Synthesis of fluorescent and photoaffinity-labeled derivatives of bisphenol A and their inhibitory activity toward hypoxic expression of erythropoietin.

Bisphenol A derivatives, possessing a fluorescent dye and a photo-reactive group, were synthesized from bisphenol A, and the inhibitory activity of the derivatives was evaluated against hypoxic response. The synthesized derivatives were found to inhibit the hypoxic expression of erythropoietin in Hep3B cells as well as bisphenol A.

Suppression of mast cell degranulation by a novel ceramide kinase inhibitor, the F-12509A olefin isomer K1.

Antigen-induced degranulation of mast cells plays a pivotal role in allergic and inflammatory responses. Recently, ceramide kinase (CERK) and its phosphorylated product ceramide 1-phosphate (C1P) have emerged as important players in mast cell degranulation. Here, we describe the synthesis of a novel F-12509A olefin isomer, K1, as an effective CERK inhibitor. In vitro kinase assays demonstrated that K1 effectively inhibits CERK without inhibiting sphingosine kinase and diacylglycerol kinase. Treating RBL-2H3 cells with K1 reduced cellular C1P levels to 40% yet had no effect on cell growth. Furthermore, treatment with K1 significantly suppressed both calcium ionophore- and IgE/antigen-induced degranulation, indicating that K1 interferes with signals that happen downstream of Ca(2+) mobilization. Finally, we show that K1 affects neither IgE/antigen-induced global tyrosine phosphorylation nor subsequent Ca(2+) elevation, suggesting a specificity for CERK-mediated signals. Our novel CERK inhibitor provides a useful tool for studying the biological functions of CERK and C1P. Moreover, to our knowledge, this is the first report demonstrating that inhibition of CERK suppresses IgE/antigen-induced mast cell degranulation. This finding suggests that CERK inhibitors might be a potential therapeutic tool in the treatment of allergic diseases.

Bisphenol A, an environmental endocrine-disrupting chemical, inhibits hypoxic response via degradation of hypoxia-inducible factor 1alpha (HIF-1alpha): structural requirement of bisphenol A for degradation of HIF-1alpha.

Bisphenol A (BpA), an endocrine-disrupting chemical, is known to be a xenoestrogen and to affect the reproductive functions of animals. Recent reports have documented BpA-induced developmental abnormalities in the neuronal systems of humans and animals, and these effects appear to be non-estrogenic. In this study, we found that BpA inhibited the hypoxic response of human hepatoma cells. The expression of hypoxic response genes such as the erythropoietin (EPO) gene is done via a hypoxia inducible factor 1 (HIF-1)-dependent signaling pathway. To investigate possible structural requirements for this inhibitory effect, several BpA analogs were synthesized and added to this system. The blocking of two phenol groups in BpA did not change the effect, but the inhibition completely disappeared by the removal of two central methyl groups in BpA (the resulting compound is designated BpF). BpA, but not BpF, promoted degradation of the HIF-1alpha protein, which is a component of HIF-1, followed by inhibition of EPO induction. An immunoprecipitation assay indicated that BpA dissociated heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) from HIF-1alpha and destabilized HIF-1alpha protein. HIF-1alpha is usually degraded first by ubiquitination and then by the proteasome pathway. Cobalt ion inhibits ubiquitination of HIF-1alpha and stabilizes it. In the present study, BpA promoted HIF-1alpha degradation in the presence of cobalt and in the presence of proteasome inhibitor. These results suggest that BpA degraded HIF-1alpha via a currently unknown pathway, and that this phenomenon required two methyl groups in BpA.