Hydrocarbone diamantane has been shown to be a specific substrate with a high affinity for the binding site of PB-inducible cytochrome P-450 2B1 (Hodek et al. 1988). Using a difference spectroscopy approach, a battery of diamantane analogues and diamantane oxygen containing derivatives were examined for their interaction with P-450 2B1 active site. Of the compounds (diamantane and its analogues, adamantane and triamantane) tested, diamantane had the lowest value of a spectral dissociation constant Ks = 0.5 mumol/l, indicating that diamantane was accommodated well to the cytochrome P-450 2B1, hence values of 0.46 nm and 0.66 nm for the width and length of the diamantane molecule, respectively, were used to describe of the dimensions the cytochrome P-450 binding site. Adamantane (Ks = 1.3 mumol/l) is relatively small and thus it binds loosely whereas triamantane (Ks = 4.3 mumol/l) is bulky enough to fit the binding site. This conclusion has been confirmed by spectral competition experiments as well as metabolic studies. Of all oxygen containing derivatives diamantane 1,6-dicarboxylic acid dimethylester only exhibited a pronounced ligand interaction with cytochrome P-450. Using molecular dimensions of this derivative the distance of 0.56 nm from the heme iron to the center of the substrate binding site was estimated.

Charles University Department of Biochemistry Praha Czech Republic