Involvement of carbonyl reductase in superoxide formation through redox cycling of adrenochrome and 9,10-phenanthrenequinone in pig heart.

The effects of adrenochrome, a metabolite of epinephrine (adrenaline), and 9,10-phenanthrenequinone (PQ), a component of diesel exhaust particles, on the stereoselective reduction of 4-benzoylpyridine (4-BP) were examined in pig heart cytosol. PQ was a potent inhibitor for the 4-BP reduction, while adrenochrome was a poor inhibitor. A similar result was observed in the effects of adrenochrome and PQ on the reduction of all-trans retinal.

9,10-phenanthrenequinone, a component of diesel exhaust particles, inhibits the reduction of 4-benzoylpyridine and all-trans-retinal and mediates superoxide formation through its redox cycling in pig heart.

We have recently purified a tetrameric carbonyl reductase from the cytosolic fraction of pig heart (pig heart carbonyl reductase, PHCR), using 4-benzoylpyridine (4-BP) as the substrate. PHCR has the ability to catalyze efficiently the reduction of 9,10-phenanthrenequinone (PQ) contained in diesel exhaust particles (DEPs). Thus, the present study was attempted to characterize the inhibitory effect of PQ on the reduction of 4-BP and all-trans-retinal in pig heart cytosol.