Interaction of cyclophosphamide metabolites with membrane proteins: an in vitro study with rabbit liver microsomes and human red blood cells. Effect of thiols.

Cyclophosphamide metabolites have been generated in vitro by microsomal oxidation of cyclophosphamide and their binding to rabbit liver microsomes and to intact human red blood cells has been investigated. Reactions with proteins of membrane and cytoplasm were detected by SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The protein bands were analysed for incorporation of radioactivity. The following results were obtained. (1) Preferential binding of acrolein to microsomes and erythrocytes, with only little binding of metabolites containing the chloroethyl moiety. (2) Reduction of acrolein binding by the thiol compounds glutathione, 2,3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonate and mercaptoethane sulfonate. (3) In microsomes: formation of protein polymerisation products and incorporation of radioactivity. (4) In red blood cells: cross-linking of membrane proteins and formation of globin dimerization products in the cytoplasm.