Brief communication
Peripheral antioxidant enzyme activities and selenium in elderly subjects and in dementia of Alzheimer's type—Place of the extracellular glutathione peroxidase

https://doi.org/10.1016/0891-5849(95)02058-6Get rights and content

Abstract

Defenses against free radical damage were determined in red blood cells and plasma from 40 patients with dementia of the Alzheimer-type (DAT) and 34 aged control subjects with normal cognitive function. No crude significant difference in erythrocyte copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (E-CuZnSOD), seleno-dependent glutathione peroxidase (E-GSH-Px), glutathione reductase (E-GSSG-RD) activities, and selenium (Se) concentration was found between DAT cases and control subjects. The peroxidation products evaluated in plasma by the thiobarbituric-reactive material (TBARS) were at the same level in the DAT group as compared to controls. In the DAT group, plasma GSH-Px (P-GSH-Px) activity and plasma Se (P-Se) were negatively correlated with age (r = -0.58; p < 0.001 and r = -0.63; p < 0.001 respectively). Moreover, erythrocyte GSH-Px activity and Se were also negatively correlated with age (r = -0.40; p < 0.01 and r = -0.46; p < 0.01, respectively). No significant correlation with age was observed in the controls. When controlling for age, a significant increase for P-GSH-Px activity and P-Se was observed in DAT patients as compared to controls. These significant differences mostly appeared in DAT subjects under 80 years. Some correlations were only observed in the DAT group such as P-GSH-Px and E-GSH-Px (r = +0.68; p < 0.001); P-GSH-Px and E-Se (r = +0.79; p < 0.001). Correlations between P-GSH-Px and P-Se, E-GSH-Px and P-Se, and P-Se with E-Se are greater in the DAT group (r = +0.84; p < 0.001; r = +0.76; p < 0.001 and r = 0.75; p < 0.001) than in the control group (r = 0.54, pI < 0.01; r = 0.43, p < 0.01 and r = +0.34, p < 0.05 respectively). The fact that first—a significant increase in P-GSHPx and P-Se, second-some modifications in the relationships between antioxidant parameters, and third-age-dependent decreases of glutathione-peroxidase activities and their cofactor, appeared only in the DAT group suggest that DAT is associated with an oxidative stress due to an imbalance between reactive oxygen species and the peripheral antioxidant opposing forces

References (45)

  • J.A. Serra et al.

    Copper-zinc superoxide dismutase activity in red blood cells in probable Alzheimer's patient and their first-degree relatives

    J. Neurol. Sci.

    (1994)
  • P. Amstad et al.

    Glutathione peroxidase compensates for the hypersensitivity of CuZn-superoxide dismutase overproducers to oxidant stress

    J. Biol. Chem.

    (1994)
  • I. Ceballos et al.

    Expression of transfected human CuZnSOD in mouse L cells and NS20Y neuroblastoma cells induces enhancement of glutathione peroxidase activity

    Biochim. Biophys. Acta

    (1988)
  • O. Toussaint et al.

    Relationship between the critical level of oxidative stresses and the glutathione peroxidase activity

    Toxicology

    (1993)
  • C. Behl et al.

    Hydrogen peroxide mediates amyloid β protein toxicity

    Cell

    (1994)
  • I. Ceballos et al.

    Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease: Neurodegenerative disorders due to brain antioxidant system deficiencies?

  • K. Hensley et al.

    A model for beta-amyloid aggregation and neurotoxicity based on free radical generation by the peptide: Relevance to Alzheimer disease

  • T. Dyrks et al.

    Identification, transmembrane orientation and biogenesis of the amyloid A4 precursor of Alzheimer's disease

    EMBO J.

    (1988)
  • J.P. Blass et al.

    Expression of Alzheimer antigens by an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation

    Arch. Neurol.

    (1990)
  • P.M. Sinet et al.

    Role of free radicals in Alzheimer's disease and Down's syndrome

  • K.V. Subbarao et al.

    Autopsy samples of Alzheimer's cortex show increased peroxidation in vitro

    J. Neurochem.

    (1990)
  • C.D. Smith et al.

    Excess brain protein oxidation and enzyme dysfunction in normal aging and in Alzheimer disease

  • Cited by (121)

    • Arsenic and selenium measurements in nail and hair show important relationships to Alzheimer's disease in the elderly

      2021, Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology
      Citation Excerpt :

      However, with recent studies, it was proven that Se levels in AD patients were not necessarily related to malnutrition [44–47]. The investigations about Se levels are few due to the difficulties created by variabilities in living environments and dietary states, and most probably for this reason they have inconsistent results [48–57]. Additionally, some studies indicated that the chemical forms of Se and concurrent exposure to other toxic chemicals could change its biological activity and toxicity [58,59].

    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text