Drug-metabolizing enzymes in human foetal liver: partial resolution of multiple cytochromes P 450.

Cytochrome P 450 concentration, related monooxygenase activities (towards aniline, p-nitroanisole, benzphetamine, ethoxycoumarin, benzo(a)pyrene, testosterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone), epoxide hydrolase, and glutathione S-transferase activities were measured in the liver of human foetuses aged from 15 to 38 weeks and compared to adult activities. Different ontogenic patterns seem to exist between monooxygenase activities: if the overall cytochrome P 450 concentration, aniline hydroxylase, benzphetamine demethylase, epoxide hydrolase, and glutathione S-transferase activities reach about the half of adult values as early as 15-25 weeks of gestational age, the metabolism of benzo(a)pyrene, ethoxycoumarin, and testosterone in position 6 beta is very low in these foetuses, whereas the 16 alpha hydroxylation of dehydroandrosterone is higher than in adult human liver. Foetal and adult cytochromes P 450 were resolved by DEAE cellulose chromatography into three different fractions: in reconstitution experiments, the major fraction (A) was active toward aniline, whereas benzphetamine and ethoxycoumarin were mainly metabolized by the two other fractions (Ba and Bb). Results show that multiple cytochromes 450 are present in foetal liver and are able to catalyze, with a lower molecular activity, the same reactions as in adult human liver.