High-molar-mass hyaluronan behavior during testing its radical scavenging capacity in organic and aqueous media: effects of the presence of manganese(II) ions.

This study compares the radical scavenging capacity of high-molar-mass hyaluronan (HA) using standardized methods applying 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals and 2,2'-azinobis[3-ethylbenzthiazoline sulfonate] (ABTS) radical cations as oxidants. Additionally, spin-trapping technique combined with electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) was used to evaluate the ability of HA to scavenge reactive radicals. The thermal decomposition of K2S2O8 in pure H2O or in a H2O/dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) mixture at 333 K was used as a source of reactive paramagnetic species. We found that HA does not exhibit radical-scavenging activity when DPPH radicals or ABTS(.+) radical cations are used as oxidant, but that HA is an effective radical scavenger at low concentrations, if the oxidation reactions are initiated by the decomposition of K2S2O8. At higher HA concentrations, a more complex behavior and prooxidant HA action was observed. The influence of Mn(II) ions on the reaction mechanisms of radical generation and termination in the K2S2O8/H2O/DMSO system in the presence of HA was studied in detail.