Dihydrodiol dehydrogenase (DD; EC 1.3.1.20) catalyzes theoxidation of polycyclic aromatichydrocarbon (PAH)
trans-dihydrodiols (proximate carcinogens)to catechols which rapidlyautoxidize to yield
o-quinones (Smithgall, T. E., Harvey, R.G., and Penning, T. M. (1988)
J.Biol. Chem 263, 1814-1820). Although thispathway suppresses the formation of the PAH
anti- and
syn-diol epoxides (ultimatecarcinogens), the process of autoxidation is anticipatedto yield reactive oxygen species (ROS). We now show that theNADP
+ dependent oxidation of(±)-
trans-1,2-dihydroxy-1,2-dihydronaphthalene (Npdiol)and (±)-
trans-7,8-dihydroxy-7,8-dihydrobenzo[
a]pyrene (Bpdiol) catalyzed byhomogeneous DD is accompanied by the consumptionof molecular oxygen and the production of H
2O
2.With both
trans-dihydrodiol substrates,oxygenconsumption was stoichiometric with H
2O
2production consistent with the reaction: QH
2+O
2 = H
2O
2 + Q, whereQH
2 is the catechol and Q is the
o-quinone.Using Npdiol or Bpdiol assubstrates, a burst of superoxide anion production is catalyzed by DDwhich can be detectedas the rate of cyt
c reduction that is inhibited bysuperoxide dismutase. Using 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline
N-oxide (DMPO) as spin-trapping agent, secondaryspin adducts corresponding toDMPO-CH
3 were formed during the enzymatic oxidation ofNpdiol and Bpdiol. The formationof the CH
3![](/images/entities/bull.gif)
radical arises from theOH
![](/images/entities/bull.gif)
attack of DMSO, which was used as cosolvent.Thesespin adducts were attenuated by superoxide dismutase and catalase,implying that O
2-![](/images/entities/bull.gif)
andH
2O
2 are obligatory for the formation ofDMPO-CH
3. It is proposed thatO
2-![](/images/entities/bull.gif)
is theradicalthat propagates autoxidation and that the resultantH
2O
2 undergoes
Fenton chemistrytoproduce the OH
![](/images/entities/bull.gif)
radical. Identical spin adducts wereobserved using a superoxide aniongenerating system (hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase) and DMPO asspin-trapping agent in thepresence of DMSO. The ability of DD to generate ROS during theoxidation of PAH
trans-dihydrodiols (proximate carcinogens) may have important implications fortumor initiationand promotion.