4-hydroperoxy-2-nonenal-induced formation of 1,N2-etheno-2′-deoxyguanosine adducts

Analysis of the reaction between 4-hydroperoxy-2-nonenal (HPNE) and 2'-deoxyguanosine (dGuo) by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) revealed the formation of 1,N-2-etheno-dGuo as well as heptanone-etheno-dGuo and trace amounts of dihydroxyheptane-etheno-dGuo. Identities of the dGuo adducts were confirmed by comparison with authentic standards. The minor dihydroxyheptane-etheno-dGuo adducts could be generated from 2,3-epoxy-4-hydroxynonanal (EHN), the epoxidation product of 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (HNE). An LC/MS method was developed for the analysis of EHN. No EHN was detected by LC/MS during the decomposition of HPNE. Therefore, the dihydroxyheptane-etheno-dGuo adducts are either generated from a direct reaction between HPNE and dGuo or from another intermediate that cannot be detected by LC/MS. In addition, no HNE-derived hydroxypropano-dGuo adducts were observed. On the basis of these findings, we conclude that HPNE, a primary product of lipid peroxidation, is a major precursor to the formation of 1,N-2-etheno-dGuo. We propose that it arises from the reaction of dGuo and HPNE through the intermediate formation of a cyclic hydroxy-ethano-epoxide derivative. The minor amounts of heptanone-ethano-dGuo adducts that were formed from HPNE in the absence of vitamin C suggest that heptanone-etheno-dGuo can be generated directly from HPNE without the intermediate formation of ONE. Therefore, HPNE can be considered as another lipid hydroperoxide-derived bifunctional electrophile with the potential for biological activities that are similar to HNE and ONE.