ABSTRACT
Phospholipids in Tissues and Biological Fluids ...............................204 8.3 Puri cation, Derivatization, and Quanti cation of Free F2-IsoP .................205 8.4 Puri cation, Derivatization, and Quanti cation of Free F4-NP ...................206 8.5 F2-IsoP and F4-NP as Indexes of Oxidant Stress in Vivo .............................209 8.6 Summary ...................................................................................................... 210 Acknowledgments .................................................................................................. 210 List of Abbreviations .............................................................................................. 210 References .............................................................................................................. 211
Free radicals, largely derived from molecular oxygen, are implicated in a variety of human conditions and diseases including atherosclerosis and associated risk factors, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and aging. Damage to tissue biomolecules, such as lipids, proteins, or DNA, by free radicals is postulated to contribute importantly to the pathophysiology of oxidative stress [1,2]. Measuring oxidative stress in humans requires accurate quanti cation of either free radicals or damaged biomolecules. A number of methods exist to quantify free radicals and their oxidation products, although many of these techniques suffer from a lack of sensitivity and speci city, especially when used to assess oxidant stress status in vivo. In a recent multi-investigator study, termed the biomarkers of oxidative stress (BOSS) study, sponsored by the National Institute of Health, it was found that the most accurate method to assess oxidant stress in vivo status is the quanti cation of plasma or urinary isoprostanes (IsoP) [3]. IsoP, a series of prostaglandin (PG)-like compounds produced by the free radical-catalyzed peroxidation of arachidonic acid independent of cyclooxygenases, were rst discovered by our laboratory in 1990 [4]. The mechanism of formation of these compounds has been intensely studied and is reviewed in the literature [5,6].
