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Hoffmann, R. A wiki for the life sciences where authorship matters. Nature Genetics (2008)
 
 
 

A bioactive metabolite of benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-dione, selectively alters microsomal Ca2+ transport and ryanodine receptor function.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are environmental pollutants known to be carcinogenic and immunotoxic. In intact cell assays, benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) disrupts Ca(2+) homeostasis in both immune and nonimmune cells, but the molecular mechanism is undefined. In this study, B[a]P and five metabolites are examined for their ability to alter Ca(2+) transport across microsomal membranes. Using a well-defined model system, junctional SR vesicles from skeletal muscle, we show that a single o-quinone metabolite of B[a]P, B[a]P-7,8-dione, can account for altered Ca(2+) transport across microsomal membranes. B[a]P-7,8-dione induces net Ca(2+) release from actively loaded vesicles in a dose-, time-, and Ca(2+)-dependent manner. In the presence of 5 microM extravesicular Ca(2+), B[a]P-7,8-dione exhibited threshold and EC(50) values of 0.4 and 2 microM, respectively, and a maximal release rate of 2 micromol of Ca(2+) min(-1) mg(-1). The mechanism by which B[a]P-7,8-dione enhanced Ca(2+) efflux was further investigated by measuring macroscopic fluxes and single RyR1 channels reconstituted in bilayer lipid membranes and direct measurements of SERCA catalytic activity. B[a]P-7,8-dione (< or = 20 microM) had no measurable effect on initial rates of Ca(2+) accumulation in the presence of ruthenium red to block ryanodine receptor (RyR1), nor did it alter Ca(2+)-dependent (thapsigargin-sensitive) ATPase activity. B[a]P-7,8-dione selectively altered the function of RyR1 in a time-dependent diphasic manner, first activating then inhibiting channel activity. Considering that RyR1 and its two alternate isoforms are broadly expressed in mammalian cells and their important role in Ca(2+)-signaling, the present results reveal a mechanism by which metabolic bioactivation of B[a]P may mediate RyR dysfunction of pathophysiological significance.[1]

References

  1. A bioactive metabolite of benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-dione, selectively alters microsomal Ca2+ transport and ryanodine receptor function. Pessah, I.N., Beltzner, C., Burchiel, S.W., Sridhar, G., Penning, T., Feng, W. Mol. Pharmacol. (2001) [Pubmed]
 
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