Central nervous system-mediated hyperglycemic effects of NIK-247, a cholinesterase inhibitor, and MKC-231, a choline uptake enhancer, in rats. (9/3263)

We investigated the effects of intracerebroventricular administration of NIK-247 (9-amino-2,3,5,6,7,8-hexahydro-1H-cyclo-penta(b)-quinoline monohydrate hydrochloride; a cholinesterase inhibitor) or MKC-231 (2-(2-oxypyrrolidin-1-yl)-N-(2,3-dimethyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrofur o[2,3-b]quinolin-4-yl) acetoamide; a choline uptake enhancer) on plasma glucose level in comparison with that of neostigmine administration in rats. The extents of NIK-247- and MKC-231-induced hyperglycemia were considerably less than that by neostigmine, suggesting that the potencies of the drugs to produce the peripheral hyperglycemia may be pharmacologically negligible.  (+info)

Organophosphorylation of acetylcholinesterase in the presence of peripheral site ligands. Distinct effects of propidium and fasciculin. (10/3263)

Structural analysis of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) has revealed two sites of ligand interaction in the active site gorge: an acylation site at the base of the gorge and a peripheral site at its mouth. A goal of our studies is to understand how ligand binding to the peripheral site alters the reactivity of substrates and organophosphates at the acylation site. Kinetic rate constants were determined for the phosphorylation of AChE by two fluorogenic organophosphates, 7-[(diethoxyphosphoryl)oxy]-1-methylquinolinium iodide (DEPQ) and 7-[(methylethoxyphosphonyl)oxy]-4-methylcoumarin (EMPC), by monitoring release of the fluorescent leaving group. Rate constants obtained with human erythrocyte AChE were in good agreement with those obtained for recombinant human AChE produced from a high level Drosophila S2 cell expression system. First-order rate constants kOP were 1,600 +/- 300 min-1 for DEPQ and 150 +/- 11 min-1 for EMPC, and second-order rate constants kOP/KOP were 193 +/- 13 microM-1 min-1 for DEPQ and 0.7-1.0 +/- 0.1 microM-1 min-1 for EMPC. Binding of the small ligand propidium to the AChE peripheral site decreased kOP/KOP by factors of 2-20 for these organophosphates. Such modest inhibitory effects are consistent with our recently proposed steric blockade model (Szegletes, T., Mallender, W. D., and Rosenberry, T. L. (1998) Biochemistry 37, 4206-4216). Moreover, the binding of propidium resulted in a clear increase in kOP for EMPC, suggesting that molecular or electronic strain caused by the proximity of propidium to EMPC in the ternary complex may promote phosphorylation. In contrast, the binding of the polypeptide neurotoxin fasciculin to the peripheral site of AChE dramatically decreased phosphorylation rate constants. Values of kOP/KOP were decreased by factors of 10(3) to 10(5), and kOP was decreased by factors of 300-4,000. Such pronounced inhibition suggested a conformational change in the acylation site induced by fasciculin binding. As a note of caution to other investigators, measurements of phosphorylation of the fasciculin-AChE complex by AChE inactivation gave misleading rate constants because a small fraction of the AChE was resistant to inhibition by fasciculin.  (+info)

Effect of its demethylated metabolite on the pharmacokinetics of unchanged TAK-603, a new antirheumatic agent, in rats. (11/3263)

A factor in the dose-dependent pharmacokinetics of ethyl 4-(3, 4-dimethoxyphenyl)-6,7-dimethoxy-2-(1,2, 4-triazol-1-yl-methyl)quinoline-3-carboxylate (TAK-603) in rats was shown to be due to the inhibition of metabolic clearance of unchanged TAK-603 by its major metabolite, M-I, in other words, product inhibition. The effect of M-I on the metabolic clearance of TAK-603 was studied using rats continuously infused i.v. with this metabolite at rates of 5.3 and 16.0 mg/h/kg. The total body clearance of TAK-603 was decreased remarkably in M-I-infused rats, and the decline of total body clearance depended on the steady-state plasma concentrations of M-I. The effect of M-I generated from the dosed parent drug on the plasma concentration-time profile of TAK-603 was investigated using bile-cannulated rats after i.v. injection of 14C-labeled TAK-603 at doses of 1 and 15 mg/kg. Elimination rates of TAK-603 from rat plasma increased in the bile-cannulated rats in which systemic M-I levels were reduced by interrupting its enterohepatic circulation. To express, simultaneously, the relationships between TAK-603 and M-I in plasma concentration-time profiles, a kinetic model based on the product inhibition was developed for the bile-cannulated rats. A good agreement between calculated curves and the observed concentrations of both TAK-603 and M-I was found at 1 and 15 mg/kg, and the calculated curves were drawn using constant parameters for the two dosages. These results show that the product inhibition by M-I is one factor responsible for the dose-dependent pharmacokinetics of TAK-603 in rats.  (+info)

Attenuation of haloperidol-induced catalepsy by a 5-HT2C receptor antagonist. (12/3263)

Atypical neuroleptics produce fewer extrapyramidal side-effects (EPS) than typical neuroleptics. The pharmacological profile of atypical neuroleptics is that they have equivalent or higher antagonist affinity for 5-HT2 than for dopamine D2 receptors. Our aim was to identify which 5-HT2 receptor contributed to the atypical profile. Catalepsy was defined as rats remaining immobile over a horizontal metal bar for at least 30 s, 90 min after dosing. Radioligand binding assays were carried out with homogenates of human recombinant 5-HT2A, 5-HT2B and 5-HT2C receptors expressed in Human Embryo Kidney (HEK293) cells. Haloperidol (1.13 mg kg(-1) i.p.) induced catalepsy in all experiments. The selective 5-HT2C/2B receptor antagonist, SB-228357 (0.32-10 mg kg(-1) p.o.) significantly reversed haloperidol-induced catalepsy whereas the 5-HT2A and 5-HT2B receptor antagonists, MDL-100907 (0.003-0.1 mg kg(-1) p.o.) and SB-215505 (0.1-3.2 mg kg(-1) p.o.) respectively did not reverse haloperidol-induced catalepsy. The data suggest a role for 5-HT2C receptors in the anticataleptic action of SB-228357.  (+info)

DNA adducts of heterocyclic amine food mutagens: implications for mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. (13/3263)

The heterocyclic amines (HCAs) are a family of mutagenic/carcinogenic compounds produced during the pyrolysis of creatine, amino acids and proteins. The major subclass of HCAs found in the human diet comprise the aminoimidazoazaarenes (AIAs) 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ), 2-amino-3,4-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (MeIQ), 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (MeIQx), 2-amino-3,4,8-trimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (DiMeIQx) and 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP). All, except DiMeIQx, have been shown to be carcinogenic in animals. These compounds are present in cooked muscle meats at the p.p.b. level. Since the discovery of the HCAs in the late 1970s, many studies have examined the DNA adducts of these compounds. This review compiles the literature on AIA-DNA adducts including their identification and characterization, pathways of formation, mutagenesis in vitro and in vivo, and their association with carcinogenesis in animal models. It is now known that metabolic activation leading to the formation of DNA adducts is critical for mutagenicity and carcinogenicity of these compounds. All of the AIAs studied adduct to the guanine base, the major adduct being formed at the C8 position. Two AIAs, IQ and MeIQx, also form minor adducts at the N2 position of guanine. A growing body of literature has reported on the mutation spectra induced by AIA-guanine adducts. Studies of animal tumors induced by AIAs have begun to relate AIA-DNA adduct-induced mutagenic events with the mutations found in critical genes associated with oncogenesis. Several studies have demonstrated the feasibility of chemoprevention of AIA tumorigenesis. Only a few studies have reported on the detection of AIA-DNA adducts in human tissues; difficulties persist in the routine detection of AIA-DNA adducts in humans for the purpose of biomonitoring of exposure to AIAs. The AIAs are nevertheless regarded as possible human carcinogens, and future research on AIA-DNA adducts is likely to help address the role of AIAs in human cancer.  (+info)

Inhibition of the peroxidative degradation of haem as the basis of action of chloroquine and other quinoline antimalarials. (14/3263)

The malaria parasite feeds by degrading haemoglobin in an acidic food vacuole, producing free haem moieties as a by-product. The haem in oxyhaemoglobin is oxidized from the Fe(II) state to the Fe(III) state with the consequent production of an equimolar concentration of H2O2. We have analysed the fate of haem molecules in Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes and have found that only about one third of the haem is polymerized to form haemozoin. The remainder appears to be degraded by a non-enzymic process which leads to an accumulation of iron in the parasite. A possible route for degradation of the haem is by reacting with H2O2, and we show that, under conditions designed to resemble those found in the food vacuole, i.e., at pH5.2 in the presence of protein, free haem undergoes rapid peroxidative decomposition. Chloroquine and quinacrine are shown to be efficient inhibitors of the peroxidative destruction of haem, while epiquinine, a quinoline compound with very low antimalarial activity, has little inhibitory effect. We also show that chloroquine enhances the association of haem with membranes, while epiquinine inhibits this association, and that treatment of parasitized erythrocytes with chloroquine leads to a build-up of membrane-associated haem in the parasite. We suggest that chloroquine exerts its antimalarial activity by causing a build-up of toxic membrane-associated haem molecules that eventually destroy the integrity of the malaria parasite. We have further shown that resistance-modulating compounds, such as chlorpromazine, interact with haem and efficiently inhibit its degradation. This may explain the weak antimalarial activities of these compounds.  (+info)

Characterization of high affinity neurotensin receptor NTR1 in HL-60 cells and its down regulation during granulocytic differentiation. (15/3263)

1. We investigated responses to neurotensin in human promyelocytic leukaemia HL-60 cells. 2. Neurotensin increased the cytosolic calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) in a concentration-dependent manner and also produced inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3). 3. Among the tested neurotensin analogues, neurotensin 8-13, neuromedin-N, and xenopsin also increased [Ca2+]i, whereas neurotensin 1-11 and neurotensin 1-8 did not elicit detectable responses. 4. SR48692, an antagonist of NTR1 neurotensin receptors, blocked the neurotensin-induced [Ca2+]i increase, whereas levocabastine, which is known as an NTR2 neurotensin receptor antagonist, did not attenuate the neurotensin-evoked effect. 5. The expression of NTR1 neurotensin receptors was confirmed by Northern blot analysis and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). 6. During 1.25% dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO)-triggered granulocytic differentiation of HL-60 cells, the neurotensin-induced [Ca2+]i rise became gradually smaller and completely disappeared 4 days after treatment with DMSO. The mRNA level for neurotensin receptors was also decreased after differentiation. 7. The results show that HL-60 cells express NTR1 neurotensin receptors and suggest that granulocytic differentiation involves transcriptional regulation of the receptors resulting in down-regulation of the neurotensin-induced signalling.  (+info)

Opioid-induced second window of cardioprotection: potential role of mitochondrial KATP channels. (16/3263)

Opioids have been previously shown to confer short-term cardioprotection against a prolonged ischemic insult. Therefore, the present study was designed to determine whether opioids can induce a delayed or "second window" of cardioprotection and to assess the potential involvement of the mitochondrial KATP channel. All rats were subjected to 30 minutes of ischemia and 2 hours of reperfusion (I/R). Control animals, injected with saline 24 hours before I/R, elicited an infarct size/area at risk (IS/AAR) of 62.9+/-3.4. TAN-67, a delta1-opioid receptor agonist, was administered 10 or 30 mg/kg IP 12, 24, 48, or 72 hours before I/R. TAN-67 (10 mg/kg) 12- or 24-hour pretreatment did not significantly reduce IS/AAR (62.1+/-6.3 and 43.3+/-7.3, respectively). Similarly, 12-hour pretreatment with TAN-67 (30 mg/kg) did not reduce IS/AAR (60.0+/-5.6); however, 24-hour pretreatment significantly reduced IS/AAR (34.5+/-5.9). Forty-eight-hour pretreatment with TAN-67 maximally reduced IS/AAR (29.2+/-7.0), and opioid-induced cardioprotection was lost after 72-hour pretreatment (61.7+/-3.8). TAN-67-induced cardioprotection could be abolished by pretreatment with the selective delta1-opioid receptor antagonist 7-benzylidenenaltrexone, BNTX, administered either 30 minutes before TAN-67 given 48 hours before I/R or 10 minutes before I/R in rats previously treated for 48 hours with TAN-67 (59.6+/-3.1 and 58.7+/-3.5, respectively). The involvement of the KATP channel was investigated with 2 inhibitors: glibenclamide, a nonselective KATP channel inhibitor, and 5-hydroxydecanoic acid, selective for the mitochondrial KATP channel in rabbits. Glibenclamide, administered 30 minutes before I/R in 48-hour TAN-67-pretreated rats, completely abolished cardioprotection (60. 4+/-3.2). Similarly, 5-hydroxydecanoic acid, administered 5 minutes before I/R in rats pretreated 48 hours previously with TAN-67, completely abolished cardioprotection (57.8+/-2.5). These results suggest that delta1-opioid receptor stimulation, 24 to 48 hours before an ischemic insult, produces a delayed cardioprotective effect that is possibly the result of mitochondrial KATP channel activation.  (+info)