Nitrosation, Nitration, and Autoxidation of the Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulator Raloxifene by Nitric Oxide, Peroxynitrite, and Reactive Nitrogen/Oxygen Species

The regulation of estrogenic and antiestrogenic effects by selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) provides the basis for use in long-term therapy in cancer chemoprevention and postmenopausal osteoporosis. However, the evidence for carcinogenic properties within this class requires study of potential pathways of toxicity. There is strong evidence for the elevation of cellular levels of NO in tissue treated with SERMs, including the benzothiophene derivative, raloxifene, in part via up-regulation of nitric oxide synthases. Therefore, the reactions of 17β-estradiol (E₂), raloxifene, and an isomer with NO, peroxynitrite, and reactive nitrogen/oxygen species (RNOS) generated from NO₂^-/H₂O ₂ systems were examined. Peroxynitrite from bolus injection or slow release from higher concentrations of 3-morpholinosydnonimine (SIN-1) reacted with the benzothiophenes and E₂ to give aromatic ring nitration, whereas peroxynitrite, produced from the slow decomposition of lower concentrations of SIN-1, was relatively unreactive toward E₂ and yielded oxidation and nitrosation products with raloxifene and its isomer. The oxidation and nitrosation products formed were characterized as a dimer and quinone oxime derivative. Interestingly, the reaction of the benzothiophenes with NO in aerobic solution efficiently generated the same oxidation products. Stable quinone oximes are not unprecedented but have not been previously reported as products of RNOS-mediated metabolism. The reaction of glutathione (GSH) with the quinone oxime gave both GSH adducts from Michael addition and reduction to the corresponding o-aminophenol. The ready autoxidation of raloxifene, observed in the presence of NO, is the first such observation on the reactivity of SERMs and is potentially a general phenomenon of significance to SERM chemical toxicology.