Studies on the inhibition of hepatic microsomal glucuronidation by uridine nucleotides or adenosine triphosphate

The ability of five nucleotides in the presence of excess divalent cations to inhibit UDPglucuronosyltransferase in sealed or leaky liver microsomal vesicles was studied. Two nucleotides inhibited potently while three others were weak inhibitors. At low concentration, both of the potent inhibitors, uridine tri- and diphosphates tended to inhibit more in sealed microsomal vesicles than in leaky microsomes, while the weak inhibitors, uridine diphosphate glucose and adenosine triphosphate behaved in the opposite manner and inhibited less in sealed than in leaky microsomes. At physiological concentrations of UDPglucuronic acid (0.4 mM) quite extensive inhibition of oestradiol glucuronidation could be achieved with physiological concentrations of uridine tri- or diphosphates (0.2 or 0.4 mM). In sealed or leaky microsomes, beta, gamma-methylene-interrupted uridine triphosphate, which is resistant to hydrolysis by nucleoside triphosphatase, inhibited much less than did uridine triphosphate.