The Implications of Smoking on Lipid Peroxidation and Serum Antioxidant Status in Young Smokers with Coronary Heart Disease

Abstract

Cigarette smoking is one of the leading causes of heart disease. Cigarette smoke contains oxidants playing a major role in oxidative stress by lowering antioxidant capacity and by increasing the level of lipid peroxidation. The study aims to estimate the total antioxidant capacity levels, lipid peroxidation and its relation to cardiovascular disease in young smokers. The study contains three groups. Group1 includes 120 healthy controls as nonsmokers, group2 includes 120 young active smokers with coronary heart disease (CHD) and group3 includes 120 young active smokers with diabetic CHD subjects who were attending the SRM Medical College Hospital in Tamil Nadu for cardiology and medicine. The Total Antioxidant Capacity and lipid peroxidation especially measured as malondialdehyde (MDA) was determined using a spectrophotometric technique. Enzyme-linked Immune Sorbent Assay was used to measure oxidized LDL (ox- LDL)" and "high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP). The total antioxidant capacity of smokers was found to be significantly lower than those of healthy controls p<0.0001. On the other hand, MDA, ox-LDL and hs-CRP concentrations were considerably higher in smokers than healthy controls p<0.0001. Interestingly smoking burden and smoking intensity also show a significant correlation with antioxidant capacity, lipid peroxidation (MDA) as well as with ox-LDL. The study concludes that cigarette smoking reduces the concentration of total antioxidant required for free radical scavenging which enhances the rate of lipid peroxidation and is one of the risk factors for CHD observed in smokers.