Redox homeostasis is a fundamental property of living cells and actively responds to cellular metabolism and external stimuli. In all cells, small molecules capable of thiol-disulphide exchange such as glutathione (GSH) are abundant and are thought to act as buffers in redox equilibrium [1]. Given the importance and the general interest in cellular redox processes, a noninvasive method that det...

BACKGROUND Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a type of cancer that is strongly associated with oxidative damage and oxidative stress. Tobacco and alcohol - sources of massive quantities of reactive oxygen species (ROS) - have been clearly identified as etiologic factors that contribute to these malignancies. Considering the role of glutathione (GSH) in ROS detoxification, we hypo...

In agriculture, heavy metal contamination of soil interferes with processes associated with plant growth, development and productivity. Here, we describe oxidative and redox changes, and deleterious injury within cotyledons and seedlings caused by exposure of germinating (Phaseolus vulgaris L. var. soisson nain hâtif) seeds to copper (Cu). Cu induced a marked delay in seedling growth, and was a...

Hypertension is characterized by a pro-inflammatory status, including redox imbalance and increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, which may be exacerbated after heat exposure. However, the effects of heat exposure, specifically in individuals with inflammatory chronic diseases such as hypertension, are complex and not well understood. This study compared the effects of heat exposure on ...

A key unresolved question in the pathogenesis of phenotype development in nephropathic cystinosis is whether intralysosomal cystine, the hallmark of this lethal inborn error of metabolism, alters cytoplasmic redox potential. Variable findings on this issue have been reported. This study of fetal and non-fetal skin and lung-derived cystinotic fibroblasts compared to origin and age-matched normal...

Oxygen radicals are produced during oxidative metabolism in proportion to the tissue oxygen tension. The studies reported here have shown that oxygen radicals or the sulfhydryl oxidant, diamide, caused pulmonary vasodilatation in the isolated perfused rat lung. Could oxygen radicals play a role in the physiologic control of pulmonary vascular smooth muscle tone?

Bcl-2 is recognized as an oncoprotein via its ability to impede death signaling by sequestrating pro-apoptotic proteins such as Bax and Bak as well as preserving mitochondrial outer membrane integrity. Recently, a growing body of evidence has evaluated the role of Bcl-2 in intracellular redox regulation and its downstream effects on life and death decisions in cancer cells. On the backdrop of t...

Changes in assisted protein folding are largely unexplored in diabetes. In the present studies, we have identified a reductive shift in the redox status of rat liver microsomes after 4 weeks of streptozotocin-induced diabetes. This change was reflected by a significant increase in the total- and protein-sulfhydryl content, as well as in the free sulfhydryl groups of the major protein disulfide ...

Plumbagin is a plant naphtoquinone exerting anti-cancer properties including apoptotic cell death induction and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The aim of this study was to elucidate parameters explaining the differential leukemia cell sensitivity towards this compound. Among several leukemia cell lines, U937 monocytic leukemia cells appeared more sensitive to plumbagin treatment i...

We have evaluated the effects of an oral treatment of mice with fraxetin (25 mg/kg for 30 days) on the glutathione system (GSH, GSSG, and GSSG/GSH ratio as stress index), glutathione reductase (GR) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in liver supernatants from male C57BL/6J mice (18-month old). A significant antioxidant effect in vivo was found under this treatment by a decrease in the GSSG/GSH ra...