Human carboxylesterase 1 (hCE1) is a serine esterase involved in both drug metabolism and activation, as well as other biological processes. hCE1 catalyses the hydrolysis of heroin and cocaine, and the transesterification of cocaine in the presence of ethanol to the toxic metabolite cocaethylene. We have determined the crystal structures of hCE1 in complex with either the cocaine analogue homatropine or the heroin analogue naloxone. These are the first structures of a human carboxylesterase, and they provide details about narcotic metabolism in humans. hCE1's active site contains rigid and flexible pockets, explaining the enzyme's ability to act both specifically and promiscuously. hCE1 has also been reported to contain cholesteryl ester hydrolase, fatty acyl-CoA hydrolase and acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase activities, and thus appears to be involved in cholesterol metabolism. Since the enzyme may be useful as a treatment for cocaine overdose, and may afford protection against chemical weapons like Sarin, Soman and VX gas, hCE1 could serve as both a drug and a drug target. Selective hCE1 inhibitors targeted to several sites on the enzyme may also pave the way for novel clinical tools to manage cholesterol homoeostasis in humans.
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Conference Article|
June 01 2003
Human carboxylesterase 1: from drug metabolism to drug discovery
M.R. Redinbo;
M.R. Redinbo
1
*Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, U.S.A.
†Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics and the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, U.S.A.
1To whom correspondence should be addressed, at the Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (e-mail redinbo@unc.edu).
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S. Bencharit;
S. Bencharit
*Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, U.S.A.
‡School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, U.S.A.
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P.M. Potter
P.M. Potter
§Department of Molecular Pharmacology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, U.S.A.
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Online ISSN: 1470-8752
Print ISSN: 0300-5127
© 2003 Biochemical Society
2003
Biochem Soc Trans (2003) 31 (3): 620–624.
Citation
M.R. Redinbo, S. Bencharit, P.M. Potter; Human carboxylesterase 1: from drug metabolism to drug discovery. Biochem Soc Trans 1 June 2003; 31 (3): 620–624. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/bst0310620
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