Protective roles of aldo-keto reductase 1B10 and autophagy against toxicity induced by p-quinone metabolites of tert-butylhydroquinone in lung cancer A549 cells

tert-Butylhydroquinone (BHQ), an antioxidant used as a food additive, exhibits an anticancer effect at low doses, but is carcinogenic in rodents at high doses. BHQ is metabolized into cytotoxic tert-butylquinone (TBQ), which is further converted to 6-tert-butyl-2,3-epoxy-4-hydroxy-5-cyclohexen-1-one (TBEH) through 6-tert-butyl-2,3-epoxy-4-benzoquinone (TBE). Both TBQ and TBE are cytotoxic, but their toxic mechanisms have not been fully characterized. In this study, we have investigated the toxic mechanisms of TBQ and TBE, and the defense system against the two p-quinones using lung cancer A549 cells. TBQ and TBE, but not BHQ and TBEH, showed cytotoxicity to A549 cells. Neither caspase-3 activation nor an increase in the expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress-associating target genes was observed. TBQ and TBE reacted with reduced glutathione, and significantly decreased the glutathione level in A549 cells, suggesting that the cytotoxicity of the p-quinones is caused by their high electrophilicity reacting with biomolecules. The A549 cells treated with the p-quinones also showed increased levels of autophagic vacuoles and LC3-II protein, which are specific autophagy markers. An autophagy inhibitor, 3-methyladenine (3MA), decreased the LC3-II production by the p-quinones, but enhanced the cytotoxicity induced by TBQ and TBE, suggesting that autophagy contributes to alleviating the p-quinone-triggered cytotoxicity. In addition, the TBE-induced cytotoxicity and autophagy activation in the cells were significantly suppressed by overexpression of aldo-keto reductase (AKR)1B10 that efficiently reduces TBE into TBEH, and were augmented by pretreatment with a potent AKR1B10 inhibitor, C1. The effects of 3MA and C1 on the TBE-induced cytotoxicity were additive. The data provides evidence for the first time that autophagy and AKR1B10 contribute to the defense system against the cytotoxicity caused by the electrophilic p-quinone metabolites of BHQ.