Nicotine-derived nitrosamine ketone (NNK) is one of the key

tobacco-specific nitrosamines Tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) comprise one of the most important groups of carcinogens in tobacco products, particularly cigarettes (traditional and electronic) and fermented dipping snuff. Background These nitrosamine carcinogens are for ...

derived from nicotine. It plays an important role in

carcinogenesis Carcinogenesis, also called oncogenesis or tumorigenesis, is the formation of a cancer, whereby normal cells are transformed into cancer cells. The process is characterized by changes at the cellular, genetic, and epigenetic levels and abnor ...

. The conversion of

nicotine Nicotine is a natural product, naturally produced alkaloid in the nightshade family of plants (most predominantly in tobacco and ''Duboisia hopwoodii'') and is widely used recreational drug use, recreationally as a stimulant and anxiolytic. As ...

to NNK entails opening of the

pyrrolidine Pyrrolidine, also known as tetrahydropyrrole, is an organic compound with the molecular formula (CH2)4NH. It is a cyclic secondary amine, also classified as a saturated heterocycle. It is a colourless liquid that is miscible with water and most ...

ring.

Synthesis and occurrence

NNK can be produced by standard methods of

organic synthesis Organic synthesis is a special branch of chemical synthesis and is concerned with the intentional construction of organic compounds. Organic molecules are often more complex than inorganic compounds, and their synthesis has developed into one o ...

Tobacco

NNK is both found in cured tobacco and is produced during its burning (pyrolysis). The amount of NNK delivered in cigarette smoke ranged from 30 to 280 ng/cigarette in one study and 12 to 110 ng/cigarette in another. Sun-cured tobaccos (a.k.a. "Oriental") contain very little NNK and other TSNAs due to low-nitrate soil, lack of nitrate fertilizer, and sun-curing. Flue-cured tobacco (a.k.a. "Virginia" tobacco), especially when using an open flame, contains most of the NNK in American blended tobaccos although Marlboro's "virginia blend" had the lowest levels of NNK per nicotine out of many tested with the exception of Natural American Spirit.

e-Cigarettes

e-Cigarette do not convert nicotine to NNK due to their lower operating temperatures. The amount of NNK delivered by e-cigarettes reaches 2.8 ng per 15 puffs (approximately 1 cigarette). NNK was found in 89% of Korean

e-cigarette liquids An electronic cigarette is a handheld battery-powered Vaporizer (inhalation device), vaporizer that simulates tobacco smoking, smoking, but without tobacco combustion. E-cigarette components include a mouthpiece (drip tip), a cartridge (liquid s ...

. Concentrations range from 0.22 to 9.84 µg/L. For the product that had the highest amount, if 1 ml is equival to 20 cigarettes, there would be 9.84/20 = 0.5 ng NNK per e-cig cigarette dose. Cigarettes with 1 gram of tobacco average about 350 ng.

Biology

Metabolism

NNK is initially a procarcinogen that needs activation to exert its effects. The activation of NNK is done by enzymes of the cytochrome pigment (CYP) multigene family. These enzymes catalyze hydroxylation reactions. Beside the CYP family NNK can also be activated by metabolic genes, like myeloperoxidase (MPO) and epoxide hydrolase (EPHX1). NNK can be activated by two different routes, the oxidative path and the reductive path. In the oxidative metabolism NNK undergoes an α-hydroxylation catalyzed by cytochrome P450. This reaction can be done by two pathways namely by α-methylhydroxylation or by α-methylenehydroxylation. Both pathways produce the carcinogenic metabolized isoform of NNK, NNAL. In the reductive metabolism NNK undergoes either a carbonyl reduction or a pyridine N-oxidation, both producing NNAL. NNAL can be detoxified by

glucuronidation Glucuronidation is often involved in drug metabolism of substances such as drugs, pollutants, bilirubin, androgens, estrogens, mineralocorticoids, glucocorticoids, fatty acid derivatives, retinoids, and bile acids. These linkages involve glycosid ...

producing a non-carcinogenic compounds known as NNAL-Glucs. The glucuronidation can take place on the oxygen next to the ring (NNAL-O-Gluc), or it takes place on the nitrogen inside the ring(NNAL-N-Gluc). The NNAL-Glucs are then excreted by the kidneys into the urine.

Signaling pathways

Once NNK is activated, NNK initiates a cascade of signaling pathways (for example ERK1/2, NFκB, PI3K/Akt, MAPK, FasL, K-ras), resulting in uncontrolled cellular proliferation and tumorigenesis. NNK activates µ en m-calpain kinase which induce lung metastasis via the ERK1/2 pathway. This pathway upregulate cellular myelocytomatosis (c-Myc) and B cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) in which the two oncoprotein are involved in cellular proliferation, transformation and apoptosis. Also does NNK promotes cell survival via phosphorylation with cooperation of c-Myc and Bcl2 causing cellular migration, invasion and uncontrolled proliferation. The ERK1/2 pathway also phosphorylate NFκB causing an upregulation of cyclin D1, a G1 phase regulator protein. When NNK is present it directly involves cellular survival dependent on NFκB. Further studies are needed to better understand NNK cellular pathways of NFκB. The phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K/Akt) pathway is also an important contributor to NNK-induced cellular transformations and metastasis. This process ensures the proliferation and survival of tumorigenic cells. The ERK1/2 and Akt pathways show consequential changes in levels of protein expression as a result of NNK-activation in the cells, but further research is needed to fully understand the mechanism of NNK-activated pathways.

Pathology

Toxicity

NNK is known as a

mutagen In genetics, a mutagen is a physical or chemical agent that permanently changes nucleic acid, genetic material, usually DNA, in an organism and thus increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level. As many mutations can ca ...

, which means it causes polymorphisms in the human genome. Studies showed that NNK induced gene polymorphisms in cells that involve in cell growth, proliferation and differentiation. There are multiple NNK dependent routes that involve cell proliferation. One example is the cell route that coordinates the downregulation of

retinoic acid receptor beta Retinoic acid receptor beta (RAR-beta), also known as NR1B2 (nuclear receptor subfamily 1, group B, member 2) is a nuclear receptor that in humans is encoded by the ''RARB'' gene. Function This gene encodes retinoic acid receptor beta, a memb ...

(RAR-β). Studies showed that with a 100 mg/kg dose of NNK, several

point mutations A point mutation is a genetic mutation where a single nucleotide base is changed, inserted or deleted from a DNA or RNA sequence of an organism's genome. Point mutations have a variety of effects on the downstream protein product—consequences ...

were formed in the RAR-β gene, inducing

tumorigenesis Carcinogenesis, also called oncogenesis or tumorigenesis, is the formation of a cancer, whereby normal cells are transformed into cancer cells. The process is characterized by changes at the cellular, genetic, and epigenetic levels and abno ...

in the lungs. Other genes affected by NNK include

sulfotransferase Sulfotransferases (SULTs) are transferase enzymes that catalyze the transfer of a sulfo group from a donor molecule to an acceptor alcohol or amine. The most common sulfo group donor is 3'-phosphoadenosine-5'-phosphosulfate (PAPS). In the case o ...

1A1 (SULT1A1),

transforming growth factor beta Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) is a multifunctional cytokine belonging to the transforming growth factor superfamily that includes three different mammalian isoforms (TGF-β 1 to 3, HGNC symbols TGFB1, TGFB2, TGFB3) and many other sign ...

(TGF-β), and

angiotensin II Angiotensin is a peptide hormone that causes vasoconstriction and an increase in blood pressure. It is part of the renin–angiotensin system, which regulates blood pressure. Angiotensin also stimulates the release of aldosterone from the adre ...

(AT2). NNK plays a very important role in

gene silencing Gene silencing is the regulation of gene expression in a cell to prevent the expression of a certain gene. Gene silencing can occur during either transcription or translation and is often used in research. In particular, methods used to silence gen ...

, modification, and functional disruption which induce

Inhibition

Chemical compounds derived from

cruciferous vegetable Cruciferous vegetables are vegetables of the family Brassicaceae (also called Cruciferae) with many genera, species, and cultivars being raised for food production such as cauliflower, cabbage, kale, garden cress, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels spr ...

s and

EGCG Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), also known as epigallocatechin-3-gallate, is the ester of epigallocatechin and gallic acid, and is a type of catechin. EGCG – the most abundant catechin in tea – is a polyphenol under basic research for its ...

inhibit lung

by NNK in

animal model An animal model (short for animal disease model) is a living, non-human, often genetic-engineered animal used during the research and investigation of human disease, for the purpose of better understanding the disease process without the risk of ha ...

s. Whether these effects have any relevance to human health is unknown and is a subject of ongoing research.

References

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External links

MSDS
Nitrosamines 3-Pyridyl compounds IARC Group 1 carcinogens Aromatic ketones