Altered Metabolism of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons by UDP-Glycosyltransferase 3A2 Missense Variants

The UDP-glycosyltransferase (UGT) family of enzymes are important in the metabolism of a variety of exogenous substances including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a potent class of environmental carcinogens. As compared to the majority of UGT enzymes, which utilize UDP-glucuronic acid as a cosubstrate, UGT3A2 utilizes alternative cosubstrates (UDP-glucose and UDP-xylose). UGT3A2 is expressed in aerodigestive tract tissues and was highly active against multiple PAHs with both cosubstrates. The goal of the present study was to assess the functional effects of UGT3A2 missense variants (MAF >= 0.005) on PAH metabolism and the utilization of cosubstrates. The glycosylation activity (V-max/K-m) of all variants against simple PAHs using both cosubstrates was significantly (P < 0.05) decreased by 42-100% when compared to wild-type UGT3A2. When utilizing UDP-glucose, the variant isoforms exhibited up to a 362-fold decrease in V-max/K-m when compared to wild-type UGT3A2, with a 3.1- to 14-fold decrease for D140N, A344T, and S435Y, a 24- and 43-fold decrease for A436T and R445C, respectively, and a 147- and 362-fold decrease for Y474C and Y74N, respectively. When utilizing UDP-xylose, the variants exhibited up to a 4.0-fold decrease in V-max/K-m when compared to wild-type UGT3A2; Y74N did not exhibit activity, and Y474C did not reach saturation (K-m > 4000 mu M). Additionally, both wild-type and variant UGT3A2 exhibited a significant (P < 0.05) difference in their utilization of UDP-glucose vs UDP-xylose as cosubstrates using 1-OH-pyrene as substrate. These data suggest that UGT3A2 missense variants decrease the detoxification of PAHs, potentially resulting in altered individual risk for PAH-related cancers.