脂質の酸化と生体への影響

Abstract

It is well known that the lipids carrying unsaturated fatty acids are susceptible to oxidation or peroxidation resulting free radical formation.Lipid peroxide or free radical gives generally the damage on cell membrane structure, especially on enzyme system.From these reasons, the relations between clinical symptoms and oxidized serum or organs have recently been investigated. The relations on several organs are described as follows : 1) Lung. Lung is the most active organ synthesizing phospholipids, because the inside of alvolis are wetted by the solution of surface active substance so called pneumosurfactant to decrease the surface tension of water layer on the surface of alvolis. If we give O3 or NO2 gas to rats or rabbits by respiration they die more faster without the administration of tocopherols than the animals in normal conditions.2) Liver. In liver disease, the peroxide value of serum is in parallel to the condition of disease. It is recommended to decrease its value even in the case of surgery operation with large amounts of blood transfusion.3) Brain. In adult brain, the deposit of yellow pigments on the surface of brain tissue is found. The pigments are identified as fuchsin bases which are attributed to the condensation between malondialdehyde, product from lipid peroxidation and amino compound. But unfornutately, the relation between the formation of fuchsin base, so called lipofuscin and the deterioration of the functions of brain has never been clarified.There are a few procedures to assay the content of peroxided products in serum or organs.Thiobarbituric acid method (TBA) is widely utilized according to its easiness, but this method has many defects or doubts to measure the peroxidized products.According to Tappel et al, the procedure for fluorescent spectra has been developed, which is due to the fluorescent product formation between malonaldehyde and amino compounds.