Disturbances in the formation of FAD and covalently bound flavins in Novikoff hepatoma from riboflavin-deficient rats.

The incorporation of radiolabeled riboflavin into flavin mononucleotide, flavin adenine dinucleotide, and flavin covalently bound to protein was determined in Novikoff hepatoma grown in both riboflavin-deficient and normal chow-fed rats. In Novikoff hepatoma, the incorporation of [14C]riboflavin into covalently bound flavins relative to that into FAD was substantially greater than that in host liver, and the turnover rate of riboflavin was also accelerated in tumor compared with the liver. The magnitude of incorporation of [14C]riboflavin into each of the various flavin fractions was substantially greater in tumors from riboflavin-deficient animals than in tumors from control animals. These data support the hypothesis that in conditions of riboflavin deprivation, Novikoff hepatoma maintains the levels of the physiologically important flavin coenzymes at the expense of the free riboflavin fraction. The incorporation of riboflavin into covalently bound flavins relative to that into FAD is substantially greater in Novikoff hepatoma than in liver. Accordingly, covalently bound flavins are either present in greater amounts or regulated differently in tumor than in normal tissue. Because the flavin moiety cannot be reutilized, the covalently bound flavin fraction in Novikoff hepatoma theoretically should be able to sequester riboflavin and thereby deplete the body reserves of this vitamin when dietary intake is marginal.