Methyleugenol—a natural constituent of herbs and spices—is hepatocarcinogenic in rodent models. It can form DNA adducts after side-chain hydroxylation and sulfation. We previously demonstrated that human sulfotransferases (SULTs) 1A1 and 1A2 as well as mouse Sult1a1, expressed in Salmonella target strains, are able to activate 1′-hydroxymethyleugenol (1′-OH-ME) and 3′-hydroxymethylisoeugenol (3′-OH-MIE) to mutagens. Now we investigated the role of these enzymes in the formation of hepatic DNA adducts by methyleugenol in the mouse in vivo. We used FVB/N mice [wild-type (wt)] and genetically modified strains in this background: Sult1a1 knockout (ko), transgenic for human SULT1A1/2 (tg) and the combination of both modifications (ko-tg). Methyleugenol (50mg/kg body mass) formed 23, 735, 3770 and 4500 N²-(trans-methylisoeugenol-3′-yl)-2′-deoxyguanosine adducts per 10⁸ 2′-deoxyribonucleosides (dN) in ko, wt, ko-tg and tg mice, respectively. The corresponding values for an equimolar dose of 1′-OH-ME were 12, 1490, 12 400 and 13 300 per 10⁸ dN. Similar relative levels were observed for the minor adduct, N⁶-(trans-methylisoeugenol-3′-yl)-2′-deoxyadenosine. Thus, the adduct formation by both compounds was nearly completely dependent on the presence of SULT1A enzymes, with human SULT1A1/2 producing stronger effects than mouse Sult1a1. Moreover, a dose of 0.05mg/kg methyleugenol (one-fourth of the estimated average daily exposure of humans) was sufficient to form detectable adducts in humanized (ko-tg) mice. Although 3′-OH-MIE was equally mutagenic to 1′-OH-ME in Salmonella strains expressing human SULT1A1 or 1A2, it only formed 0.14% of hepatic adducts in ko-tg mice compared with an equimolar dose of 1′-OH-ME, suggesting an important role of detoxifying pathways for this isomer in vivo.

Methyleugenol (1) is a constituent of many foods, in particular of herbal spices, and is used as flavoring agent in foodstuffs and as fragrance in cosmetics. 1 has been found to be carcinogenic in rodents, its metabolite, 1´-hydroxymethyleugenol (2) acting as proximate DNA-binding carcinogen. We incubated 1 with liver microsomes of rat, bovine, and human origin. We found 2, 3´-hydroxymethylisoeugenol (3), and 6-hydroxymethyleugenol (4) as major metabolites, and 1´-oxomethyleugenol (5), 3´-oxomethylisoeugenol (6), eugenol (9), chavibetol (11), and (RS)-2´,3´-dihydroxy-2´,3´-dihydromethyleugenol (7) as minor metabolites. Methyleugenol-2´,3´-epoxide (8), probably the precursor of 7, could not be detected. Incubations with synthetic metabolites were applied in order to uncover metabolic pathways. Incubations with primary rat hepatocytes revealed mainly nonconjugated 2 and conjugated 4, and minor amounts of partly conjugated 7 and conjugated 9 + 11. The “reactive metabolites” 3, 5, 6, and 8 were not detectable, possibly due to rapid reaction with cellular macromolecules. The highest cytotoxicity (resazurin reduction assay and lactate dehydrogenase leakage assay) was observed for the main metabolite 2 and its secondary metabolite 5 with EC₅₀ values of 50 and 10 µM, respectively. Deoxyadenosine or deoxyguanosine adducts were formed by incubating 1 or metabolites with rat hepatocytes. The rank order of adduct formation was 2 > 1 > 3 > 6, whereas 4, 5, and 8 were inactive. In conclusion, we present a virtually complete pattern of microsomal (rat, bovine, and human) and hepatocellular (rat) metabolites of 1 suggesting the formation of several reactive metabolites possibly involved in carcinogenicity, organ toxicity, and immune reactions.

Evidence has been provided that diet and environmental factors directly influence epigenetic mechanisms associated with cancer development in humans. The inhibition of histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity and the disruption of the HDAC complex have been recognized as a potent strategy for cancer therapy and chemoprevention. In the present study, we investigated whether selected plant constituents affect HDAC activity or HDAC1 protein status in the human colon carcinoma cell line HT29. The polyphenols (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) and genistein (GEN) as well as two oxidative methyleugenol (ME) metabolites were shown to inhibit HDAC activity in intact HT29 cells. Concomitantly, a significant decrease of the HDAC1 protein level was observed after incubation with EGCG and GEN, whereas the investigated ME metabolites did not affect HDAC1 protein status. In conclusion, dietary compounds were found to possess promising HDAC-inhibitory properties, contributing to epigenetic alterations in colon tumor cells, which should be taken into account in further risk/benefit assessments of polyphenols and alkenylbenzenes.