P450 2E1 expression in liver, kidney, and lung of rats treated with single or combined inducers.

Ethanol consumption combined with smoking increase the risk of cancer in many tissues. Such a mechanism implies the involvement of cytochrome P450 alcohol (CYP2E1), which is regulated by numerous xenobiotics. The combination of P450 2E1 inducers (acetone or pyridine) and 3-methylcholanthrene during rat treatment was shown to decrease the liver P450 2E1 content while it enhanced its expression in kidney. It is suggested that this differential tissue response helps explain the organotropy of nitrosamine carcinogenicity.