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Vitamins C and E donate single hydrogen atoms in vivo
Author(s) -
Njus David,
Kelley Patrick M.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/0014-5793(91)80672-p
Subject(s) - chemistry , radical , antioxidant , superoxide , redox , ascorbic acid , protonation , electron transfer , vitamin c , oxygen , photochemistry , vitamin e , in vivo , vitamin , hydrogen , biochemistry , inorganic chemistry , ion , organic chemistry , enzyme , food science , biology , microbiology and biotechnology
The antioxidant vitamins, C and E, eliminate cytotoxic free radicals by redox cycling. Energetic and kinetic considerations suggest that cycling of vitamin C and vitamin E between their reduced and free radical forms occurs via the transfer of single hydrogen atoms rather than via separate electron transfer and protonation reactions. This may enable these vitamins to reduce many of the damaging free radicals commonly encountered by biological systems while minimizing the reduction of molecular oxygen to superoxide.