title: 7alpha-Hydroxylation and 3-dehydrogenation abolish the ability of 25-hydroxycholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol to induce apoptosis in thymocytes.
abstract: Oxygenated derivatives of sterols (oxysterols), including 25-hydroxycholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol, have immunosuppressive effects. Oxysterols can directly induce apoptosis in immature thymocytes, cells which are inherently sensitive to induction of programmed cell death. For that reason, the metabolism of 25-hydroxycholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol in mouse thymus has been studied. When incubated with thymic tissue, both oxysterols were found to be 7alpha-hydroxylated with subsequent oxidation to 7alpha-hydroxy-3-oxo-delta4 steroids. A minor fraction of 27-hydroxycholesterol was also metabolised to 3beta-hydroxy-5-cholestenoic, 3beta,7alpha-dihydroxy-5-cholestenoic and 7alpha-hydroxy-3-oxo-4-cholestenoic acids. The 7alpha-hydroxylase was found to be localised to the thymic epithelial cells and the reaction was stimulated by interleukin-1beta and inhibited by metyrapone and RU486. In contrast to 25-hydroxycholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol, the 7alpha-hydroxylated metabolites, 7alpha,25-dihydroxycholesterol, 7alpha,25-dihydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one and 7alpha,27-dihydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one did not induce thymocyte apoptosis. The results suggest that 7alpha-hydroxylation may be of regulatory importance, possibly by protecting the developing thymocytes against toxic effects by oxysterols.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jondal
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sjövall
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D006888:Hydroxycholesterols / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D006900:Hydroxylation; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D006888:Hydroxycholesterols; C076996:27-hydroxycholesterol; C007997:25-hydroxycholesterol