Mar. Drugs 2012, 10(8), 1784-1798; doi:10.3390/md10081784
Scavenging Capacity of Marine Carotenoids against Reactive Oxygen and Nitrogen Species in a Membrane-Mimicking System
Department of Food Science, Faculty of Food Engineering, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Rua Monteiro Lobato, 80, CEP 13083-862, Campinas, São Paulo 13083-970, Brazil
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 5 May 2012 / Revised: 7 July 2012 / Accepted: 25 July 2012 / Published: 20 August 2012
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Marine Carotenoids and Oxidative Stress)
Abstract
Carotenoid intake has been associated with the decrease of the incidence of some chronic diseases by minimizing the in vivo oxidative damages induced by reactive oxygen (ROS) and nitrogen species (RNS). The carotenoids are well-known singlet oxygen quenchers; however, their capacity to scavenge other reactive species, such as peroxyl radical (ROO•), hydroxyl radical (HO•), hypochlorous acid (HOCl) and anion peroxynitrite (ONOO−), still needs to be more extensively studied, especially using membrane-mimicking systems, such as liposomes. Moreover, the identification of carotenoids possessing high antioxidant capacity can lead to new alternatives of drugs or nutritional supplements for prophylaxis or therapy of pathological conditions related to oxidative damages, such as cardiovascular diseases. The capacity to scavenge ROO•, HO•, HOCl and ONOO− of seven carotenoids found in marine organisms was determined in liposomes based on the fluorescence loss of a fluorescent lipid (C11-BODIPY581/591) due to its oxidation by these reactive species. The carotenoid-bearing hydroxyl groups were generally more potent ROS scavengers than the carotenes, whilst β-carotene was the most efficient ONOO− scavenger. The role of astaxanthin as an antioxidant should be highlighted, since it was a more potent scavenger of ROO•, HOCl and ONOO− than α-tocopherol. View Full-TextKeywords:
liposomes; astaxanthin; carotenoids; ROS; RNS
▼
Figures
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 3.0).
Share & Cite This Article
MDPI and ACS Style
Rodrigues, E.; Mariutti, L.R.B.; Mercadante, A.Z. Scavenging Capacity of Marine Carotenoids against Reactive Oxygen and Nitrogen Species in a Membrane-Mimicking System. Mar. Drugs 2012, 10, 1784-1798.
Related Articles
Article Metrics
Comments
[Return to top]
Mar. Drugs
EISSN 1660-3397
Published by MDPI AG, Basel, Switzerland
RSS
E-Mail Table of Contents Alert