetin and kaempferol exhibited high inhibitory potencies for the 20alpha-HSD activity. We propose the possibility that these flavonoids augment progesterone signaling by inhibiting potently 20alpha-HSD activity in non-reproductive tissues.     

Leukotriene A4. Enzymatic conversion into 5,6-dihydroxy-7,9,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid by mouse liver cytosolic epoxide hydrolase

Mouse liver homogenates transformed leukotriene A4 into a 5,6-dihydroxy-7,9,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid. This novel enzymatic metabolite of leukotriene A4 was characterized by physical means including ultraviolet spectroscopy, high performance liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. After subcellular fractionation, the enzymatic activity was mostly recovered in the 105,000 X g supernatant and 20,000 X g pellet. Heat treatment (80 degrees C, 10 min) or digestion with a proteolytic enzyme abolished the enzymatic activity in the high speed supernatant. A purified cytosolic epoxide hydrolase from mouse liver also transformed leukotriene A4 into a 5,6-dihydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid with the same physico-chemical characteristics as the compound formed in crude cytosol, but not into leukotriene B4, a compound previously reported to be formed in liver cytosol (Haeggstr?m, J., R?dmark, O., and Fitzpatrick, F.A. (1985) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 835, 378-384). These findings suggest a role for leukotriene A4 as an endogenous substrate for cytosolic epoxide hydrolase, an enzyme earlier characterized by xenobiotic substrates. Furthermore, they indicate that leukotriene A4 hydrolase in liver cytosol is a distinct enzyme, separate from previously described forms of epoxide hydrolases in liver.     

Regulation of linoleic acid delta 6-desaturation by a cytosolic lipoprotein-like fraction in isolated rat liver microsomes

A peripheral component of the delta 6-fatty acid-desaturase system of rat liver microsomes has been isolated from the cytosol by ultracentrifugation at a saline density of 1.26 g/ml. It exhibited lipoprotein characteristics with an approximate protein/lipid ratio of 1.22 and free fatty acids and phosphatidylcholine as its main lipid components. Linoleic acid desaturation activity diminished in washed microsomes, since they lost the adsorbed cytosolic fraction. Addition of the factor reactivated the reaction and the recovery was dependent on the concentration of the factor in the medium. Linoleic acid and linoleyl-CoA were bound by the cytosolic fraction. However, the transport of substrate to the desaturase was not apparently a main function of the cytosolic fraction, since transport occurred equally in the absence of the factor. Moreover, the solubilization of linoleyl-CoA was not enhanced and the free monomeric concentration was not altered by the presence of the cytosolic fraction. In addition, the factor did not divert delta 6-desaturase substrate to or from other metabolic pathways such as esterification to phospholipids. gamma-Linolenic acid produced by delta 6-desaturation of linoleic acid in the microsomes inhibited the desaturase, but it was removed by the factor from the membrane towards the cytosol, preventing the inhibition. The anti-inhibitory effect of the cytosolic factor was blockaded by addition of columbinic acid or gamma-linolenic acid to the factor. Moreover, the inhibitory effect of arachidonic acid was not prevented by addition of the cytosolic fraction. These results suggest that the cytosolic fraction studied would optimize the delta 6-desaturation of linoleic acid in vitro in rat liver microsomes by removal of the product, gamma-linolenic acid, as it is formed.     

Enzymatically inactive forms of acetyl-CoA carboxylase in rat liver mitochondria.

Biotinyl proteins were labelled by incubation of SDS-denatured preparations of subcellular fractions of rat liver with [14C]methylavidin before polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. Fluorographic analysis showed that mitochondria contained two forms of acetyl-CoA carboxylase [acetyl-CoA:carbon dioxide ligase (ADP-forming) EC 6.4.1.2], both of which were precipitated by antibody to the enzyme. When both forms were considered, almost three-quarters of the total liver acetyl-CoA carboxylase was found in the mitochondrial fraction of liver from fed rats while only 3.5% was associated with the microsomal fraction. The remainder was present in cytosol, either as the intact active enzyme or as a degradation product. The actual specific activity of the cytosolic enzyme was approx. 2 units/mg of acetyl-CoA carboxylase protein while that of the mitochondrial enzyme was about 20-fold lower, indicating that mitochondrial acetyl-CoA carboxylase was relatively inactive. Fractionation of mitochondria with digitonin showed that acetyl-CoA carboxylase was associated with the outer mitochondrial membrane. The available evidence suggests that mitochondrial acetyl-CoA carboxylase represents a reservoir of enzyme which can be released and activated under lipogenic conditions.     

The determination of binding parameters when the total and free substrate concentrations are not approximately equal.

The maximal extractable activity of "malic" enzyme (EC 1.1.1.40) in rat islets of Langerhans was similar to that reported for liver. Thus "malic" enzyme may catalyse a near-equilibrium reaction in the cytosol of islets of Langerhans. Measurements of islet content of malate and pyruvate, the metabolite substrate and product of "malic" enzyme, were therefore used to calculate the cytosolic ration of [NADPH]/[NADP+]. This ratio was higher in islets incubated with 20 mM-glucose than in islets incubated with 2 mM-glucose.     

Comparison of cytosolic and nuclear poly(A) polymerases from rat liver and a hepatoma: structural and immunological properties and response to NI-type protein kinases

Poly(A) polymerases were purified from the cytosol fraction of rat liver and Morris hepatoma 3924A and compared to previously purified nuclear poly(A) polymerases. Chromatographic fractionation of the hepatoma cytosol on a DEAE-Sephadex column yielded approximately 5 times as much poly(A) polymerase as was obtained from fractionation of the liver cytosol. Hepatoma cytosol contained a single poly(A) polymerase species [48 kilodaltons (kDa)] which was indistinguishable from the hepatoma nuclear enzyme (48 kDa) on the basis of CNBr cleavage maps. Liver cytosol contained two poly(A) polymerase species (40 and 48 kDa). The CNBr cleavage patterns of these two enzymes were distinct from each other. However, the cleavage pattern of the 40-kDa enzyme was similar to that of the major liver nuclear poly(A) polymerase (36 kDa), and approximately three-fourths of the peptide fragments derived from the 48-kDa species were identical with those from the hepatoma enzymes (48 kDa). NI-type protein kinases from liver or hepatoma stimulated hepatoma nuclear and cytosolic poly(A) polymerases 4-6-fold. In contrast, the liver cytosolic 40- and 48-kDa poly(A) polymerases were stimulated only slightly or inhibited by similar units of the protein kinases. Antibodies produced in rabbits against purified hepatoma nuclear poly(A) polymerase reacted equally well with hepatoma nuclear and cytosolic enzyme but only 80% as well with the liver cytosolic 48-kDa poly(A) polymerase and not at all with liver cytosolic 40-kDa or nuclear 36-kDa enzymes. Anti-poly(A) polymerase antibodies present in the serum of a hepatoma-bearing rat reacted with hepatoma nuclear and cytosolic poly(A) polymerases to the same extent but only 40% as well with the liver cytosolic 48-kDa enzyme.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Covalent binding of a mercaptan S-sulfate to hepatic cytosolic proteins and its inhibition by glutathione

4-Nitrobenzyl mercaptan (NBM) S-sulfate, a new type of the sulfate conjugate enzymatically formed from NBM in the presence of 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phosphosulfate in rat liver cytosol, bound covalently to rat liver cytosolic proteins at pH 7.4. The protein binding of NBM S-sulfate was strongly retarded by GSH. GSH not only played a role as a scavenger for NBM S-sulfate with formation of NBM and GSSG via S-(4-nitrobenzyl)thioglutathione, but also cleaved the covalent bonds, possibly disulfides formed from NBM S-sulfate and sulfhydryl groups of the cytosolic proteins. Thus, evidence was provided that NBM S-sulfate be a new type of the reactive metabolite.     

Pulmonary biotransformation of insulin in rat and rabbit.

In vitro biodegradation of insulin in rabbit and rat lung homogenates was investigated. Insulin can be sequentially metabolized into two primary fragments in rabbit lung homogenate by an aminopeptidase. The amino acid sequences of the fragments were found to be the des-Phe-InsulinB1 (Metabolite I) and des-Phe-Val-InsulinB1-2 (Metabolite II). However, only the former metabolite (Metabolite I) was identified in the rat lung homogenate. The km and Vm values associated with rabbit lung homogenate were 0.29 +/- 0.14 mM and 16.4 +/- 6.9 microM/hr/mg protein, respectively, whereas those for a rabbit lung preparation containing both microsomes and cytosol were 0.22 +/- 0.07 mM and 17.9 +/- 5.4 microM/hr/mg protein, respectively. The km and Vm associated with the cytosolic fraction of rabbit lung were 0.32 +/- 0.16 and 20.6 +/- 6.1 microM/hr/mg protein, respectively. The results indicate that the lung aminopeptidase may be a cytosolic enzyme. The degradation of dimeric insulin in the lung homogenate was faster than that of hexameric insulin due to the difference in collision frequency between the enzyme and insulin aggregates. The major metabolites in the lungs reportedly retain almost the same bioactivity of insulin, suggesting that the pulmonary route of insulin delivery will not adversely affect its hypoglycemic activity.     

A protein factor required for activation of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase by ferrous ions.

When rat liver cytosolic P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase is purified, its activity is no longer enhanced by incubation with 30 muM Fe2+. Ferrous ion stimulation of the purified enzyme is restored by the addition of rat liver cytosol. The agent responsible is a cytosolic protein, named P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase ferroactivator, that was readily separated from the enzyme during purification of the latter. A quantitative assay for P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase ferroactivator is described. Subcellular fractionation of livers from fasted rats shows that 98% of the combined mitochondrial and cytosolic P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase ferroactivator activity resides in the cytosol. Fasting does not produce significant change in this cytosolic activity when compared to that of fed animals. Examination of various tissue homogenates shows that the ferroactivator is found in liver, kidney, erythrocytes, adipose tissue, and brain. No activity was detected in blood serum or skeletal muscle. The ability to enhance the activity of purified rat liver cytosolic P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase in the presence of Fe2+ is not species specific. P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase ferroactivator may have an important function in regulating enzyme activity in vivo.     

The effect of diabetes, nutritional factors, and sex on rat liver and kidney mevalonate kinase, mevalonate-5-phosphate kinase, and mevalonate-5-pyrophosphate decarboxylase

Isopycnic sucrose gradient separation of rat liver organelles revealed the presence of two distinct branched-chain α-keto acid decarboxylase activities; a mitochondrial activity, which decarboxylates the three branched-chain α-keto acids and requires CoA and NAD⁺ and a cytosolic activity, which decarboxylates α-ketoisocaproate, but not α-ketoisovalerate, or α-keto-β-methylvalerate. The latter enzyme does not require added CoA or NAD⁺. Assay conditions for the cytosolic α-ketoisocaproate decarboxylase activity were optimized and this activity was partially characterized. In rat liver cytosol preparations this activity has a pH optimum of 6.5 and is activated by 1.5 m ammonium sulfate. The decarboxylase activity has an apparent K_m of 0.03 mm for α-ketoisocaproate when optimized assay conditions are employed. Phenylpyruvate is a very potent inhibitor. α-Ketoisovalerate, α-keto-β-methylvalerate, α-ketobutyrate, and α-ketononanoate also inhibit the α-ketoisocaproate decarboxylase activity. The data indicate that the soluble α-ketoisocaproate decarboxylase is an oxidase. Rat liver cytosol preparations consumed oxygen when either α-ketoisocaproate or α-keto-γ-methiolbutyrate were added. None of the other α-keto acids tested stimulated oxygen consumption. 1-¹⁴C-Labeled α-keto-γ-methiolbutyrate is also decarboxylated by cytosol preparations. The α-ketoisocaproate oxidase was purified 20-fold from a 70,000g supernatant fraction of a rat liver homogenate. In these preparations the activity was increased 4-fold by the addition of dithiothreitol, ferrous iron, and ascorbate. The major product of this enzyme activity is β-hydroxyisovalerate. Isovalerate is not a free intermediate in the reaction. The data indicate an alternative pathway for metabolism of α-ketoisocaproate which produces β-hydroxyisovalerate.     

Lipid requirements for the aggregation of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase in rat liver cytosol.

Two forms of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase were identified in rat liver cytosol by gel filtration chromatography. The low molecular weight form (L form) is the major form in fresh cytosol. The enzyme associates into a high molecular weight form (H form) upon storage of the cytosol at 4 degrees C. Aggregation of the purified L form of cytidylyltransferase is caused by total rat liver lipids, neutral lipids, diacylglycerol, or phosphatidylglycerol. Diacylglycerol was the only lipid isolated from the rat liver that caused aggregation of the purified enzyme. Although the addition of diacylglycerol to the cytosol did not change the amount of aggregation of the enzyme, a 2.5-fold increase in H form was observed in cytosol pretreated with phospholipase C, or in cytosol from rats fed a high cholesterol diet. In both of these cytosolic preparations, the concentration of diacylglycerol was elevated twofold. Phosphatidylglycerol did not seem to affect the association of the enzyme in cytosol since it is present in very low concentrations in the rat liver cytosol, and its degradation in cytosol by a specific phospholipase did not affect the rate of aggregation. The results suggest that diacylglycerol in an appropriate form is required for association of cytidylyltransferase in rat liver cytosol.     

Transport of ornithine carbamoyltransferase precursor into mitochondria. Stimulation by potassium ion, magnesium ion, and a reticulocyte cytosolic protein(s)

The precursor of rat liver ornithine carbamoyltransferase (EC 2.1.3.3) synthesized in vitro was taken up and processed to the mature enzyme by isolated rat liver mitochondria. Potassium ion, magnesium ion, and a reticulocyte cytosolic protein(s), in addition to the precursor and the mitochondria, were required for maximal transport and processing of the precursor. The concentrations of potassium and magnesium ions required for maximal transport and processing were about 120 and 0.8-1.6 mM, respectively. Dialyzed postribosomal supernatant of rabbit reticulocyte lysate (36 mg of protein/ml), in combination with potassium and magnesium ions, stimulated the transport and processing severalfold. The stimulatory activity of the dialyzed lysate was inactivated by trypsin treatment or heating at 100 degrees C for 2 min. No significant amount of the precursor was associated with the mitochondria when incubation was performed in the absence of these components. These results suggest that potassium ion, magnesium ion, and a reticulocyte cytosolic protein(s) stimulate the binding and transport of the ornithine carbamoyltransferase precursor to the mitochondria. Dialyzed supernatant of rabbit erythrocyte lysate was equally effective in stimulating the precursor transport and processing, and a dialyzed cytosol fraction of Ehrlich ascites cells was partly stimulatory. On the other hand, dialyzed cytosol fractions of rat liver and rat kidney, and dialyzed supernatant of wheat germ extracts did not stimulate the precursor transport and processing but rather inhibited it.     

Involvement of Hepatic Aldehyde Oxidase in Conversion of 1-Methyl-4-phenyl-2,3-dihydropyridinium (MPDP+) to 1-Methyl-4-phenyl-5,6-dihydro-2-pyridone

To obtain direct evidence of the involvement of aldehyde oxidase (AO), a cytosolic molybdoflavoenzyme, in the metabolism of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), we investigated thein vitrometabolism of MPTP and the two-electron-oxidized 1-methyl-4-phenyl-2,3-dihydropyridinium species (MPDP⁺) by using mouse liver enzyme preparations. Incubation of MPTP with mitochondrial fraction gave exclusively 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP⁺); this reaction was inhibited by deprenyl, a monoamine oxidase (MAO)-B inhibitor, and KCN. When the mitochondrial fraction was combined with the cytosolic fraction, MPP⁺formation was markedly decreased, while a large amount of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-5,6-dihydro-2-pyridone (MPTP lactam) was newly formed. Incubation of MPDP⁺with the cytosolic fraction led to rapid formation of MPTP lactam with concomitant disappearance of the substrate. The cytosol-dependent formation of MPTP lactam was inhibited by known AO inhibitors, such as menadione, norharman, and KCN. The activity of cytosol in MPTP lactam formation was completely duplicated by purified mouse liver AO. These results indicate that AO catalyzes the metabolic conversion of MPDP⁺, produced from MPTP by MAO-B, to MPTP lactam. This metabolic pathway might be an important detoxification route, averting the formation of toxic MPP⁺.     

Immunological studies on CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase from the livers of normal and choline-deficient rats

Chickens were immunized with the purified low-molecular-weight form of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase from rat liver cytosol. The antiserum was obtained and fractionated to yield immunoglobulin. The antibodies specifically inhibited the enzymatic activity of the partially purified low-molecular-weight form of the enzyme from pH 6.0 to 8.5. Antibodies against the low-molecular-weight form of the enzyme cross-reacted with the high-molecular-weight form of the enzyme from cytosol as well as with the cytidylyltransferase associated with the microsomal fraction. The antibodies were used for the immunochemical determination of the amount of cytosolic phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase in the livers of normal and choline-deficient rats. The amount of enzyme in rat liver cytosol was not changed for at least 18 days of choline deficiency. The decrease in specific activity of the enzyme in choline-deficiency may be caused by factors other than adaptive changes in the level of enzyme.     

Purification and characterization of the alpha-D-mannosidase of rat liver cytosol.

Three forms of alpha-D-mannosidase have previously been identified in rat liver, and each is localized in a different subcellular fraction: lysosomes, Golgi membranes, and cytosol. This communication reports the purification and characterization the cytosolic form. The enzyme was purified 12,000-fold in good yield to approximately 90% purity with the aid of the competitive inhibitor mannosylamine and dithioerythritol as stabilizers. The molecular weight of the enzyme is in the range of 372,000 to 490,000 depending on the method used. Since the subunit molecular weight is 110,000 by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide electrophoresis, the enzyme is probably a tetramer. The pH optimum was shown to be between 5.5 and 5.9 (in the presence of 1 mM CoCl2) with the substrate p-nitrophenyl-alpha-D-mannoside. Normal Michaelis-Menten kinetics were observed with a Km of 0.14 mM. Mannosylamine was a competitive inhibitor with a Ki of 0.007 mM. The purified enzyme, stabilized by Co2+, Mn2+, and Fe2+ under some conditions, was unstable at low protein concentrations. Since an electrophoresed sample showed a positive periodic acid-Schiff stain, the enzyme may contain carbohydrate. The availability of purified cytosolic alpha-D-mannosidase should now make it possible to carry out substrate specificity, immunological, and structural studies which may shed light on the biological role of this enzyme.