A lipid peroxidation product 9-oxononanoic acid induces phospholipase A(2) activity and thromboxane A(2) production in human blood

Lipid peroxidation products are known to cause toxicity by reacting with biologically significant proteins, but the inducing role of peroxidation products has been not noted to produce degenerative disease-related eicosanoids. Here, 9-oxononanoic acid (9-ONA), one of the major products of peroxidized fatty acids, was found to stimulate the activity of phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2)), the key enzyme to initiate arachidonate cascade and eicosanoid production. An exposure of fresh human blood to the atmosphere at 37°C accumulated 9-ONA, increasing peroxide value and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances in the blood. The lipid peroxidation was accompanied by significant increases of PLA(2) activity and thromboxane B(2) (TxB(2)) production, which is a stable metabolite of thromboxane A(2) (TxA(2)) and a potent agonist of platelet aggregation. These events were abolished by standing the blood under nitrogen. The addition of organically synthesized 9-ONA resumed the activity of PLA(2) and the production of TxB(2). Also, 9-ONA induced platelet aggregation dose-dependently. These results indicated that 9-ONA is the primary inducer of PLA(2) activity and TxA(2) production, and is probably followed by the development of diseases such as thrombus formation. This is the first report to find that a lipid peroxidation product, 9-ONA, stimulates the activity of PLA(2).