Superoxide dismutase enhances chain-breaking antioxidant capability of hydroquinones

2-tert-butyl-(1), 2,6-dimethyl-(2), 2,5-dimethyl-(3), trimethyl-(4), and 2,3-dimethoxy-5-methyl-(5) substituted p-hydroquinones (QH₂) were tested as a chainbreaking antioxidant during the oxidation of methyl linoleate (ML) in dodecyl sulfate micellar solution, pH 7.40, at 37°C. In the absence of superoxide dismutase (SOD), all the studied QH₂ displayed very moderate if any antioxidant capability. When 5–25 U/ml SOD was added, QH₂ showed a pronounced ability to inhibit ML oxidation. The stoichiometric factor of inhibition was found to be about one for all the tested QH₂ in the presence of SOD. The reactivities of QH₂ to the ML peroxy radical increase in the order QH₂5 < QH₂ 3 < QH₂1≈QH₂2 < QH₂4; reactivity of QH₂4 exceds that reported for the majority of phenolic antioxidants. The features of QH₂ as an antioxidant in aqueous environment is likely associated with the reactivity of semiquinone (O^·-) formed due to attack of the peroxy radical to QH₂. O^·- reacts readily with molecular oxygen with formation of superoxide (O^·-₂); in turn, O^·-₂ attacks both to QH₂ and ML (likely, as HO^·₂) that results in fast depleting QH₂ and chain propagation, respectively. The addition of SOD results in purging a reaction mixture from O^·-₂ and, as a corollary, in depressing undesirable reactions with the participation of O^·-₂. Under these conditions, QH₂ displays the theoretically highest inhibitory activity which is determined solely by the reactivity of QH₂ to the peroxy radical.