Scientific Background: | Members of the cytochrome P-450 1A (CYP1A) sub-family are induced by a range of polycyclic aromatic compounds such as benzpyrene, 3-methylcholanthrene (Prod. No. BML-GR239), and pro-carcinogenic heterocyclic aromatic amines. Such compounds have been reported to induce CYP1A1 in rat liver, human placenta and lung. A rare polymorphism of the CYP1A1 gene has been implicated in familial Parkinson's Disease (PD), whereas in the rat, CYP1A1 has been localized to the globus pallidus, but not to the substantia nigra where cell death associated with the pathology of PD occurs. |