Cellular redox environment

Change in the cellular redox environment can lead to several biological effects ranging from altered signal transduction pathways, gene expression, mutagenesis and cell death (apoptosis). Oxidative stress has now been implicated in many diseases such as atherosclerosis, Parkinson s disease, Alzheimer s disease, cancer, etc. For the protection of cells from oxidative stress, supplementation with exogenous antioxidants becomes necessary. 

MEDIATED AMPEROMETRIC REAL-TIME MONITORING OF CELLULAR REDOX ENVIRONMENT... 

Fig. 2. Interplay among superoxide anion, nitric oxide, and eicosanoids in high oxidative stress. The biological function of nitric oxide in target cells is influenced by the cellular redox state. In increased oxidative stress, which results in an oxidizing environment, NO readily form free radicals, including the highly reactive peroxynitrite (OONO ). Peroxynitrite can influence eicosanoid synthesis by interfering with different enzyme systems of the arachidonic acid cascade. Increased free radicals may also catalyze nonenzymic peroxidation of membrane PUFA (e.g., arachidonic acid), resulting in increased production of isoprostanes that possess potent vasoconstrictor activity. PLA, phospholipase NO, nitric oxide NOS, nitric oxide synthase NADPH oxidase, vascular NAD(P)H oxidase 02 , superoxide anion PUFA, polyunsaturated fatty acids EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid DHA, docosahexaenoic acid COX, cyclooxygenase PGI2 synthase, prostacyclin synthase.

A quantitative description of oxidative phosphorylation within the cellular environment can be obtained on the basis of nonequilibrium thermodynamics. For this we consider the simple and purely phenomenological scheme depicted in Fig. 1. The input potential X0 applied to the converter is the redox potential of the respiratory substrates produced in intermediary metabolism. The input flow J0 conjugate to the input force X0 is the net rate of oxygen consumption. The input potential is converted into the output potential Xp which is the phosphate potential Xp = -[AG hoS -I- RT ln(ATP/ADP P,)]. The output flow Jp conjugate to the output force Xp is the net rate of ATP synthesis. The ATP produced by the converter is used to drive the ATP-utilizing reactions in the cell which are summarized by the load conductance L,. Since the net flows of ATP are large in comparison to the total adenine nucleotide pool to be turned over in the cell, the flow Jp is essentially conservative. 

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