In the present study the interaction of NADPH-cytochrome reductase with phospholipids was investigated using 31P-NMR, thin-layer chromatography combined with chemical analysis, fluorescence spectroscopy and kinetic studies with purified rat liver cytochrome P450 IIBl."P-NMR analysis demonstrates that the composition of the phospholipids that remain associated to NADPH -cytochrome reductase upon its purification is significantly different from the phospholipid composition of the microsomal membrane. Thin-layer chromatography followed by chemical analysis of the phospholipid composition demonstrates that the isolated NADPH -cytochrome reductase was enriched in L-a-l,2-diacyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoserine (acy1,GroPSer) and L-a-l,2-diacyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoinositol (acy1,GroPIns) compared to the microsomal membrane. The observed preference of NADPH -cytochrome reductase for acy1,GroPSer and acyl,GroPIns appeared not to be a result of the procedure for solubilisation and/or purification of the protein.The specific interaction of NADPH -cytochrome reductase with acy1,GroPSer and acy1,GroPIns was further investigated by comparison of the effect of acy1,GroPSer and acy1,GroPIns with that of acy1,GroPCho and acy1,GroPEtn on the 2-[3-(diphenylhexatrienyl)propanoyl]-l-hexadecanoyl-snglycero-3-phosphocholine-(DphPamGro~Cho)-dependent quenching of the tryptophan fluorescence of purified NADPH-cytochrome reductase. The results demonstrate that the addition of acy1,-GroPSer or acy1,GroPIns affects the DphPamGroPCho-dependent quenching of the tryptophan fluorescence in a manner significantly different from the addition of acy1,GroPCho or acy1,GroPEtn. The relatively larger DphPamGroPCho-induced quenching of the tryptophan fluorescence of NADPH-cytochrome reductase in the presence of acyl,GroPSer and acy1,GroPIns must result from a change in the conformation of NADPH-cytochrome reductase induced by the latter two lipids.Finally, the possible consequences of this special interaction of acyl,GroPSer and acy1,GroPIns with NADPH -cytochrome reductase on the kinetic characteristics of the cytochrome P450 system were studied using cytochrome-P450-IIB1 -dependent 0-dealkylation of pentoxyresorufin as the model reaction. These studies demonstrate that a 1 : 1 mixture of acy1,GroPCho and acy1,GroPSer results in a significantly higher apparent maximum rate (V) of 0-dealkylation than a 1 : 1 mixture of acy1,GroPCho and acy1,GroPEtn or acyl,GroPCho alone. This increase in the apparent V can be ascribed to an acy1,GroPSer-dependent improvement of the interaction of NADPH-cytochrome reductase with cytochrome P450. This improvement of the interaction of the proteins cannot, however, be exclusively ascribed to the negative charge of acyl,GroPSer, since the other negatively charged phospholipid investigated, namely acyl,GroPIns, resulted in a significant decrease in the apparent V In both cases the substrate apparent K,,, was not affected. This opposite effect of acy1,-GroPSer and acy1,GroPIns on the kinetics of the cytochrome P450 IIBl system m...