Abstract

Chimeric mice having humanized livers were constructed by transplantation of human hepatocytes. In this study, we investigated whether these mice have a capacity for drug metabolism similar to that of humans by examining hydroxylation of S-warfarin, which is predominantly metabolized to S-7-hydroxywarfarin, catalyzed by CYP2C9, in humans but not mice. The 7-hydroxylating activity of chimeric mouse liver microsomes toward S-warfarin was approximately 10-fold higher than that of control (urokinase-type plasminogen activator-transgenic severe combined immunodeficient) mice. The 7-hydroxylase activity of chimeric mouse liver microsomes was markedly inhibited by sulfaphenazole, as was that of human liver microsomes, whereas the activity of control mice was unaffected. The CYP2C isoform in chimeric mouse liver was also confirmed to be the human isoform, CYP2C9, by immunoblot analysis. In the present in vivo study, the level of S-7-hydroxywarfarin in plasma of chimeric mice was approximately 7-fold higher than that in control mice, in agreement with the in vitro data. Thus, the CYP2C isoform in chimeric mice functions in vivo and in vitro as a human isoform, CYP2C9. These results suggest that chimeric mice with humanized liver could be useful for predicting drug metabolism in humans, at least regarding CYP2C9-dependent metabolism.