Werner E R, Werner-Felmayer G, Fuchs D, Hausen A, Reibnegger G, Yim J J, Wachter H
Institute for Medical Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Innsbruck, Austria.
Biochem J. 1991 Dec 15;280 ( Pt 3)(Pt 3):709-14. doi: 10.1042/bj2800709.
Tumour necrosis factor-alpha causes an up to 30-fold induction of GTP cyclohydrolase I (EC 3.5.4.16) activity in murine dermal fibroblasts in a dose-dependent manner. Owing to the high constitutive activities of 6-pyruvoyltetrahydropterin synthase and sepiapterin reductase (EC 1.1.1.153), this potentiates biosynthesis of tetrahydrobiopterin. Murine macrophages already contain high activities of GTP cyclohydrolase I when unstimulated, and this is further augmented up to 4-fold by tumour necrosis factor-alpha/interferon-gamma. In Western blots an antiserum to murine liver GTP cyclohydrolase I does not stain cell extracts with high enzyme activities, suggesting that the cytokine induced peripheral form of GTP cyclohydrolase I might differ from the liver form.