Oxidative Stress Is Associated with an Increased Antioxidant Defense in Elderly Subjects: A Multilevel Approach

Background

Studies of associations between plasma GSH-Px activity and cardiovascular risk factors have been done in humans, and contradictory results have been reported. The aim of our study was to assess the association between the scavenger antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity in plasma and the presence of novel and classical cardiovascular risk factors in elderly patients.

Methods

We performed a cross-sectional study with baseline data from a subsample of the PREDIMED (PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea) study in Spain. Participants were 1,060 asymptomatic subjects at high risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), aged 55 to 80, selected from 8 primary health care centers (PHCCs). We assessed classical CVD risk factors, plasma oxidized low-density lipoproteins (ox-LDL), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) using multilevel statistical procedures.

Results

Mean GSH-Px value was 612 U/L (SE: 12 U/L), with variation between PHCCs ranging from 549 to 674 U/L (Variance = 1013.5; P<0.001). Between-participants variability within a PHCC accounted for 89% of the total variation. Both glucose and oxidized LDL were positively associated with GSH-Px activity after adjustment for possible confounder variables (P = 0.03 and P = 0.01, respectively).

Conclusion

In a population at high cardiovascular risk, a positive linear association was observed between plasma GSH-Px activity and both glucose and ox-LDL levels. The high GSH-Px activity observed when an oxidative stress situation occurred, such as hyperglycemia and lipid oxidative damage, could be interpreted as a healthy defensive response against oxidative injury in our cardiovascular risk population.     

Overexpression of the cat-86 Gene Is Associated with Thermosensitivity in Bacillus subtilis

Bacillus subtilis harboring the cat-86 constitutive plasmid pPL708C2 with an ochre mutation at the 9th codon (terc 9) was sensitive to chloramphenicol (Cm^s) and exhibited relative thermostability when heated at 47°C. Reversion to chloramphenicol resistance (Cm^r) occurred at a frequency of 5.4 × 10⁻⁸. All of the plasmid Cm^r revertants tested were thermosensitive. Similarly, wild-type pPL708C2 present in B. subtilis also rendered the bacterium thermosensitive. When a nonsense mutation is introduced at codon 141, however, this terc 141 variant of pPL708C2 failed to thermosensitize B. subtilis. Another variant of pPL708C2 that produces intact yet catalytically inactive CAT-86 has both His-16 and His-17 at the active site replaced by Pro. Nevertheless, cells of B. subtilis carrying this variant were thermosensitive. Plasmid-free and pPL708C2-bearing strains did not exhibit differences in major heat shock proteins. Electron micrographs revealed a threefold increase of inclusion bodies present in a strain harboring pPL708C2 when compared with those in an isogenic plasmid-free strain. Received: 26 July 1999 / Accepted: 30 August 1999     

Enzymatic hydrolysis of soluble starch with an alpha-amylase from Bacillus licheniformis

The enzymatic hydrolysis of soluble starch with an alpha-amylase from Bacillus licheniformis (commercial enzyme Termamyl 300 L Type DX) have been experimentally studied at pH 7.5, within the temperature range of 37-75 degrees C, at initial substrate concentrations of between 0.25 and 2.00 g/L, and enzyme concentrations of between 0.575 x 10(-4) and 13.8 x 10(-4) g/L. To follow the reaction a procedure based on the iodometric method for measuring alpha-amylase activity was used. The kinetics of the enzymatic hydrolysis was fitted to the Michaelis-Menten equation using the integral method, taking into account that the thermal deactivation of the enzyme follows a second-order kinetic. These parameters were fitted to the Arrhenius equation obtaining activation energies of 24.4 and 41.7 kJ/mol and preexponential factors of 734.9 g/L and 1.74 x 10(8) min(-1) for K(M) and k, respectively.     

Amyloid-β Deposition in Alzheimer Transgenic Mice Is Associated with Oxidative Stress

Abstract: Increased awareness for a role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease has highlighted the issue of whether oxidative damage is a fundamental step in the pathogenesis or instead results from disease-associated pathology. In vitro experiments support both possibilities: Oxidative stress increases amyloid-β production, and, conversely, amyloid-β increases oxidative damage. To address the relationship between amyloid-β and oxidative stress in vivo, we examined, using an array of oxidative markers, transgenic mice that overexpress amyloid-β precursor protein and, as in Alzheimer's disease, develop characteristic amyloid-β deposits within the brain parenchyma. Transgenic animals show the same type of oxidative damage that is found in Alzheimer's disease, and it is important that this damage directly correlates with the presence of amyloid-β deposits. The significance of these studies is twofold. First, they provide evidence that amyloid-β and oxidative damage are inextricably linked in vivo. Second, they support the use of transgenic animals for the development of antioxidant therapeutic strategies.     

CD24 Overexpression Is Associated with Poor Prognosis in Luminal A and Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

CD24 is associated with unfavourable prognoses in various cancers, but the prevalence of CD24 expression and its influence on clinical outcome in subtypes of breast cancers remain unclear. CD24 expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry in 747 breast cancer tissues, and DNA methylation and histone modification status in the promoter region of CD24 were assessed using bisulfite sequencing and chromatin immunoprecipitation assay. 213 (28.5%) samples exhibited high CD24 expression in the membrane and/or cytoplasm of breast cancer cells, and CD24 overexpression was significantly correlated with the presence of lymph node metastasis and more advanced pathological stage. Patients with CD24-high tumours had significantly shorter patient survival than those with CD24-low tumours. Importantly, multivariate analysis that included tumour size, lymph node metastasis and chemotherapy demonstrated that high CD24 expression is independently associated with poorer survival in luminal A and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) subtypes. Furthermore, CD24 gene expression was associated with histone acetylation independent of DNA methylation, suggesting its epigenetic regulation in breast cancer. Our results suggest that CD24 overexpression is an independent unfavourable prognostic factor in breast cancer, especially for luminal A and TNBC subtypes, and CD24 may be a promising therapeutic target for specific subtypes of breast cancer.     

Effects of Glutathione Modulation on Oxidative Stress and Enzymatic Antioxidant Defence in Yeast Pachysolen tannophilus

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of intracellular glutathione with various oxidative stress markers and the stress protectant marker trehalose. In the first group of yeast cells, diethyl maleate was used for depletion of glutathione. A second group of yeast cells were incubated with amino acids constituting glutathione (GIu, Cys, Gly) to increase glutathione level. Increased level of oxidative stress marker like ROS, protein carbonyl formation and lipid peroxidation and decreased viability in glutathione-depleted cells were observed in the present study. The increased activity of antioxidant enzymes SOD and CAT in the glutathione depleted group suggests the interaction of different antioxidant defence system in Pachysolen tannophilus. Furthermore, the increased levels of trehalose in glutathione-depleted group shows that trehalose acts as a stress reducer in glutathione depleted Pachysolen tannophilus.     

过表达枸杞LcCHYB基因提高洋桔梗抗氧化性的研究

非生物胁迫造成植物胞内产生大量活性氧ROS和自由基,导致植物细胞结构及酶系统受到破坏。类胡萝卜素是植物胞内重要的抗氧化物质,与植物的抗氧化功能有重要关系。为了提高洋桔梗的抗氧化性,将来自枸杞(Lycium Chinense Miller)的β-类胡萝卜素羟化酶基因(Lc CHYB)导入洋桔梗中,研究结果表明以10%过氧化氢胁迫洋桔梗叶片20 min后,转基因洋桔梗叶片中总类胡萝卜素、玉米黄质含量及叶黄素循环池容量显著提高,同时对光合荧光参数和抗氧化酶系统的酶活性也进行探讨,发现转基因洋桔梗相对于野生型植株对氧化胁迫的耐受性也有了显著的提高。     

Elemental Zinc Is Inversely Associated with C-Reactive Protein and Oxidative Stress in Chronic Liver Disease

Chronic liver disease (CLD) is associated with the destruction of liver parenchyma cell. It is the main cause of morbidity and mortality in most of the developed countries. Oxidative stress and altered levels of different trace elements in serum have been documented for different diseases including inflammation and many liver diseases. This study aims to evaluate the serum level of malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), antioxidant vitamin C, C-reactive protein (CRP), and zinc (Zn) in CLD patients and to establish a correlation among the study parameters with the severity of inflammatory conditions of CLD. In this study, CLD patients and healthy volunteers were recruited. Total cholesterol and triglyceride were determined by colorimeter using enzymatic method. Serum non-enzymatic antioxidant vitamin C, reactive oxygen species nitric oxide (NO), and malondialdehyde (MDA) were determined by UV-spectrophotometric method. Trace element (Zn) levels were determined by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy. Independent sample t test and Pearson’s correlation test were performed for statistical analysis using the statistical software package SPSS, Version 20. Studies showed that the MDA (p < 0.001), NO (p < 0.001), and CRP levels were significantly higher in CLD patients than in control subjects. The antioxidant vitamin C (p < 0.001) and trace element zinc (p < 0.001) were comparatively lower in the CLD patients than in control subjects. Elemental Zn showed an inverse relationship with MDA, NO, and CRP but positively correlated with antioxidant capacity, whereas MDA showed a positive correlation with CRP level. Thus, we conclude that attenuated level of Zn and antioxidant in serum play an important role in the inflammatory status of CLD patients by elevating the concentration of MDA, NO, and CRP.     

Systemic Oxidative Stress Associated with the Neurological Diseases of Aging

Markers of oxidative stress were measured in blood samples of 338 subjects (965 observations): Alzheimer’s, vascular dementia, diabetes (type II) superimposed to dementias, Parkinson’s disease and controls. Patients showed increased thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (+21%; P < 0.05), copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (+64%; P < 0.001) and decreased antioxidant capacity (−28%; P < 0.001); pairs of variables resulted linearly related across groups (P < 0.001). Catalase and glutathione peroxidase, involved in discrimination between diseases, resulted non-significant. When diabetes is superimposed with dementias, changes resulted less marked but significant. Also, superoxide dismutase resulted not linearly correlated with any other variable or age-related (pure Alzheimer’s peaks at 70 years, P < 0.001). Systemic oxidative stress was significantly associated (P ≪ 0.001) with all diseases indicating a disbalance in peripheral/adaptive responses to oxidative disorders through different free radical metabolic pathways. While other changes—methionine cycle, insulin correlation—are also associated with dementias, the responses presented here show a simple linear relation between prooxidants and antioxidant defenses.     

Diethylhexyl Phthalates Is Associated with Insulin Resistance via Oxidative Stress in the Elderly: A Panel Study

Background

Insulin resistance (IR) is believed to be the underlying mechanism of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). Recently, a few studies have demonstrated that phthalates could cause oxidative stress which would contribute to the development of IR. Therefore, we evaluated whether exposure to phthalates affects IR, and oxidative stress is involved in the phthalates-IR pathway.

Methods

We recruited 560 elderly participants, and obtained blood and urine samples during repeated medical examinations. For the determination of phthalate exposure, we measured urinary levels of mono-(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP) and mono-(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP) as metabolites of diethylhexyl phthalates (DEHP), and mono-n-butyl phthalate (MnBP) as a metabolite of di-butyl phthalate (DBP). Malondialdehyde (MDA), an oxidative stress biomarker, was also measured in urine samples. We measured serum levels of fasting glucose and insulin, and derived the homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) index to assess IR. A mixed-effect model and penalized regression spline were used to estimate the associations among phthalate metabolites, MDA, and IR.

Results

The molar sum of MEHHP and MEOHP (∑DEHP) were significantly associated with HOMA (β = 0.26, P = 0.040), and the association was apparent among participants with a history of DM (β = 0.88, P = 0.037) and among females (β = 0.30, P = 0.022). However, the relation between MnBP and HOMA was not found. When we evaluated whether oxidative stress is involved in increases of HOMA by ∑DEHP, MDA levels were significantly associated with increases of ∑DEHP (β = 0.11, P<0.001) and HOMA (β = 0.49, P = 0.049).

Conclusions

Our study results suggest that exposure to DEHP in the elderly population increases IR, which is related with oxidative stress, and that participants with a history of DM and females are more susceptible to DEHP exposure.     

24-表油菜素内酯对干旱胁迫下辣椒幼苗叶片抗氧化酶系统及耐旱相关基因表达的影响

报道了干旱胁迫下外源24-表油菜素内酯（EBR）对辣椒幼苗叶片H₂O₂和MDA含量,抗氧化酶活性,以及耐旱相关基因表达的影响。结果表明,0.1 μmol·L^-1 EBR处理诱导了辣椒幼苗叶片H₂O₂含量的增加,并提高了SOD、APX、CAT、DHAR、MDAR和GR活性;干旱胁迫下,EBR处理显著诱导了辣椒叶片抗氧化酶活性的增加,并抑制了H₂O₂和MDA含量的上升;EBR处理也促进了cAPX和MDAR等抗氧化酶基因的表达,以及WRKY3、WRKY6和MYB等转录因子的表达。由此认为,适宜浓度的外源EBR可能是通过信号分子H₂O₂调控辣椒叶片中WRKY和MYB等转录因子的表达以调控相关耐旱基因表达,增强细胞的抗氧化酶活性,减轻干旱造成的膜质过氧化伤害,从而增强了辣椒幼苗的耐旱性。     

Retinal Vascular Caliber Is Associated with Cardiovascular Biomarkers of Oxidative Stress and Inflammation: The POLA Study

Purpose

Retinal vascular caliber has been linked with increased cardiovascular risk and is predictive of cardiovascular pathology, including stroke and coronary heart disease. Oxidative stress, as well as inflammatory mechanisms, plays a major role in the pathogenesis and progression of atherosclerosis, plaque rupture and vascular thrombotic propensity. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between retinal vascular calibers and biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation, in subjects free of cardiovascular pathology.

Patients and Methods

Cross-sectional analysis from a community-dwelling cohort comprising 1224 individuals aged 60 years and over, without a history of coronary or peripheral artery disease or stroke. Retinal vascular caliber was measured from fundus photographs using semi-automated standardized imaging software. Oxidative stress was evaluated using plasma superoxide dismutase 2 and glutathione peroxidase (GPx-3) activities, and inflammatory state was assessed using plasma high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and orosomucoid.

Results

In a multivariate model controlling for cardiovascular risk factors, larger retinal arteriolar caliber was independently related to higher level of GPx-3 activity (p = 0.003) whereas larger venular caliber was associated with higher levels of hsCRP (p = 0.0001) and orosomucoid (p = 0.01).

Conclusion

In the present study, biomarkers of oxidative stress regulation and inflammation were independently associated with retinal vascular calibers. This suggests that an assessment of retinal vessels may offer early and non-invasive detection of subclinical vascular pathology.     

Foliar Concentrations of Selected Elements,Assessment of Oxidative Stress Markers and Role of Antioxidant Defense System is Associated with Fly Ash Stress Tolerance in Withania somnifera

Journal of Plant Growth Regulation - Increased dependence on thermal power has resulted in a significant increase in the generation of fly ash&nbsp;(FA), which exacerbates environmental...     

Erratum to: Interactions Between Chronic Stress and Chronic Consumption of Caffeine on the Enzymatic Antioxidant System

Neurochemical Research -