Stimulatory effects of sulfur and nitrogen oxides on carcinogen activation in human polymorphonuclear leukocytes

The occurrence of inflammatory processes and of cancer in the human respiratory tract is intimately associated. One of the major factors in this is probably the recruitment of and stimulated activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PML) in conjunction with the ability of these cells to convert various carcinogens to their ultimate active metabolites. In this study, we demonstrate that nitrite and sulfite, the major dissolution products of the environmental pollutants nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide in water enhance the metabolic activation of trans-7,8-dihydroxy-7,8-dihydrobenzo[a]pyrene (BP-7,8-dihydrodiol), the proximal carcinogen of benzo[a]pyrene, to trans-7,8-dihydroxy-9,10-epoxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydrobenzo[a]pyrene (BPDE) and tetraols, the corresponding hydrolysis products, in human PML prestimulated with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate. Nitrite was more efficient than sulfite in stimulating the formation of reactive intermediates of BP-7,8-dihydrodiol in PML that covalently bind to extracellular DNA and, in particular, to intracellular proteins. The mechanism by which sulfite stimulates the metabolism of BP-7,8-dihydrodiol most probably involves the intermediate formation of a sulfur trioxide radical anion (SO3.-) the subsequent formation of the corresponding sulfur peroxyl radical anion (.OOSO3-) in the presence of oxygen. The mechanism underlying the stimulatory action of nitrite is less clear but the major pathway seems to involve myeloperoxidase. These results offer an explanation for the increased incidence of lung cancer in cigarette smokers living in urban areas. The major glutathione transferase (GST) isoenzyme in human PML is GST P1-1, a Pi-class form. The GST activity of PML was found to be inversely correlated with the extent of binding of BP-7,8-dihydrodiol products to exogenous DNA. These results suggest that individuals exhibiting high GST-activity in the PML may be better protected against the type of carcinogenic dealt with in this study.