Defense against oxidative stress in mammals includes the regeneration of the major thiol reductants glutathione and thioredoxin by glutathione reductase and thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), respectively. In contrast, Drosophila, and possibly insects in general, lacks glutathione reductase and must rely solely on the TrxR system. The mammalian TrxRs described so far are selenoproteins that utilize ...

The metabolism of (75)Se-labeled SeO(3) (2-) and its conversion by intact rat erythrocytes in vitro to a form which complexes with Cd and plasma proteins were studied. By utilizing both excess SeO(3) (2-) and N-ethylmaleimide to lower erythrocyte reduced glutathione (GSH) concentrations, it was shown that the uptake and metabolism of SeO(3) (2-) were GSH-dependent, the probable intermediate bei...

Trypanothione reductase (TryR) is a key validated enzyme in the trypanothione-based redox metabolism of pathogenic trypanosomes and leishmania parasites. This system is absent in humans, being replaced with glutathione and glutathione reductase, and as such offers a target for selective inhibition. As part of a program to discover antiparasitic drugs, the LOPAC1280 library of 1266 compounds was...

BACKGROUND Oxidative stress and impaired antioxidant system have been proposed as a potential factors involved in the pathophysiology of diverse disease states, including carcinogenesis. In this study, we explored the lipid peroxidation levels and antioxidant enzyme activities in women diagnosed with different forms of gynecological diseases in order to evaluate the antioxidant status in endome...

Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) may be subjected to mechanical forces, such as cyclic strain, that promote the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We hypothesized that VSMC modulate this adverse milieu by increasing the expression of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) to maintain or restore intracellular glutathione (GSH) levels. Cyclic strain increased superoxide formation, ...

Our previous research showed that tea catechins could significantly increase the viability of lead-exposed PC12 cells. Whereas the cellular thiol status is known to be responsible for protecting against lead-induced toxicity, whether the role of tea catechins on lead-induced PC12 cell toxicity is related to the metabolism of intracellular thiol compounds remained vague. In the present study, it...