Effect of reversible ligands on oxime-induced reactivation of sarin- and cyclosarin-inhibited human acetylcholinesterase

Poisoning by organophosphorus compounds (OP) used as pesticides and nerve agents is due to irreversible inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE). Oximes have been widely recognized for their potency to reactivate the inhibited enzyme. The limited efficacy of currently available oximes against a broad spectrum of OP-compounds initiated novel research efforts to improve oxime-based treatment. Hereby, oxime-induced reactivation of OP-inhibited non-human AChE was reported to be accelerated by different AChE-ligands. To investigate this concept with AChE from human source, the inhibitory potency, binding properties and the potential enhancement of oxime-induced reactivation of OP-inhibited AChE by structurally different AChE-ligands was assessed. Several ligands competed with the oxime for the AChE binding-site impairing reactivation of OP-inhibited AChE whereas a markedly accelerated reactivation of sarin-inhibited enzyme by obidoxime was recorded in the presence of edrophonium, galanthamine and donepezil. Enhancement of oxime-induced reactivation with ligands was presumably subject to prevention of re-inhibition by the reaction product phosphonyloxime (POX). In the end, the results of the present study did not confirm that AChE-ligands directly accelerate the reactivation of OP-inhibited AChE by oximes, but indirectly by prevention of re-inhibition by the reaction product POX. This may be due to different experimental conditions and species differences between human and non-human AChE of previous experiments with non-human AChE.