Suboxide dismutase

As early as 1951, Parravano demonstrated the polymerization of methyl methacrylate using xanthine oxidase (XO)-catalyzed oxidation of formaldehyde to formic acid thereby producing suboxide (02 ) to initiate the polymerization reaction [1], He also suggested direct partially reduced XO to directly initiate the polymerization process with H-abstraction from methyl methacrylate. The latter assumption however was not confirmed by later studies of Derango et al. [28] as suboxide dismutase (catalyzing the disproportionation of suboxide into 02 and H202) efficiently inhibited XO-initiated polymerization of various acrylates (Figure 6.15). 

Figure 6.15 Xanthine oxidase (XO)-catalyzed formation of suboxide radicals to initiate acrylamide-polymerization. In the presence of suboxide dismutase no polymerization was observed.

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