Oxidative stress

 Dr E. Marilyn Duff
 The University of the West Indies
 Faculty of Medical Sciences
 The UWI School of Nursing, Mona
 2007
 OXIDATIVE STRESS

 Oxidative stress, associated with the

production of free radicals, is a form of
physiological stress to which the body is
continuously subjected.

 Free radicals such as the hydroxy, peroxy &

superoxide ions, formed during normal
metabolism, are unstable & reactive due to
one or more unpaired electrons.
 Examples of free radicals
(superoxides)

 Superoxides O- + O- ------ O2

 Hydrogen peroxide H2O2 ----H2O + O-

 Hydroxyl radicals OH- + OH-

 Causes of excessive free
radical production

 Tobacco smoke,
pollutants, organic
solvents, pesticides,
anaesthetics, radiation,
metabolic intermediates
of some drugs.
Diseases associated with free
radicals
Diseases assoc. with free radicals:

fevers, autoimmune diseases,

drug reactions, aging, cancers,
radiation injury, kwashiorkor,
pre-eclampsia,
Diseases associated with free
radicals

emphysema, atherosclerosis,
senile dementia, contact dermatitis,
cataracts, retinopathy,
diabetic complications.
 Free radicals cause cellular
damage by:
 Denaturing proteins

 Damaging DNA

 Breaking fatty acid double

bonds, thus altering cell
membrane structure & function
 Antioxidants protect by:

 Blocking formation of carcinogens

 Protecting DNA and membranes from

oxidative damage

 Enhancing the immune system.

 Endogenous antioxidants

 Metaloenzymes:

 Catalase (Fe)
 Superoxide dismutases (Zn, Cu, Mn)
 Glutathione peroxidase (Se)
 Acute phase proteins, e.g.ceruloplasmin (Cu)
 Direct free radical scavengers

 Exogenous antioxidants:
 Vitamin E (a-tocopherol): lipid soluble antioxidant
present in all cell membranes.
 Vitamin C: water soluble, quenches free radicals.
 B-carotene: the most efficient quencher of free
radicals.
N. Anderson (1994), Proceedings of the Jamaica Food & Nutrition Society.