Effects of humic acid-metal complexes on hepatic carnitine palmitoyltransferase, carnitine acetyltransferase and catalase activities

Journal Article · Tue Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 1994 · Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry; (United States)

OSTI ID:5130662

Lu, Fungjou; Chen, Youngshin ^[1]; Huang, Tienshang ^[2]

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1. National Taiwan Univ., Taipei (Taiwan, Province of China). Dept. of Biochemistry
2. National Taiwan Univ., Taipei (Taiwan, Province of China). Dept. of Medicine

A significant increase in activities of hepatic carnitine palmitoyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase was observed in male Balb/c mice intraperitoneally injected for 40 d with 0.125 mg/0.1 ml/d humic acid-metal complexes. Among these complexes, the humic acid-As complex was relatively effective, whereas humic acid-25 metal complex was more effective, and humic acid-26 metal complex was most effective. However, humic acid or metal mixtures, or metal such as As alone, was not effective. Humic acid-metal complexes also significantly decreased hepatic catalase activity. A marked decrease of 60-kDa polypeptide in liver cytoplasm was also observed on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis after the mice had been injected with the complexes. Morphological analysis of a histopathological biopsy of such treated mice revealed several changes in hepatocytes, including focal necrosis and cell infiltration, mild fatty changes, reactive nuclei, and hypertrophy. Humic acid-metal complexes affect activities of metabolic enzymes of fatty acids, and this results in accumulation of hydrogen peroxide and increase of the lipid peroxidation. The products of lipid peroxidation may be responsible for liver damage and possible carcinogenesis. Previous studies in this laboratory had shown that humic acid-metal complex altered the coagulation system and that humic acid, per se, caused vasculopathy. Therefore, humic acid-metal complexes may be main causal factors of not only so-called blackfoot disease, but also the liver cancer prevailing on the southwestern coast of Taiwan.

• OSTI ID: 5130662
• Journal Information: Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry; (United States), Vol. 13:3; ISSN 0730-7268
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
CATALASE
ENZYME ACTIVITY
HUMIC ACIDS
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
LIVER
PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES
METALS
METABOLISM
TRANSFERASES
INHIBITION
BODY
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
ELEMENTS
ENZYMES
GLANDS
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANS
OXIDOREDUCTASES
PEROXIDASES
PROTEINS
560300* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology