The expression of different monooxygenases supported by cytochrome P‐450 in neonatal rats and in primary fetal hepatocytes in culture

Abstract

In rat liver, the perinatal development of various monooxygenase activities follows different patterns, depending upon the reaction studied. The ontogeny of the 6 beta-, 7 alpha- and 16 alpha-testosterone hydroxylase activities differs very significantly. Aldrin epoxidase and steroid-metabolizing monooxygenases are expressed in primary fetal rat liver cells in culture after treatment in vitro with dexamethasone. Testosterone is not metabolized by the control cells and is hydroxylated on the 6 beta and 16 alpha positions following the addition of corticoids to the culture medium. The dose and time curves vary according to the hydroxylated position of the steroid. Aldrin epoxidase activity is nearly undetectable in the control cells, but is present and is inducible by phenobarbital following treatment with the corticoid. Phenobarbital induces aldrin epoxidase in the absence of dexamethasone in the culture medium, providing that the cells are pretreated with the corticoid for 48 h. The use of antibodies against the main cytochrome P-450 species purified from adult and phenobarbital-treated rats confirms that a similar cytochrome P-450 can be induced in fetal cells in culture. The perinatal regulation of biological events, such as the expression of the monooxygenases, can be reproduced in fetal rat liver cells in culture; such a model constitutes a unique tool for studying the biochemical mechanisms which control these phenomena.