CYP1A1 is one of the main cytochrome P450 enzymes, examined extensively for its capacity to activate compounds with carcinogenic properties. Continuous exposure to inhalation chemicals and environmental carcinogens is thought to increase the level of CYP1A1 expression in extrahepatic tissues, through the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). Although the latter has long been recognized as a ligand-induced transcription factor, which is responsible for the xenobiotic activating pathway of several phase I and phase II metabolizing enzymes, recent evidence suggests that the AhR is involved in various cell signaling pathways critical to cell cycle regulation and normal homeostasis. Disregulation of these pathways is implicated in tumor progression. In addition, it is becoming increasingly evident that CYP1A1 plays an important role in the detoxication of environmental carcinogens, as well as in the metabolic activation of dietary compounds with cancer preventative activity. Ultimately the contribution of CYP1A1 to cancer progression or prevention may depend on the balance of procarcinogen activation/detoxication and dietary natural product extrahepatic metabolism.
Introduction The natural product eupatorin has been reported to have antiproliferative activity in tumour cell lines, but the exact mechanism is unclear. The cytochromes P450 CYP1B1, CYP1A1, and CYP1A2 have been shown to participate in the activation of various xenobiotics, compounds derived from the diet as well as chemotherapeutic drugs. CYP1B1 and CYP1A1 have also been proposed as targets for cancer chemotherapy for their differential and selective overexpression in tumour cells. In this study, we aimed to identify a possible mechanism of action for the antiproliferative effect of eupatorin, which can be attributed to CYP1 family-mediated metabolism.
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