Selenite incubated with NADPH and mammalian thioredoxin reductase yields selenide, which inhibits lipoxygenase and changes the electron spin resonance spectrum of the active site iron.

Selenite and selenodiglutathione (GS-Se-SG) efficiently inhibited 5-lipoxygenase activity in sonicates of human monoclonal B-lymphocytes. The apparent IC50 of GS-Se-SG was 0.5 microM.

Studies on the regulation and localization of 5-lipoxygenase in human B-lymphocytes.

Stimulated B-lymphocytes, isolated from patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia of B-cell type (B-CLL cells) or from human tonsils, produced similar amounts of leukotriene (LT) B4 and 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HETE) as polymorphonuclear granulocytes. Unlike intact granulocytes or monocytes, human B-lymphocytes require calcium ionophore, exogenous arachidonic acid and an oxidative environment in order to produce 5-lipoxygenase products. Several thiol-reactive compounds such as N-ethylmaleimide, methyl methanethiosulfonate, azodicarboxylic acid bis[dimethylamide] (diamide) as well as hydrogen peroxide were all found to stimulate cellular leukotriene biosynthesis.

On the expression and regulation of 5-lipoxygenase in human lymphocytes.

The expression of arachidonate 5-lipoxygenase (arachidonate:oxygen 5-oxidoreductase, EC 1.13.11.