Abstract

The mechanism of inhibition of prostaglandin H synthase (PHS) by eugenol was investigated using purified apoenzyme reconstituted with either manganese protoporphyrin IX (Mn-PHS) or hematin (Fe-PHS). Eugenol stimulated Fe-PHS activity at low concentrations and inhibited at higher concentrations, an activity typical of many phenolic compounds. Eugenol was also an excellent reducing cosubstrate for the peroxidase, being cooxidized to a reactive quinone methide in the process. Higher concentrations of eugenol were required to inhibit Fe-PHS than Mn-PHS (which retains cyclooxygenase activity but not peroxidase activity). Inhibition by eugenol was highly dependent on arachidonic acid concentration. In experiments using Mn-PHS, eugenol increased the time required for the initiation of O2 consumption after addition of arachidonic acid and also inhibited the rate of O2 uptake. Eugenol did not, however, affect the total amount of O2 consumed. The addition of 10 microM hydroperoxide (prostaglandin G2) to these incubations did not prevent the inhibitory effects of eugenol. Other phenolic compounds, including guaiacol, butylated hydroxyanisole, and acetaminophen inhibited Mn-PHS in a manner similar to eugenol. These results demonstrate that eugenol and other phenolic compounds specifically inhibit the cyclooxygenase component of PHS and that this inhibition occurs in addition to, or independent of, the effect of these compounds on peroxide tone or their peroxidative metabolism. We suggest that this inhibition is due to competition with arachidonic acid for the active site of PHS.