ABSTRACT
Alpha-tocopherol was discovered in 1922 by Evans and Bishop as the •rst of at least eight variations of vitamin E (Evans and Bishop 1922). It was determined to be a vital nutrient for the prevention of fetal resorption, as well as the maintenance of red blood cells (Horwitt 1960). Alpha-tocopherol and its closely related isomers, beta-, gamma-, and delta-tocopherols display a less-›exible larger structure with a longer-saturated phytyl tail, while their less closely related isomers, alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and delta-tocotrienols, have a shorter, more ›exible unsaturated farnesyl tail. Tocotrienol’s ›exible and shorter lipophilic tail allows it to traverse a larger membrane area for added protection (Serbinova and Packer 1994; Atkinson et al. 2008).
