Lipid peroxidation: its mechanism, measurement, and significance

Abstract

An increased concentration of end products of lipid peroxidation is the evidence most frequently quoted for the involvement of free radicals in human disease. However, it is likely that increased oxidative damage occurs in most, if not all, human diseases and plays a significant pathological role in only some of them. For example, peroxidation appears to be important in atherosclerosis and in worsening the initial tissue injury caused by ischemic or traumatic brain damage. Oxidative stress can damage many biological molecules; indeed, proteins and DNA are often more significant targets of injury than are lipids, and lipid peroxidation often occurs late in the injury process. Many assays are available to measure lipid peroxidation, but no single assay is an accurate measure of the whole process. Application of simple diene-conjugate and thiobarbituric acid (TBA) assays to human tissues and body fluids can produce artifacts. An HPLC-based TBA test can eliminate some of these artifacts.

Role of reactive oxygen species in the pathophysiology of human reproduction

“…The in vitro culture environment differs from in vivo conditions in that the oxygen concentration is higher, and, in such a condition, mouse embryos show a higher ROS concentration in simple culture media (117,118). Reactive oxygen species are thought to cause damage to the cell membrane (119) and to cause DNA fragmentation in somatic cells (120), and they may participate in the process of apoptosis (121). Apoptotic configurations in fragmented human embryos were observed at a stage before blastocyst formation, and these have been suggested as the process of programmed cell death (122).…”

Increased lipid peroxidation during long-term intervention with high doses of n-3 fatty acids (PUFAs) following an acute myocardial infarction

“…Oxygen-free radicals are involved in the pathophysiology of inflammation and atherosclerosis (Dargel, 1992;Halliwell & Chirico, 1993). Treatment with statins has been shown to reduce the risk for cardiovascular events and exhibits beneficial effects on inflammation and plaque stability.…”

“…During peroxidation of PUFAs several chain reactions may modify lipids and lipoproteins containing PUFAs (Dargel, 1992;Halliwell & Chirico, 1993). Peroxidation of lipids and lipoproteins, especially lowdensity lipoprotein (LDL), is thought to play an important role in the development of atherosclerotic plaques (Avogaro et al, 1988;Boyd et al, 1989;Steinberg et al, 1989;Rosenfeld, 1991;Wiklund et al, 1991).…”

Administration of low doses of fish oil derived N-3 fatty acids to elderly subjects

“…n-3 PUFA are highly susceptible to oxidation (Halliwell & Chirico, 1993;Benzie, 1996), and therefore, long term supplementation without adequate antioxidant protection may result in in vivo peroxidation of n-3 fatty acids and thereby produce oxidative damage in elderly subjects, possibly contributing to the development of age-associated diseases (Halliwell, 1987). This situation is aggravated by the fact that older subjects are also more susceptible to the oxidative process than younger subjects (Meydani, 1992).…”