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Carcinogenic antioxidants
Author(s) -
Wiseman Helen,
Halliwell Barry
Publication year - 1993
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(93)80504-n
Subject(s) - chemistry , lipid peroxidation , carcinogen , antioxidant , biochemistry , microsome , diethylstilbestrol , in vitro , phospholipid , liposome , microsoma , pharmacology , biology , hormone , membrane
The synthetic oestrogens diethylstilboestrol, hexoestrol and 17 α‐ethynyloestradiol are known to be carcinogenic, yet they all exert antioxidant properties in vitro in that they are good inhibitors of iron ion‐dependent lipid peroxidation. In rat liver microsomes incubated with Fe(III)‐ascorbate or Fe(III)‐ADP/NADPH and also in ox‐brain phospholipid liposomes incubated with Fe(III)‐ascorbate; the overall order of effectiveness of the compounds tested as inhibitors of lipid peroxidation was diethylstilboestrol ⪢ hexoestrol ⪢ 17 α‐ethynyloestradiol ⪢ 4‐hydroxytamoxifen ⪢ 17 β‐oestradiol ⪢ tamoxifen. Compounds acting as antioxidants towards lipids may also exert pro‐oxidant effects towards other molecules such as DNA and thus must never be assumed to be safe for human use.