Journal of Lipid Research, Vol 17, 353-359, Copyright © 1976 by Lipid Research, Inc.
The use of [7alpha-3H]- and [7alpha, 7beta-3H]cholesterol in the enzymic assay of cholesterol 7alpha-hydroxylase
DB Johnson, MP Tyor and L Lack
A tritium release method is described for following the enzymic conversion
of cholesterol to 7alpha-hydroxycholesterol. Incubations of rat liver
subcellular preparations (containing microsomes) with [7alpha-
3H]cholesterol or [7alpha,7beta-3H]cholesterol release the labeled hydrogen
in the 7alpha position as 3H2O which, after counting, allows for the
determination of the fraction of exogenous cholesterol converted to
7alpha-hydroxycholesterol. These findings document those recently reported
by Van Cantfort, Renson, and Gielen (1975. Eur J. Biochem. 55:23). Analysis
of incubation mixtures containing both [4- 14C]cholesterol and either
[7alpha-3H] or [7alpha,7beta-3H]cholesterol demonstrate that one atom of
hydrogen (from the 7alpha position) is incorporated into H2O for every
molecule of exogenous cholesterol that is converted to
7alpha-hydroxycholesterol. In the case of [7alpha- 3H]cholesterol no label
is retained by the product. With [7alpha,7beta- 3H]cholesterol, one atom is
released as 3H2O and one is retained by the product in the 7beta position.
Microsomal incubations with [7alpha,7beta-3H]cholesterol were performed,
followed by the acetylation of the steroid fractions with [14C]acetic
anhydride. If intermixing of exogenous with endogenous cholesterol were
complete during the enzymic reaction, one would expect the 3H: 14C ratio of
the isolated cholesterol acetate to be four times that observed in the
7alpha-acetoxycholesterol acetate. Average values of 4.23 in one series and
4.03 in a second series indicate that intermixing was sufficiently complete
to use the tritium release method as an indicator of mass conversion.