The effect of cyclophosphamide and gamma irradiation on adenosine deaminase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase in mice

Changes in ADA and PNP activities in the spleens and thymuses of mice were studied after a single administration of cyclophosphamide (CY, 200 mg/kg) and after whole-body gamma irradiation (5.5 Gy), applied alone or three days after CY application. In the first days after the treatment the enzyme activities were significantly depressed (p less than 0.01) with the exception of ADA in the spleen, where a high elevation (220-380%) in relation to controls was observed. During the regeneration period a pronounced rise of PNP activity in the spleen occurred mainly after a combined application of CY and irradiation (270%). In the thymus the regeneration was manifested by a mild increase of both ADA and PNP activities towards control values. The findings suggest that the expressive changes of ADA and PNP activities, participating in the purine salvage pathway, may, after a cytotoxic treatment, influence the nucleotide pool and DNA synthesis in lymphoid organs.     

Enzymes of the purine interconversion system in chronic lymphatic leukemia: decreased purine nucleoside phosphorylase and adenosine deaminase activity.

Activities of adenosine deaminase (ADA), adenosine kinase (AK), adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (APRT), hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HGPRT), and purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP), all enzymes of the purine interconversion system, were determined in lymphocytes of 25 patients with chronic lymphatic leukemia (CLL) and in 23 controls. A statistically significant decrease of PNP activities and a reduction of ADA activities at borderline levels were found in the patients, whereas for the other enzymes assayed no deviation from normal values was observed.     

Activity of adenosine deaminase and of purine nucleoside phosphorylase in peripheral lymphocytes from patients with acquired immunological disorders

The activity of adenosine deaminase (ADA) and of purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) was determined in the peripheral lymphocytes of patients with diseases associated with acquired partial dysfunction of the immune response. Increase ADA activity was found in patients with Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia and in some patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Increased PNP activity was found in patients with non Hodgkin's lymphoma whereas decreased PNP activity was fund in patients with connective tissue disorders. The alternations found in ADA and PNP activities probably reflect changes in the lymphocyte subpopulations and do not seem to have an etiological role in the pathogenesis of the disturbed immune response.     

Activity of adenosine deaminase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase in erythrocytes and lymphocytes of man, horse and cattle.

1. Activities of ADA and PNP were measured in erythrocytes and lymphocytes of man, horse and cattle. 2. In bovine hemolysates both enzyme activities are low when compared with activities in human hemolysates. In horse hemolysates both enzyme activities are virtually absent. 3. Enzyme activities are consistently lower (about 50%) in intact lymphocytes than in sonicated lymphocytes. This finding suggests that the uptake of nucleosides is rate-limiting for both enzymes in intact lymphocytes. 4. The activity of ADA in horse lymphocytes is comparable to that in lymphocytes of patients with severe combined immunodeficiency associated with ADA deficiency.     

Purine metabolic enzymes in lymphocytes. I. Adenosine deaminase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase activities in mouse lymphocyte subpopulations

The distribution of adenosine deaminase (ADA) and purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) activities in lymphoid organs and lymphocyte subpopulations in mice, and the effect of phytohemagglutinin P (PHA-P) and concanavalin A (Con A) on the enzyme activities were studied. ADA activity was distributed equally in cells from all organs used and no mouse strain differences were observed. In contrast, PNP activity varied with the mouse strain, being highest in C57BL/6 mice and lowest in BALB/c mice, and with the organ in ICR mice, being high in peripheral blood lymphocytes and spleen lymphocytes, low in mesenteric lymph node cells and absent or very weak in thymus cells. T and B lymphocytes were prepared from spleen of ICR mice. High ADA activity was found in both T and B lymphocytes, whereas PNP activity in the T lymphocytes was about one-third of that in the B lymphocytes. PNP activity in thymus cells was increased to the normal level of T lymphocytes in the spleens by cultivation without stimulant. The development of PNP activity in thymus cells was partially inhibited by Con A but was not affected by PHA-P. ADA activity in thymus cells was enhanced by in vitro stimulation with PHA-P but not with Con A. In contrast, in spleen lymphocytes the development of ADA activity was enhanced by stimulation with PHA-P and Con A, and that of PNP activity was enhanced by PHA-P but not by Con A.     

The distribution of adenosine deaminase among lymphocyte populations in the rat.

Adenosine deaminase (ADA) activity was determined in young rat lymphocyte populations. The ADA-specific activity (per 10(8) cells and per milligram protein) was 3- to 10-fold higher in thymocytes than in lymphocytes from thoracic duct, lymph node, spleen, and bone marrow. The high ADA activity in thymocytes appeared to be preferentially associated with cortical thymocytes. Enrichment or depletion of cortical thymocytes by density gradient centrifugation, cortisone treatment, or selective lysis with anti-Thy-1 plus complement resulted in parallel increases or decreases in ADA levles. These results also suggested that medullary thymocytes have ADA levels similar to those of peripheral lymphocytes. "Immature" cortical thymocytes and thymocyte progenitors appeared to have low ADA activity; low enzyme levels were found in fetal thymus at 16 days of embryonic life, in the early phases of thymus regeneration, and in a "null" cell population isolated from bone marrow. This study demonstrates that ADA activity varies markedly during T lymphocyte differentiation and suggests that fundamental differences in nucleotide metabolism may exist in T cells at different stages of development.     

Development of a capillary electrophoresis method for analyzing adenosine deaminase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase and its application in inhibitor screening

A novel capillary electrophoresis (CE) method was developed for simultaneous analysis of adenosine deaminase (ADA) and purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) in red blood cells (RBCs). The developed method considered and took advantage of the natural conversion from the ADA product, inosine to hypoxanthine. The transformation ratio was introduced for ADA and PNP analysis to obtain more reliable results. After optimizing the enzymatic incubation and electrophoresis separation conditions, the determined activities of ADA and PNP in 12 human RBCs were 0.237–0.833 U/ml and 9.013–10.453 U/ml packed cells, respectively. The analysis of ADA in mice RBCs indicated that there was an apparent activity difference between healthy and hepatoma mice. In addition, the proposed method was also successfully applied in the inhibitor screening from nine traditional Chinese medicines, and data showed that ADA activities were strongly inhibited by Rhizoma Chuanxiong and Angelica sinensis. The inhibition effect of Angelica sinensis on ADA is first reported here and could also inhibit PNP activity.     

Activities of adenosine deaminase (ADA) and purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) on undernourished and renourished rats' thymus

We studied the effect of administration of a low quality dietary protein, from weaning onwards, on the thymus of undernourished rats and the posterior effect of refeeding with a high quality dietary protein. Changes in thymus weight and the activity of Adenosine Deaminase (ADA) and Purine Nucleoside Phosphorylase (PNP) on thymus, were determined. Wistar rats were suckled in groups of 14-16 per dam since birth to weaning (23 days) to obtain undernutrition. At weaning, a group of 14-16 rats received pre-cooked maize flour (Protein content: 6.5%) for 18 days. One group was sacrificed (M) and the other rats were refed with the casein diet (Protein content: 20%) during 20 days (R). The age-matched control groups were fed stock diet since 40 (C40) and 60 (C60) days of age, respectively. At the end of the experimental period, body (Bw) and thymus weight were determined. ADA and PNP activities were determined in thymocyte suspensions. Highly significant differences in thymus weight-expressed as mg or mg/Bw(0.75)-and the activity of ADA and PNP were observed in rats fed the experimental diet containing maize flour, when compared to the respective age-matched control. No statistical differences were observed between R and C60.The administration of a high quality dietary protein to undernourished weanling rats is capable to reverse the damage produced by the low quality dietary protein on thymus weight and ADA and PNP thymus activities.     

Structure-activity relationship of a cold-adapted purine nucleoside phosphorylase by site-directed mutagenesis

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase can be expressed in Escherichia coli and the intact cells can be used as a catalyst for the biosynthesis of nucleosides. The purine nucleoside phosphorylases from E. coli (EcPNP) and Pseudoalteromonas sp. XM2107 (PsPNP) have been purified. In order to improve the catalytic efficiency, the model of three-dimensional structure of PsPNP was constructed, and then 9 active/binding-site mutants were constructed by one-step site-directed mutagenesis and characterized by steady-state kinetics. Double mutations exhibited the largest change of catalytic activity. The T90R:T156S mutant revealed 1000 fold enhancements in k(cat)/K(m) for inosine phosphorolysis. However, the T90A:T156A mutant revealed 500 fold reduction in catalytic activity when compared with wild-type one. These results in combination with the predicted locations of Thr90 and Thr156 side chains by homology modeling suggested that: (i) a complete hydrophobic pocket played an important role in the catalytic function of PsPNP; (ii) a potential transition state structure was present in hydrogen bond between the carboxyl groups of Thr90 in the phosphate binding site. Therefore, the application of site-directed mutagenesis will be benefit to further improve catalytic efficiency of PsPNP during the enzymatic synthesis of antivirus drug ribavirin.     

Some inhibitors of purine nucleoside phosphorylase

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) catalyzes reversible phosphorolysis of purine deoxy- and ribonucleosides with formation (d)Rib-1-P and corresponding bases. PNP plays a leading role in the cell metabolism of nucleosides and nucleotides, as well as in maintaining the immune status of an organism. The major aim of the majority of studies on the PNP is the detection of highly effective inhibitors of this enzyme, derivatives of purine nucleosides used in medicine as immunosuppressors, which are essential for creating selective T-cell immunodeficiency in a human body for organ and tissue transplantation. The present work is devoted to the study of the effects of some synthetic derivatives of purine nucleosides on activity of highly purified PNP from rabbit spleen and also from human healthy and tumor tissues of lung and kidneys. Purine nucleoside analogues modified at various positions of both the heterocyclic base and carbohydrate residues have been investigated. Several compounds, including 8-mercapto-acyclovir, 8-bromo-9-(3,4-hydroxybutyl)guanine, which demonstrated potent PNP inhibition, could be offered for subsequent study as immunosuppressors during organ and tissue transplantation.     

Design of purine nucleoside phosphorylase inhibitors

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase inhibitors hold promise as specific immunosuppressive, anti-T cell leukemic, and antiuricopoietic agents. The best inhibitors available that are biologically active have Ki values from 10(-6) to 10(-7) M and fall into two categories: noncleavable nucleosides preferably iodinated at the C-5' position and C-8-substituted guanine or acycloguanosines. More potent inhibition is shown by phosphorylated acyclonucleosides that function as multisubstrate analogs, but these compounds are excluded from cells. The X-ray analysis of the human erythrocytic enzyme is beginning to reveal the nature of the active site and to explain the structure-activity relationships that have been established with analog substrates and inhibitors.     

Nucleotide analogue inhibitors of purine nucleoside phosphorylase

The diphosphate of the antiherpetic agent acyclovir [9-[(2-hydroxyethoxy)methyl]guanine] has been shown to inhibit purine nucleoside phosphorylase with unique potency (Tuttle, J. V., and Krenitsky, T. A. (1984) J. Biol. Chem. 259, 4065-4069). A major factor contributing to the superior inhibition by this diphosphate over the corresponding mono- and triphosphates is revealed here. Homologues of acyclovir mono- and diphosphate that extend the ethoxy moiety by one to four methylene groups were synthesized. These homologues were evaluated for their ability to inhibit human purine nucleoside phosphorylase. Within the diphosphate series, the Ki values increased progressively with increasing chain length. With the monophosphates, the Ki values reached a minimum with the homologue containing a pentoxy moiety. A plot of chain length versus Ki values for both mono- and diphosphates showed that both series had similar optimal distances between the aminal carbon and the terminal oxygen anion. Monophosphates with optimal positioning were somewhat less potent than diphosphates with similar positioning. Nevertheless, it was clear that a major factor in determining potency of inhibition was the distance of the terminal phosphate from the guanine moiety.     

Allosteric regulation of purine nucleoside phosphorylase.

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase (EC 2.4.2.1) from bovine spleen is allosterically regulated. With the substrate inosine the enzyme displayed complex kinetics: positive cooperativity vs inosine when this substrate was close to physiological concentrations, negative cooperativity at inosine concentrations greater than 60 microM, and substrate inhibition at inosine greater than 1 mM. No cooperativity was observed with the alternative substrate, guanosine. The activity of purine nucleoside phosphorylase toward the substrate inosine was sensitive to the presence of reducing thiols; oxidation caused a loss of cooperativity toward inosine, as well as a 10-fold decreased affinity for inosine. The enzyme also displayed negative cooperativity toward phosphate at physiological concentrations of Pi, but oxidation had no effect on either the affinity or cooperativity toward phosphate. The importance of reduced cysteines on the enzyme is thus specific for binding of the nucleoside substrate. The enzyme was modestly inhibited by the pyrimidine nucleotides CTP (Ki = 118 microM) and UTP (Ki = 164 microM), but showed greater sensitivity to 5-phosphoribosyl-1-pyrophosphate (Ki = 5.2 microM).     

Another family with purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency

Summary A brief genetic report is given on a family with a child affected by nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency. Our observations confirm the genetic heterogeneity of this enzyme deficiency which is inherited as a mendelian autosomal trait.     

Altered purine and pyrimidine metabolism in erythrocytes with purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency

Purine and pyrimidine metabolism was compared in erythrocytes from three patients from two families with purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency and T-cell immunodeficiency, one heterozygote subject for this enzyme deficiency, one patient with a complete deficiency of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase, and two normal subjects. The erythrocytes from the heterozygote subject were indistinguishable from the normal erythrocytes. The purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficient erythrocytes had a block in the conversion of inosine to hypoxanthine. The erythrocytes with 0.07% of normal purine nucleoside phosphorylase activity resembled erythrocytes with hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase deficiency by having an elevated intracellular concentration of PP-ribose-P, increased synthesis of PP-ribose-P, and an elevated rate of carbon dioxide release from orotic acid during its conversion to UMP. Two hypotheses to account for the associated immunodeficiency—that the enzyme deficiency leads to a block of PP-ribose-P synthesis or inhibition of pyrimidine synthesis—could not be supported by observations in erythrocytes from both enzyme-deficient families.This work was supported by U.S. Public Health Service Grant AM 19674 and 5 M01 RR 42 and by a Grant-In-Aid from American Heart Association (77-849) and with funds contributed in part by the Michigan Heart Association. N.L.E. is a Rheumatology Fellow from the Rackman Arthritis Research Unit supported by Training Grant USPHS AM 07080.     

Purine metabolic enzymes in lymphocytes. II. Adenosine deaminase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase activities in the immune response

ICR mice were immunized with sheep red blood cells (sRBC). Both adenosine deaminase (ADA) and purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) activities in spleen lymphocytes increased faster than the serum antibody titer and reached a peak one week after the immunization. ADA activity increased significantly in T lymphocytes but not in B lymphocytes collected from the spleens of the immunized mice. A statistically significant increase in PNP activity was found in both T and B lymphocytes from the spleens of the immunized mice. Spleen lymphocytes collected from ICR mice which had been immunized with mitomycin C-treated sarcoma 180 (S180) cells one week earlier showed cytotoxic activity against viable S180 cells. Both ADA and PNP activities in spleen lymphocytes of S180-immunized mice increased significantly, and both activities increased in T lymphocytes prepared from spleen of immunized mice. In contrast, an increase was found in PNP activity but not in ADA activity in B lymphocytes. These results suggest that an increase in both ADA and PNP activities may by necessary for the T-cell response in both humoral and cellular immune responses, and that an increase in PNP activity may be necessary for the B-cell response.