DNA-damaging carcinogen 3-amino-1,4-dimethyl-5H-pyrido [4,3-b]indole (Trp-P-1) induces apoptosis via caspase-9 in primary cultured rat hepatocytes

Abstract

The mechanism of cytotoxicity induced by the DNA-damaging carcinogen 3-amino-1,4-dimethyl-5H-pyrido[4,3-b] indole (Trp-P-1) was investigated in primary cultured rat hepatocytes. Cytotoxicity was caused by intact Trp-P-1 and not by metabolically activated derivatives prepared using a recombinant yeast strain AH22/pAMR2 expressing rat cytochrome P450 1A1, and not by metabolically activated derivatives. We also found internucleosomal DNA fragmentation 6 h after treatment with 30 μM Trp-P-1, indicating that the cytotoxicity was due to the induction of apoptosis. After treatment with Trp-P-1, c-Myc protein level increased in a time-dependent manner and p53 protein also increased transiently with a subsequent increase in Bax protein level. This apoptotic pathway required the activation of caspase-9 as an initiator after leakage of cytochrome c into the cytosol from mitochondria and the activation of caspase-3 and -7 as executioners, but not caspase-1, -6 or -8 as measured using the corresponding peptide inhibitors and substrates or western blotting. The activated caspases in turn cleaved poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase as an intracellular substrate. Furthermore, we detected NUC18-like endonuclease activity during apoptosis induced by Trp-P-1. These findings suggest that this apoptosis may have a role against heterocyclic amine-type carcinogens in normal cells.