"'..

t:"'''"
..c,

------

,,/-~\

'Q

.,)

.,.-,.::O'-'~.

.-'

302

4S
MICROSOMAL

ELECTRON

TRANSPORT AND CYT

P-450

tween the amount of reduced pyridine nucleotide added and the amount
of formaldehyde formed indicate that the N-demethylation reaction
represents only one of several pathways for the oxidative metabolism of
the particular substrate or that the reaction leadirlg to formaldehyde
liberation is partially uncoupled, e.g., associatefl"'ith hydrogen peroxide
formation." From the results shown in Fig . .9{"2.2 mol of NADPH can be
calculated to be required for the li.b.el}t1'bn of 1 mol of formaldehyde
from ethylmorphine; for example, lWProximately 55% of the reducing
equivalents remain unaccounted fef.
Furthermore, it can, be d~onstrated
that semicarbazide is not
generally required as a tiajiPfug agent for formaldehyde, since no loss of
formaldehyde occurs ay3'n over a time period of more than 15 min.
Semicarbazide shoulcVbe u~d, however, if conditions, such as the
presence of cyanide/leading lo\he formation of cyanohydrines," require
its presence a~/n aldehyde tr~~ing agent. Semi carbazide does not
interfere with line N-demethylation reaction of ethylmorphine nor does it
attenuate tJ:rt intensity of the forJation of DDL during the Nash
reaction. ly'
-,
9
10

D. T;lMowry, Chem. Rev. 42, 189 (1948).

M.A. Correia and G. J. Mannering, Mol. Pharmacal. 9,455 (1973).

[30] Microsomal Lipid Peroxidation

By JOHN A. BUEGEand STEVEND. AUST

Lipid peroxidation is a complex process known to occur in both

plants and animals. It involves the formation and propagation of lipid
radicals, the uptake of oxygen, a rearrangement of the double bonds in
unsaturated lipids, and the eventual destruction of membrane lipids,
producing a variety of breakdown products, including alcohols, ketones,
aldehydes, and ethers.' The peroxidation of linoleic acid alone results in
the formation of at least 20 degradation products." Biological membranes
are often rich in unsaturated fatty acids and bathed in an oxygen-rich,
metal-containing fluid. Therefore, it is not suprising that membrane
lipids are susceptible to peroxidative attack.
Lipid peroxidation usually begins with the abstraction of a hydrogen
atom from an unsaturated fatty acid, resulting in the formation of a lipid
1
2

H. W. Gardner, J. Agric. Food Chon. 23, 129 (1975).

H. W. Gardner, R. Kleiman, and D. WeisJeder, Lipids 9, 6% (1974).

[30]

'-...J

303

MICROSOMAL LI PID PEROXIDA nON

radical. 3 The rearrangement of the double bonds results in the formation

of conjugated dienes. Attack by molecular oxygen produces a lipid
peroxy radical, which can either abstract a hydrogen atom from an
adjacent lipid to form a lipid hydroperoxide, or form a lipid endoperoxide. The formation of lipid endoperoxides in unsaturated fatty acids
containing at least 3 methylene interrupted double bonds can lead to the
formation of malondialdehyde as a breakdown product.
H'

0,

F\F'v,\---L;==v=\/\ --;=v-\;=\ ~
o O

0-0

M--~

0-0

I::,
=1~=+R'
I-V!
V-\

(1)

'-

Microsomes isolated from liver have been shown to catalyze on

NADPH-dependent peroxidation of endogenous unsaturated fatty acids
in the presence of ferric ions and metal chelators, such as ADP or
pyrophosphates." Microsomal membranes are particularly susceptible to
lipid peroxidation owing to the presence of high concentrations of
polyunsaturated fatty acids. Poyer and Mct.ay" have demonstrated that
both microsomal membranes and phosphate buffer contain sufficient
contaminating iron to facilitate NADPH-dependent microsomal lipid
peroxidation. The Km for Fe3- in the NADPH-dependent peroxidation of
washed microsomes is 1.6 f.LM. 4 The function of ferric ion chelators is
believed to prevent the binding of iron to components of the microsomal
membrane and to prevent the precipitation of Fe(OH)3'
Pederson et al," have demonstrated that an antibody to the microsomal flavoprotein, NADPH-cytochrome c reductase, inhibits microsomal
NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation by over 90%. Furthermore, a
reconstituted lipid peroxide-forming system composed of purified
NADPH-cytochrome
c reductase, Fe3- chelated by both ADP and
EDT A, and either isolated microsomal lipid" or lipoprotein particles 7
promotes NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation, thus suggesting the
involvement of this enzyme in NADPH-dependent microsomal lipid
peroxidation. The mechanism involved in the initiation of peroxidation
in the NADPH-dependent
microsomal system does not appear to
W. A. Poyer and J. P. Stanley, J. Org . Chem, 40,3615 (1975).
L. Ernster and K. Nordenbrand, this series, Vol. 10. p. 574.
5 J. L. Poyer and P. B. McCay, J. Bioi. Chem . 246,263 (1971).
6 T. C. Pederson,
J. A. Buege, and S. D. Aust , J. Bioi. Chern, 248,7134 (1973).
7 T. Noguchi and M. Nakano, Biochim, Biophvs, Acla 368,446 (1974).
3
4

304

.'-..J.

.'

<:>

MICROSOMAL ELECTRON TRANSPORT AND CYT

P-450

[30)

involve either superoxide or hydrogen peroxide, since neither superoxide dismutase 7-9 nor thymol-free catalase 7.8 cause inhibition of peroxidation. However, enzymically reduced iron may play an important role in
both the initiation and propagation of NADPH-dependent microsomal
lipid peroxidation."
Microsomal membrane lipids, particularly the polyunsaturated fatty
acids, undergo degradation during NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation." The degradation of membrane lipids during lipid peroxidation has
been suggested to result in the production of Ag-type singlet oxygen,
which is detected as chemiluminescence.v"
The disruption of membrane integrity resulting from the breakdown of the lipid constituents has
been implicated as the cause for the decrease of glucose-6-phosphatase
activity during NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation.P Detergent disruption of microsomal membranes causes a similar decrease in activity
for glucose-6-phosphatase. Cytochrome hS13 and cytochrome P-450I4 are
also inactivated during NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation, although
the mechanism of inactivation appears to involve the destruction of the
heme group rather than the loss of membrane integrity. The loss of
cytochrome P-450 during lipid peroxidation parallels the loss of drugmetabolizing activity. Levin et al.t" suggested that the rapid loss of
linearity of microsomal drug metabolism may be due to the NADPHdependent peroxidative destruction of cytochrome P-450. It has been
observed that some drug substrates undergoing hydroxyla.ion inhibit
lipid peroxidation, suggesting that lipid peroxidation and drug metabolism compete for reducing equivalents from a common electron-transport component. However, recent findings indicate that some drug
substrates are very effective antioxidants, whereas others are converted
to antioxidants once they are hydroxylated by the drug-metabolizing
enzyme system. 15
The antioxidants butylated hydroxytoluene." and o-tocopherol'" have
been shown to abolish NADPH-dependent microsomal lipid peroxidation in vitro. In addition, the in vivo administration of antioxidants such
T. C. Pederson and S. D. Aust, Biochim. Biophys, Acta 385, 232 (1975).
K. Sugioka and M. Nakano, Biochim. Biophys, Acta 423.203 (1976).
10 H. May and P. B. McCay, J. Bioi. Chem. 243,2288 (1968).
11 M. Nakano,
T. Noguchi, K. Sugioka, H. Fukuyama, M. Sato, Y. Shimizu, Y. Tsuji, and
H. Inaba, J. Bioi. Chem, 250, 2404 (1975).
12 E. D. Wills, Biochem.
J. 123,983 (1971).
13 A. L. Tappe) and H. Zalkin, Nature (London)
185,35 (1960).
14 W. Levin, A. Y. H. Lu, M. Jacobson,
R. Kuntzman, J. L. Poyer, and P. B. McCay,
Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 158,842 (1973).
15 T. C. Pederson and S. D. Aust, Biochem. Pharmacol. 23, 2467 (1974).
16 T. K. Shires, Arch. Biochem. Biophys, 171,695 (1975).
.
11 H. May and P. B. McCay, J. Bioi. Chem. 243, 2296 (1968).
8

---::

".[30]

x..

MICROSOMAL

LIPID PEROXIDA TION

305

as o-tocopherol'" and promethazine" subsequently decrease the susceptibility of isolated microsomes to NADPH-dependent lipid peroxidation.
NADH will not replace NADPH in promoting the rapid peroxidation
. of lipid in intact microsomes in the presence of ADP-Fe3-. However, in
the presence of both ADP-Fe3+ and EDTA-Fe,3+ NADH is just as
effective as NADPH in promoting microsomal lipid peroxidation. Pederson et al." demonstrated that purified microsomal NADPH-cytochrome
hs reductase promotes the rapid peroxidation.9J extracted microsomal
lipid in a reconstituted system containing NAIJH and Fe3+ chelated by
both ADP and EDT A.
Nonenzymic peroxidation of microsomal membranes also occurs and
is probably mediated in part by endogenous hemoproteins and transition
metals. Conditions that lead to the disruption of microsomal membranes,
such as homogenization and repeated freezing and thawing, enhance
autocatalytic lipid peroxidation .. Hatefi and Hanstein'" have demonstrated that destabilization of microsomal membranes by exposure to
chaotrophic agents results in an increased rate of autoxidation, which is
probably promoted by components of the microsomal electron-transport
~Llin. Conversely, treatment of microsomal membranes with glutaraldehyde to decrease the mobility of membrane lipids by forming cross-links,
inhibits lipid peroxidation.:" It has been suggested that iron-sulfur
proteins and cytochromes initiate autoxidation by catalyzing the homolytic scission of preexisting membrane lipid hydroperoxides, resulting in
the formation of lipid radicals.v" O'Brien and Rahimtula " have recently demonstrated that microsomal cytochrome P-450 interacts with
exogenous lipid hydroperoxides to promote oxygen uptake and the
production of lipid peroxide breakdown products. High (1.0 mM)
concentrations of transition metals also promote autoxidation in microsomes, especially in the presence of reducing agents, such as ascorbate
or cysteine. 24
Recent evidence suggests that lactoperoxidase-catalyzed
iodination
of microsomal membrane proteins occurs concurrent with increased
membrane lipid peroxidation. 25.26 Both lipid peroxidation and the deT. F. Slater, Biochem. J. 106, 155 (1968).
Y. Hatefi and W. G. Hanstein, Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 138,73 (1970).
20 A. A. Barber,
H. M. Tinberg, and E. J. Victoria, Nutr., Proc. Int . Congr .. Sth, Int.
Congr, Ser. No. 213, p. B9 (1971).
21 W. G. Hanstein and Y. Hatefi, Arch. Biochem.
Biophys, 138, 87 (1970).
22 R. M. Kaschnitz and Y. Hatefi, Arch. Biochem.
Biophys. 171,292 (1975).
23 P. J. O'Brien and A. Rahimtula, J. Agric. Food Chem. 23, 154 (1975).
24 E. D. Wills, Biochim. Biophys. Acta 98, 238 (1965).
25 J. A. Buege and S. D. Aust, Biochim. Biophys. Acta 444, 192 (1976).
26 A. F. Welton and S. D. Aust, Biochem.
Biophys. Res. Commun. 49,661 (1972).
18
19

-;

.:F

-=I\~

..

.-

306

MICROSOMAL ELECTRON TRANSPORT AND CYT

P-450

[30]

struction of cytochrome P-450 during enzymic iodination were abolished

by addition of 0.001% BHT to the reaction mixture."
Other conditions that accelerate microsomal lipid peroxidation include exposure of the microsomes to 'Y-radiation, light in the presence of
photosensitizers, hyperbaric pressure, hyperoxia, ozone, nitrogen oxides, and radical initiators, such as dialuric acid.
Three assayable species are produced during microsomal lipid peroxidation, including malondialdehyde, lipid hydroperoxides, and lipids
containing conjugated dienes. The detection of each of these products is
described below. The reaction conditions required for NADPH-dependent microsomal lipid peroxidation have previously been described by
Ernster and Nordenbrand."

'-..-/

The Thiobarbituric Acid Assay

Malondialdehyde, formed from the breakdown of polyunsaturated

fatty acids, serves as a convenient index for determining the extent of
the peroxidation reaction. Malondialdehyde has been identified as the
product of lipid peroxidation that reacts with thiobarbituric acid to give a
red species absorbing at 535 nm."
Reagent
Stock TCA-TBA-HCI
reagent: 15% w/v trichloroacetic acid;
0.375% w/v thiobarbituric acid; 0.25 N hydrochloric acid. This
solution may be mildly heated to assist in the dissolution of the
thiobarbituric acid.

t..

<:>

Procedure. Combine 1.0 ml of biological sample (0.1-2.0 mg of

membrane protein or 0.1-0.2 /Lmol of lipid phosphate) with 2.0 ml of
TCA-TBA-HCI and mix thoroughly. The solution is heated for 15 min
in a boiling water bath. After cooling, the flocculent precipitate is
removed by centrifugation at 1000 g for 10 min. The absorbance of the
sample is determined at 535 nm against a blank that contains all the
reagents minus the lipid. The malondialdehyde concentration of the
sample can be calculated using an extinction coefficient of 1.56 x 105
M-1 cm -128
.
Iodometric Assay

Reduction of iodide by peroxides is a convenient method for determining the amount of lipid hydroperoxides present in a membrane
21
2B

W. G. Niehaus, Jr. and B. Samue1sson, Eur. J. Biochem. 6, 126 (1968).

E. D. Wills, Biochem. J. 113, 315 (1969).

,
[30]

MICROSOMAL LIPID PEROXIDATION

307

sample. The procedure is based on the ability of 1- to reduce hydroperoxides by the following reaction'":
<::
2H+ + ROOH + 31-

-+

H20 + ROH + 13-

Under the conditions of the assay used here, only lipid hydroperoxides
react with iodide, thus excluding the endoperoxides that form malondialdehyde from the assay.
Reagents
Acetic acid: chloroform (3: 2): This reagent is depleted of oxygen
by bubbling with nitrogen at 4, then sealed and allowed to come
to room temperature. Gassing of this solution at room temperature results in the unequal evaporation of the two components.
Potassium iodide: Dissolve 6.0 g of potassium iodide in 5.0 ml of
water on ice, which has previously been bubbled with nitrogen
for 15 min. This solution should be made just prior to use and
shielded from the light.
Cadmium acetate: Dissolve 0.5 g of cadmium acetate in 100 ml of
water.
Chloroform: methanol (2: 1).

<:>

Procedure. One milliliter of membrane solution or aqueous suspension of lipid is mixed thoroughly with 5.0 ml of chloroform: methanol
(2: 1), followed by centrifugation at 1000 g for 5 min to separate the
phases. Most of the upper layer is removed by suction, and 3.0 ml of the
lower; chloroform layer, are recovered using a syringe. The chloroform
layer is placed in a test tube and taken to dryness in a 45 water bath
under a stream of nitrogen. While still under a stream of nitrogen, 1.0 ml
of acetic acid: chloroform, followed by 0.05 ml of potassium iodide are
quickly added, and the test tube is stoppered and mixed. The samples
are placed in the dark at room temperature for exactly 5 min, followed
by addition of 3.0 ml of cadmium acetate. The solution is mixed and
centrifuged at 1000 g for 10 min. The absorbance of the upper phase is
determined at 353 nm against a blank containing the complete assay
mixture minus the lipid. Standardization of the reaction may be done by
using cumene hydroperoxide as the peroxide standard. The molar
extinction coefficient of cumene hydroperoxide is 1.73 x 104 M-1 30
29

30

R. D. Mair and R. T. Hall, in "Organic Peroxides" (D. Swem, ed.), Vol. II, p. 535.
Wiley (lnterscience), New York, 1971.
J. A. Buege and S. D. Aust, unpublished observation, 1976.

,-

308

MICROSOMAL ELECTRON TRANSPORT AND CYT

P-450

[30]

Diene Conjugation Assay

Lipid peroxidation is accompanied by a rearrangement of the polyunsaturated fatty acid double bonds, leading to the formation of conjugated
dienes, which absorb at 233 nm. Therefore, lipid peroxidation can be
assayed by recording the increase in absorbance of extracted membrane
lipids at 233 nm.

~.

Procedure. Membrane lipids are extracted and taken to dryness as

described for the iodometric assay. The lipid residue is dissolved in 1.5
ml of cyclohexane, and the absorbance at 233 nm is determined against a
cyclohexane blank. In fully peroxidized lipids, the absorbance at 23-3 nm
stands out as a distinct peak. In partially peroxidized lipids, the diene
conjugation peak is obscured by end absorption of the nonperoxidized
lipid and extracted contaminants. For such partially peroxidized lipids,
the diene conjugation peak can be obtained as a difference spectra
between partially peroxidized lipid arid an equivalent amount of nonperoxidized Iipid.!' The approximate amount of hydroperoxides produced
can be calculated using a molar extinction coefficient of 2.52 x 104
M-1.32

General Comments

'-

<:>

The thiobarbituric acid assay is the most frequently used method for
determining the extent of membrane lipid peroxidation in vitro. It is not,
however, a suitable assay for the study of lipid peroxide levels in vivo.
Malondialdehyde is readily metabolized in vivo and in tissue suspensions." A mitochondrial aldehyde oxidase is partly responsible for its
metabolism;" In addition, malondialdehyde reacts with tissue components to form cross-linked lipofusion pigments, thus decreasing its
intracellular concentration. Therefore, the in vivo malondialdehyde
concentration is not likely to reflect peroxidative events occurring within
biological membranes. 35
Hemoproteins and transition metals associated with biological membranes enhance the color formation in the thiobarbituric acid assay by
promoting the formation of oxy and peroxy radicals from the metalcatalyzed breakdown of hydroperoxides during the heating of the
membrane with the TCA-TBA-HCl reagent. Pure lipid emulsions and
R. O. Recknagel and A. K. Ghoshal, Exp. Mol. Pathol, 5,413 (1%6).
P. J. O'Brien, Can. J. Biochem. 47,485 (1%9).
33 Z. Pacer, A. Veselkova, and R. Rath, Experientia 21, 19 (1965).
~I\-:J\.
Horton and L. Packer, Biochem. J. 116, 19P (I970).
35 J. Green, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 203, 29 (1972).
31

32

-:

130]

<:>

MICROSOMAL LIPID PEROXIDATION

309

liposomes are particularly susceptible to enhanced, metal-catalyzed

autoxidation. Wills36 demonstrated that the addition of 0.5 mM FeCI3 to
linolenic acid emulsions resulted in a 5-fold increase in the absorbance at
535 nm after heating the lipids with thiobarbituric acid. We have recently
confirmed this finding using liposomes derived from microsomal lipid.
However, the addition of 0.01% BHT to the TCA-TBA-HCI reagent
just prior to use abolishes the metal-catalyzed autoxidation of lipids
during heating with the thiobarbituric reagent.
Malondialdehyde production during the peroxidation of microsomal
membranes varies among different types of tissues, thus making it
difficult to accurately compare the extent of lipid peroxidation. This is
caused in part by the different amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids
present in the microsomal membranes from different tissues. Since only
unsaturated fatty acids with 3 or more methylene-interrupted double
bonds can ultimately form malondialdehyde, variation in malondialdehyde production may be a reflection of the lipid composition rather than
the susceptibility to lipid peroxidation.
Tissue aldehydes and sugars also react with thiobarbituric acid to
produce a chromophore absorbing at 535 nm." Both acetaldehyde and
sucrose interfere with the detection of malondialdehyde when present in
millimolar quantities. Huber et al.38 have modified the thiobarbituric
acid assay by reducing the temperature in the heating step from 100to
80 to avoid interference from sucrose present in the buffers. Despite
these problems, the thiobarbituric acid assay remains a useful tool in
monitoring lipid peroxidation in vitro owing to its sensitivity and
simplicity.
The direct measurement of lipid hydroperoxides has an advantage
over the thiobarbituric acid assay in that it permits a more accurate
comparison of lipid peroxide levels in dissimilar lipid membranes.
However, its use is limited by the fact that lipid hydroperoxides in
biological membrane are transient species that are exposed to factors
that catalyze their breakdown. It has been demonstrated that NADPHdependent peroxidation of microsomal membranes results in a rapid
increase in lipid hydroperoxides, followed by a sharp decrease, presumably caused by the increased breakdown of hydroperoxides." In vitro,
transition metals, particularly in their reduced state, and hemoproteins
36
37

38

39

E. D. Wills, Biochirn.
T. F. Slater, "Free
London, 1972.
C. T. Huber, H. H.
(1975).
B. K. Tam and P. B.

Biophys. Acta 84,475 (1964).

Radical Mechanicms in Tissue Injury,"

p. 34. Pion Limited,

Edwards, and M. Morrison, Arch. Biochern. Biophys. 168, 463

McCay,J. Bioi. Chern. 245,2295 (1970).

<>

310

'---../

MICROSOMAL

ELECTRON

TRANSPORT AND CYT

P-450

[31]

facilitate the decomposition of hydroperoxides.Vr''" Addition of metal

chelators affords some protection against metal-catalyzed hydroperoxide
decomposition in biological membranes, and should be present during
the isolation and storage of membranes to be assayed for hydroperoxide
levels using the iodometric assay. The iodometric assay remains a
particularly useful tool in measuring hydroperoxide levels in lipid
emulsions and liposomes, where metal-catalyzed decomposition of hydroperoxides is minimized.
The detection of conjugated dienes in unsaturated lipids is a sensitive
assay that can be used to study both in vivo and in vitro lipid
peroxidation. Rao and Recknager" detected increased lipid peroxidation
in the liver microsomal membranes of rats exposed to carbon tetrachloride by recording the increased absorbance of the extracted membrane
lipids at 233 nm. Diene conjugation has also been used to study
NADPH-dependent in vitro peroxidation of microsomes and the autoxidation of purified lipids. When purified lipids are used as the lipid
source, direct spectrophotometric analysis of water-lipid emulsion can
be performed without the need to extract the lipid into organic solvents.
Other methods for measuring microsomal lipid peroxidation have
been described elsewhere and include the measurement of oxygen
uptake;" the loss of unsaturated fatty acids;" the change in membrane
turbidity," the appearance of fluorescent products.f and the evolution
of ethane. 43

CIl

0..

>'!
V)

.0

IU
o c..

--

:>

4<lP. J. O'Brien and C. Little, Can. J. Biochem. 47,493 (1%9).

41K. S. Rao and R. O. Recknagel, Exp. Mol. Pathol. 9,271 (1%8).
42A. L. Tappel, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 203, 12 (1972).
43C. A. Riely, G. Cohen, and M. Lieberman, Science 183, 208 (1974).

CIl

:><,::

0 ....

00
~V)
Or<')

-------./

;:g ..
:><B

[31] Very Long Chain Fatty Acid a-Hydroxylase from

\.
Brain
,

B Y ASUO

CH3-(CH2),9-21-CH2-C90H

:<
t~H

r
KISHIMOTO

~J

Q~

01

::r:~

o.

0:

DPNH

C~-(CHz)'9_21-CH-COOH

\j,

Assay Method
procedures are routinely used in this laboratory. One is
formation of insoluble copper chelate of a-

.97th~'"selective

~O

Cl)t--

OH

Two di~nt
based

N ~
Zg,

E-<;:;a
~I

~<