Enzymatic activation of the carcinogens 2 phenylethylhydrazine and 1,2 dimethylhydrazine to carbon centered radicals

RESUMO

Spin-trapping experiments demonstrate that oxidation of 1,2-dimethylhydrazine and 2-phenylethylgydrazine generates a comparable yield of carbon-centered radicals when catalyzed by horseradish peroxidase-H2O2. Using oxyhemoglobin as the catalyst, 2-phenylethylgydrazine oxidation generates ten times carbon-centered radicals than 1,2-dimethylhidrazine oxidation. This results is in agreement with oxygen consumption studies from which the apparent KM values of 8.0 mM and 72 mM were calculated for the oxyhemoglobin-catalyzed oxidation of 2-phenylethylhydrazine and 1,2-dimethylhydrazine, respectively. These differences in metabolic activation of mono- and disubstituted hydrazines may be of importance regarding the carcinogenic properties of these derivatives