Abstract
Oxidative stress hypothesis offers a mechanism for the aging process and its involvement in other pathologies such as diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer. AChE activity in erythrocytes may be considered as a marker of central cholinergic status. The present study was undertaken to (i) determine the activity of erythrocyte AChE as a function of human process (ii) correlate AChE activity with oxidative stress during human aging. Blood was collected from healthy subjects (n = 37) 22-82 years. Erythrocyte AChE activity, MDA and plasma antioxidant capacity in terms of FRAP was measured spectrophotometrically. There was a marked decrease in AChE activity with increasing age. The reduction in activity of AChE correlated well with increased lipid peroxidation and a decrease in FRAP values. Decreased antioxidant defense, and alteration in membrane rheology during aging process both may contribute towards decreased activity of AChE in erythrocyte membrane. This finding may help in explaining the neuronal complications taking place under conditions of oxidative stress, aging, and dementia.
Highlights
Aging is an inevitable biological process and has been defined as the progressive accumulation of diverse deleterious changes with time that increases the chance of disease and death
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of human aging on erythrocyte membrane-bound AChE and determine the correlation between markers of oxidative stress namely: lipid peroxidation and antioxidant status of plasma
Our results show a significant negative correlation (P
Summary
Aging is an inevitable biological process and has been defined as the progressive accumulation of diverse deleterious changes with time that increases the chance of disease and death. The oxidative stress hypothesis offers a possible mechanistic explanation of aging process and plays an important role in Alzheimer’s1 and other neurodegenerative diseases[2]. The major marker of cholinergic metabolism is the activity of the hydrolytic enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) that makes possible precise temporal control of synaptic activation by rapidly hydrolyzing neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) into acetate and choline[5]. It is known that the activity of AChE decreases with aging in various cerebral areas[6] and synaptic plasma membranes[7]. Oxidative stress hypothesis offers a mechanism for the aging process and its involvement in other pathologies such as diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer. The present study was undertaken to (i) determine the activity of erythrocyte AChE as a function of human process (ii) correlate AChE activity with oxidative stress during human aging
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