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Biomedical subjects

J Halpert

Publications and source records attributed to J Halpert.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

Chronic fatigue syndrome: an examination of the phases.

The present study examined the Fennell Phase Inventory, an instrument designed to measure the phases typically experienced by individuals with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). This inventory yields three factor scores of Crisis, Stabilization, and Integration. These factor scores have been employed in a cluster analysis, yielding four clusters that matched the four phases predicted by Fennell: Crisis, Stabilization, Resolution, and Integration. The present study represents a partial replication study of a prior investigation of the Fennell Phase Inventory by Jason et al. (in press), but that earlier study did not have an independent physician examination to diagnose patients with CFS. In the present study, 65 patients diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome by a physician were recruited and administered the Fennell Phase Inventory and other measures assessing CFS-related symptoms, disability, and coping. Each of the 65 patients was classified into one of four predefined clusters measuring a Crisis phase, a Stabilization phase, a Resolution phase, and an Integration phase. Relationships were explored between three of these cluster groupings and measures of symptoms, disability, and coping. Results confirmed Fennell's model, revealing significant differences between the three clusters in terms of levels of disability and modes of coping. Results suggest that the Fennell Phase Inventory accurately differentiates phases of adaptation to illness experienced by individuals with CFS.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

Reduction of thyroid hormone may participate in the modulation of cytochromes P450 2C11 and 3A2 by retinol.

Both hypothyroidism and retinol supplementation in rats induce CYP 3A2 and suppress CYP 2C11. Therefore studies were performed to evaluate the role of thyroid hormones in the modulation of P450 expression by retinol. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were given retinol as a single oral dose of 75 mg/kg. Rats were killed and hepatic microsomes prepared at 24, 48, 72, and 96 hr following treatment. The catalytic activity of 2C11 was reduced maximally by retinol at 48 hr (by 30%) whereas 3A2 activity was elevated maximally at 24 hr (by 30%). The serum concentration of testosterone was not altered at any time point. However, retinol produced a decline in the concentration of thyroxine by 35% and 43% at 24 and 48 hr, respectively. These data suggest that administration of large doses of retinol may alter hepatic microsomal enzyme expression by perturbation of plasma thyroid hormone levels.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Effects of social support on medical students' performances.

BACKGROUND: Stress among medical students has been linked to poor academic performance, while supportive social relationships have been associated with the alleviation of psychological stress. This study examines social support as a potential buffer against stress and hence as a potential strengthener of students' academic performances. METHOD: A cohort of 153 third-year students at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago was asked in the fall of 1990 to complete a questionnaire assessing role stress (stress involving competing demands between school and social and/or family life), social support, and sources of support (outside or inside medical school). Grades for the five major clerkships through which all the students rotated during their third year were collected from student transcripts. Statistical analyses of the relationships among academic performance, stress, and social support included factor analysis, hierarchical multiple-regression analysis, and Pearson correlational analysis. RESULTS: Data from 120 students (78% of the cohort) were used for correlational analysis. Of these students, 79 (66%) were men and 41 (34%) were women. Because eight of the questionnaires contained incomplete data, 112 questionnaires (73%) were used for multiple-regression analysis. No buffering effect was found for social support. Rather, social support from outside the medical school explained significant variance in academic performances and in role stress. Higher levels of outside support were associated with poorer clerkship grades for women, but with lower levels of stress for men. Also, total support (outside and inside combined) was negatively related to clerkship grades for the entire sample. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that contrary to the study's hypotheses, social support in general is related to lower levels of academic performance for both men and women, and that the negative effects of support from outside the medical school context may be particularly salient for women. These results are understandable given the nature of medical training, which places great demands on students' time. Therefore, it may be more appropriate for medical schools to promote time-management strategies than support-building interventions, especially for women.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1991

Mechanism-based inactivation of bovine adrenal cytochromes P450 C-21 and P450 17 alpha by 17 beta-substituted steroids.

A series of progesterone derivatives has been studied as potential inactivators of the bovine adrenocortical cytochromes P450, P450 17 alpha, and P450 C-21. Replacement of the 21-methyl group of progesterone with a difluoromethyl group resulted in a selective inactivator of P450 C-21 in a reconstituted system. The loss of 21-hydroxylase activity caused by this compound exhibits a number of characteristics of mechanism-based inactivation including NADPH dependence, pseudo-first-order kinetics, saturability, irreversibility, and protection by substrate. In addition to the difluoro compound, 21,21-dichloroprogesterone, the acetylenic compound pregn-4-en-20-yn-3-one, and the olefinic compound pregna-4,20-dien-3-one all inactivate P450 C-21. In contrast, the only compound to inactivate the rabbit adrenal progesterone 21-hydroxylase is 21,21-dichloroprogesterone. In binding studies, the 21,21-dihalo steroids produce a greater maximal type I spectral shift of P450 C-21 than the two 17 beta-unsaturated steroids. The dihalo compounds inactivate P450 C-21 by both heme destruction and protein modification as shown by significant decreases in residual 21-hydroxylase activity and spectrally detectable P450 after incubation with P450 C-21 in a reconstituted system. Liquid chromatographic and mass spectral analyses of the organic extracts from these incubations showed that 21-pregnenoic acid is a major metabolite of the dihalo compounds with a partition ratio of 5 nmol of acid produced/nmol of P450 C-21 inactivated. This supports the hypothesis that inactivation proceeds in part through an acyl halide intermediate. In contrast, the acetylenic compound pregn-4-en-20-yn-3-one inactivates P450 C-21 mainly by protein modification, producing an NADPH-dependent irreversible type I spectral shift. The stoichiometry of inactivation is approximately 1.5 nmol of compound bound/nmol of enzyme inactivated, indicating selective modification of the enzyme at or near the substrate binding site.

Adrenal Glands↗
PubMed1989

Specific inactivation by 17 beta-substituted steroids of rabbit and rat liver cytochromes P-450 responsible for progesterone 21-hydroxylation.

The selective inactivation by 17 beta-substituted steroids of rabbit and rat liver cytochromes P-450 involved in the 21-hydroxylation of progesterone has been investigated. Five derivatives each of pregnenolone and progesterone were prepared, in which the methylketo substituent of the 17 beta-position was replaced by a dichloromethylketo, chlorofluoromethylketo, difluoromethylketo, vinyl, or ethynyl group. The ability of the compounds to cause time-dependent (inactivation) and time-independent (inhibition) decreases in progesterone hydroxylase activity was assessed in vitro using intact liver microsomes as well as reconstituted systems containing the major forms of hepatic cytochrome P-450 responsible for progesterone 21-hydroxylation, P-450 1 in the rabbit and PB-C in the rat. In each species, one compound was identified that specifically inactivated the 21-hydroxylase, namely 21-chloro-21-fluoropregnenolone in the rabbit and pregn-4,20-diene-3-one in the rat, although both compounds inhibited several other hydroxylases as well. Moreover, the most effective and specific 21-hydroxylase inactivators were not necessarily the most effective or specific inhibitors. These results suggest that conversion of the enzyme-inhibitor complex to metabolites that inactivate the enzyme, rather than complex formation, is the crucial factor in determining the specificity of the compounds as cytochrome P-450 inactivators. The results indicate the feasibility of designing specific inactivators of hepatic cytochromes P-450 by utilizing the normal regioselectivity of the target enzyme towards steroids.

Androstenedione↗
PubMed1988

Selective inactivation by 21-chlorinated steroids of rabbit liver and adrenal microsomal cytochromes P-450 involved in progesterone hydroxylation.

The inactivation by 21-chlorinated steroids of rabbit liver cytochromes P-450 involved in the hydroxylation of progesterone has been investigated in intact microsomes encompassing two phenotypes of 21-hydroxylase activity, two phenotypes of 16 alpha-hydroxylase activity, and three phenotypes of 6 beta-hydroxylase activity. In liver microsomes from outbred New Zealand White male rabbits exhibiting a high content of cytochrome P-450 1, 21,21-dichloropregnenolone caused a time- and NADPH-dependent loss of 21-hydroxylase activity. This loss of activity exhibited a number of characteristics of mechanism-based inactivation, including irreversibility, saturation with increasing inhibitor concentrations, and protection by substrate, and was also documented with purified P-450 1 in a reconstituted system. 21,21-Dichloropregnenolone caused no time-dependent loss of 6 beta-hydroxylase activity in microsomes from the New Zealand White rabbits or from control or rifampicin-treated rabbits of the inbred B/J strain. In contrast, in the microsomes from the B/J rabbits, some inactivation of the 16 alpha-hydroxylase was observed (k = 0.04 min-1), regardless of the rifampicin treatment. The other two compounds tested, 21-chloropregnenolone and 21,21-dichloroprogesterone, were less effective than the dichloropregnenolone as inactivators of cytochrome P-450 1. On the other hand, 21,21-dichloroprogesterone, but not 21,21-dichloropregneolone, caused a rapid time-dependent loss of 21-hydroxylase activity in rabbit adrenal microsomes. The results indicate that the introduction of a dichloromethyl group into a substrate bearing a methyl group normally hydroxylated by only one or a few forms of cytochrome P-450 may be a rational means of designing selective inhibitors of the enzyme.

Adrenal Glands↗
PubMed1988

Selective inactivation of four rat liver microsomal androstenedione hydroxylases by chloramphenicol analogs.

The steroid androstenedione has been shown to be a valuable tool for the study of the selective inactivation of cytochrome P-450 isozymes in intact rat liver microsomes. The validity of this approach was investigated using microsomes, purified cytochrome P-450 isozymes, antibodies to particular cytochromes P-450, and the known mechanism-based inactivator chloramphenicol. Enzyme inactivation and antibody inhibition studies show that microsomes from both phenobarbital- and non-phenobarbital-treated rats are needed to accurately monitor the inactivation of the major phenobarbital-inducible cytochrome P-450 isozyme (PB-B) and of the major constitutive androstenedione 16 alpha-hydroxylase (UT-A). Similar experiments indicate that, although isozyme P-450g does catalyze the 6 beta-hydroxylation of androstenedione in a reconstituted system, this cytochrome appears to make only a minimal contribution to microsomal 6 beta-hydroxylase activity, which reflects instead the activity of pregnenolone-16 alpha-carbonitrile-induced isozymes. With these parameters investigated, initial enzyme inactivation studies showed that the antibiotic chloramphenicol caused different rates of NADPH-dependent enzyme inactivation among the four androstenedione hydroxylases monitored (16 beta greater than 6 beta greater than 16 alpha greater than 7 alpha). Based on these data, 12 chloramphenicol analogs were examined, and the results with these compounds show that their selectivity as cytochrome P-450 inactivators is a function of at least three structural features: 1) the number of halogen atoms, 2) the presence of a para-nitro group on the phenyl ring, and 3) substitutions on the ethyl side chain. For example, the compound N-(2-phenethyl)dichloroacetamide was shown to reversibly inhibit but not inactivate the cytochrome(s) P-450 responsible for androstenedione 6 beta-hydroxylase activity, whereas N-(2-p-nitrophenethyl) and N-(1,2-diphenethyl)dichloroacetamide rapidly inactivated the 6 beta-hydroxylase. The ability to monitor the activity of multiple isozymes with a single substrate should allow the development of a systematic approach to the design of selective inactivators of rat liver cytochromes P-450.

Androstenedione↗
PubMed1987

Evidence for functional and structural multiplicity of pregnenolone-16 alpha-carbonitrile-inducible cytochrome P-450 isozymes in rat liver microsomes.

Administration of pregnenolone-16 alpha-carbonitrile (PCN) to adult female rats caused a 2-fold increase in total liver microsomal cytochrome P-450 along with 5-7-fold increases in four in vitro monooxygenase activities considered diagnostic for the major PCN-inducible cytochrome P-450 isozyme. However, upon administration of chloramphenicol to PCN-treated rats, these monooxygenase activities could be resolved into three groups. Thus, the ability of the microsomes to convert triacetyloleandomycin to a metabolite that forms a spectral complex with the reduced heme iron was decreased by 80% by chloramphenicol, whereas only a 50% decrease was observed in the rate of conversion of (R)-warfarin to its 9,10-dehydro metabolite and in the rate of 6 beta-hydroxylation of androstenedione. More strikingly, the 10-hydroxylation of (R)-warfarin was actually enhanced 2-fold by the chloramphenicol treatment. Fractionation studies were carried out on liver microsomes from PCN-treated adult male rats, and two highly purified cytochromes P-450, referred to as PCNa and PCNb, were recovered. PCNb was found to be identical in the sequence of the first 15 amino acid residues with a PCN-inducible isozyme, the complete amino acid sequence of which has recently been deduced in another laboratory [Gonzalez, F. J., Nebert, D. W., Hardwick, J. P., & Kasper, C. B. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 7435-7441]. The other isozyme, PCNa, differed in amino acid sequence in three of the first 15 positions from PCNb. Upon immunoblot analysis, polyclonal antibodies raised to PCNb also recognized PCNa. Thus, the PCN-inducible family of rat liver cytochrome P-450 comprises at least two separate proteins.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Rat lung and liver microsomal cytochrome P-450 isozymes involved in the hydroxylation of n-hexane.

The primary metabolism of n-hexane in rat lung and liver microsomes was investigated. In liver microsomes from untreated animals the formation of each of the metabolites, 1-, 2- and 3-hexanol, was best described kinetically by a two-enzyme system, whereas for lung microsomes a one-enzyme system was indicated for each metabolite. Cytochrome P-450-PB-B, the major cytochrome P-450 isozyme induced in rat liver by phenobarbital, appeared to be responsible for the formation of 2- and 3-hexanol in lung microsomes from untreated rats as judged by antibody inhibition studies. The presence of this isozyme was confirmed by immunoblotting. In contrast, formation of 1-hexanol in rat lung was catalyzed by a cytochrome P-450 isozyme different from the major isozymes induced by either phenobarbital or beta-naphthoflavone. Similarly, formation of 2,5-hexanediol from 2-hexanol was catalyzed by a P-450 isozyme different from cytochrome P-450-PB-B and present in liver but not in lung microsomes. Furthermore, alcohol dehydrogenase activity with hexanols or hexanediol as the substrate was found exclusively in liver cytosol. These results suggest that inhaled n-hexane must be transported to the liver either intact or in the form of 2-hexanol before the neurotoxic metabolite 2,5-hexanedione can be formed.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Rat lung and liver cytochrome P-450 isozymes involved in the hydroxylation of m-xylene.

The primary metabolism of m-xylene in rat lung and liver microsomes was investigated. The ratio of side chain to aromatic hydroxylation was found to be approximately 1:1 in lung microsomes from untreated rats and in a reconstituted system containing the major cytochrome P-450 isozyme induced in rat liver by phenobarbital, cytochrome P-450-PB-B2, as compared to 8:1 in liver microsomes. Antibody inhibition studies showed the major importance of cytochrome P-450-PB-B2 for the formation of both primary m-xylene metabolites (3-methylbenzylalcohol and 2,4-dimethylphenol) in lung microsomes. Antibodies to the major cytochrome P-450 isozyme induced in rat liver by beta-naphthoflavone, P-450-BNF-B2, did not inhibit m-xylene metabolism in either liver or lung microsomes from beta-naphthoflavone treated rats although this isozyme efficiently catalyzed m-xylene hydroxylation in a reconstituted system. m-Xylene metabolism by purified P-450-BNF-B2 appeared to cause rapid inactivation of the enzyme.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Analogues of chloramphenicol as mechanism-based inactivators of rat liver cytochrome P-450: modifications of the propanediol side chain, the p-nitro group, and the dichloromethyl moiety.

The importance of the p-nitro group, the propanediol side chain, and the dichloromethyl moiety of chloramphenicol in regulating its effectiveness and selectivity as a mechanism-based inactivator of rat liver cytochromes P-450 has been examined. 1-p-Nitrophenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane, 1-p-nitrophenyl-2-dibromoacetamidoethane, and 1-phenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane were as effective as chloramphenicol at inactivating the major phenobarbital-inducible isozyme of rat liver cytochrome P-450, whereas 1-p-nitrophenyl-2-difluoroacetamidoethane caused no enzyme inactivation. Unlike chloramphenicol, 1-p-nitrophenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane and 1-phenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane also inactivated the major beta-naphthoflavone-inducible isozyme of rat liver cytochrome P-450. Alkaline hydrolysis of the adducts formed upon in vitro incubation of liver microsomes from phenobarbital- and beta-naphthoflavone-induced rats with [14C]-1-p-nitrophenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane resulted in the release of 4-nitro-1-phenethyl-1,2-dicarboxylic acid amide and oxalic acid. Enzymatic digests of the radio-labeled protein produced by incubation of a reconstituted system containing the major isozymes induced by beta-naphthoflavone or phenobarbital with [14C]-1-p-nitrophenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane led to the release of 4-nitro-1-phenethyl-1,2-dicarboxylic acid amide and 4-nitro-1-phenethyl oxamyl lysine. These results suggest that a single oxamyl chloride intermediate is responsible for the covalent modification and, hence, inactivation of both isozymes by 1-p-nitrophenyl-2-dichloroacetamidoethane.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Ethoxy-, pentoxy- and benzyloxyphenoxazones and homologues: a series of substrates to distinguish between different induced cytochromes P-450.

The individual members of a homologous series of phenoxazone ethers related to ethoxyresorufin were O-dealkylated, and the parent compound phenoxazone was ring-hydroxylated, each at different rates with hepatic microsomes of untreated rats. A structure-activity relationship (SAR) was plotted, relating the rate of O-dealkylation to the length and type of the ether side-chain. Phenobarbitone (PB), 3-methylcholanthrene (MC), Aroclor 1254 (ARO), isosafrole (ISO) and SKF-525A each induced preferentially the O-dealkylation of different members of the homologous series, resulting in the appearance of 5 different SAR plots, which characterized and differentiated between the 5 different inducers. beta-Napthoflavone (BNF) had a similar effect to MC, whereas pregnenolone 16 alpha-carbonitrile treatment caused no large change in the metabolism of any of the substrates tested. For characterizing the effects of the different inducers it was largely sufficient to compare the O-dealkylations of just 4 of the ethers: methoxy-, ethoxy-, pentoxy- and benzyloxyphenoxazone. Very high degrees of induction were seen. MC and ARO each induced preferentially the O-dealkylation of ethoxyphenoxazone (51- and 61-fold respectively). PB and SKF-525A each induced preferentially the O-dealkylation of pentoxyphenoxazone (283- and 324-fold respectively). ISO induced preferentially the O-dealkylation of benzyloxyphenoxazone (43-fold). For any particular induced type of microsomes the substrate with the fastest metabolism was not necessarily the substrate whose metabolism was induced the most, so that in order to characterize each of the 5 different inducers (PB, MC/BNF, ARO, ISO, SKF) it was necessary to compare both the degrees of induction and the specific activities of the reactions. Experiments with purified cyt. P-450 isozymes showed that ethoxyphenoxazone and pentoxyphenoxazone were highly selective substrates for the major isozymes induced by MC and PB respectively, whilst benzyloxyphenoxazone was a good substrate for both isozymes. Experiments using the organic inhibitors metyrapone and alpha-naphthoflavone and inhibitory antibodies against individual cyt. P-450 isozymes indicated that similar substrate selectivities occurred with the monooxygenase system in the microsomal membrane. It is suggested that the use of some or all of these homologous phenoxazone ethers will provide both a simple routine test for the characterization of several types of inducing agents and a powerful tool for investigating the biochemical basis for cyt. P-450 isozyme substrate selectivity.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Isozyme selectivity of the inhibition of rat liver cytochromes P-450 by chloramphenicol in vivo.

The isozyme-selectivity of chloramphenicol as an inhibitor of rat liver cytochromes P-450 has been investigated. Untreated rats and rats treated with the inducers phenobarbital, beta-naphthoflavone, pregnenolone 16 alpha-carbonitrile, and clofibrate have been injected intraperitoneally with chloramphenicol, and inhibition of specific cytochrome P-450 isozymes has been assessed by monitoring the metabolism of warfarin, testosterone, isosafrole, or lauric acid in subsequently prepared hepatic microsomal preparations. Of eight major cytochrome P-450 isozymes which could be monitored in this fashion, three were inhibited by more than 50% by a dose of chloramphenicol of 300 mg/kg, whereas no evidence of inhibition of the remaining isozymes was obtained. P-450PB-C, an isozyme which is present in significant amounts in untreated rats and which is induced approximately 2-fold by phenobarbital, was the most susceptible cytochrome P-450 to inhibition by chloramphenicol both in vivo and in vitro. P-450PB-B, the major phenobarbital-inducible isozyme, and P-450UT-A, a male-specific testosterone 2 alpha- and 16 alpha-hydroxylase, were intermediate in their susceptibility to chloramphenicol. In contrast, the major isozymes induced by beta-naphthoflavone, pregnenolone 16 alpha-carbonitrile, and clofibrate, as well as a constitutive testosterone 7 alpha-hydroxylase, were not inhibited by chloramphenicol.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Purification, characterization, and pituitary regulation of the sex-specific cytochrome P-450 15 beta-hydroxylase from liver microsomes of untreated female rats.

A sex-differentiated form of cytochrome P-450 has been purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from liver microsomes of untreated female rats. The purified preparation contained 17 nmol of P-450/mg of protein and had a minimum molecular weight of 50,000. The final preparation was active in the hydroxylation of 5 alpha-[3H]androstane-3 alpha, 17 beta-diol 3,17-disulfate in the 15 beta position, with a turnover number of 2.6 nmol/min/nmol P-450 and is designated "P-450 15 beta" on the basis of this activity. Cytochrome P-450 15 beta is isolated essentially in the low-spin state and has a CO-reduced difference spectral maximum at 449 nm. Comparison of the female protein with the corresponding P-450 fraction from male rats revealed an absence of the 15 beta band in the male electrophoretic profile. Specific antibodies to isozyme 15 beta were used with a Western blot technique to demonstrate the virtual absence of the protein in male microsomes. This method was also used to demonstrate that hypophysectomy of female rats resulted in undetectable levels of the 15 beta-hydroxylase, while continuous infusion of growth hormone to normal male animals increased the 15 beta-hydroxylase level to that of female. P-450 15 beta is proposed to be the enzyme responsible for the predominance of 15 beta-hydroxylated steroid sulfate metabolites in excreta of female rats, and their absence in males. The same purification procedure for female rat liver microsomes also yielded another purified cytochrome P-450 characterized by a minimum molecular weight of 52,500, termed P-450 DEa, which was inefficient in the 15 beta-hydroxylation of 5 alpha-[3H]androstane-3 alpha, 17 beta-diol 3, 17-disulfate. No evidence was obtained that this form is sexually differentiated.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Covalent binding of benzo[a]pyrene to cytochrome P-450 beta NF-B2 and other proteins in reconstituted mixed-function oxidase systems.

A reconstituted mixed-function oxidase system, containing the major beta-naphthoflavone-induced isozyme of rat liver cytochrome P-450 bound benzo[a]pyrene covalently in the presence of NADPH. NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase was required for binding and a maximum rate of adduct formation was obtained at 8 units of reductase per nmol cytochrome P-450. Phosphatidylcholine inhibited this reaction. Benzo[a]pyrene was bound to the cytochrome, but not to the reductase, as shown by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Approximately 6 molecules of benzo[a]pyrene bound to each molecule cytochrome P-450 during prolonged incubations. No binding occurred when the beta-naphthoflavone-induced isozyme of cytochrome P-450 was replaced by the major isozyme induced by phenobarbital, but both cytochromes incorporated benzo[a]pyrene to approximately the same extent when they were incubated together in the presence of the reductase and NADPH. Metabolically activated benzo[a]pyrene also bound covalently to purified epoxide hydrolase, when this enzyme was added to the reconstituted mixed-function oxidase system.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Selective inhibition by chloramphenicol of cytochrome P-450 isozymes in rat lung and liver involved in the hydroxylation of n-hexane.

Treatment of rats with chloramphenicol causes a dose-dependent and regioselective inhibition of the metabolism of the organic solvent n-hexane in both liver and lung microsomes. A dose of chloramphenicol of 100 mg kg-1 administered i.v. or i.p. results in more than 50% inhibition of 2-hexanol formation catalyzed by microsomes from both organs, but causes no inhibition of 1-hexanol formation. The effects of chloramphenicol on 3-hexanol formation are somewhat organ-specific. In the liver 3-hexanol formation is inhibited to almost the same extent as 2-hexanol formation, whereas in the lung the inhibition of the formation of 3-hexanol is markedly less. Phenobarbital induces n-hexane metabolism in the liver but not the lung, but decreases the inhibitory potency of chloramphenicol toward both organs. In vitro chloramphenicol causes both reversible and irreversible inhibition of 2-hexanol formation in control lung microsomes. The irreversible inhibition is accompanied by the covalent binding of metabolites of chloramphenicol to the lung microsomes. The covalent binding is completely inhibited by antibodies to the major phenobarbital-induced isozyme of rat liver cytochrome P-450. These antibodies also cause more than 90% inhibition of 2-hexanol formation by lung microsomes. The results suggest that chloramphenicol acts as a selective suicide substrate of a constitutive isozyme of rat lung cytochrome P-450 involved in the 2-hydroxylation of n-hexane.

Animals↗