What is the mechanism of action of antioxidants?

What is the mechanism of action of antioxidants?

An antioxidant is a substance that at low concentrations delays or prevents oxidation of a substrate. Antioxidant compounds act through several chemical mechanisms: hydrogen atom transfer (HAT), single electron transfer (SET), and the ability to chelate transition metals.

Do antioxidants react with oxygen?

The free radicals then react with oxygen to produce peroxy radicals which cause yet further damage, often in a chain reaction. Other polymers susceptible to oxidation include polypropylene and polyethylene.

How do Antioxidants stop oxidation?

Antioxidants slow down the oxidation rates of foods by a combination of scavenging free radicals, chelating prooxidative metals, quenching singlet oxygen and photosensitizers, and inactivating lipoxygenase.

How do antioxidants neutralize free radicals?

Antioxidants neutralize free radicals either by providing the extra electron needed to make the pair, or by breaking down the free radical molecule to render it harmless. “Antioxidants stop the chain reaction of free radical formation and benefit our health by boosting our immune system ,” explains Prabhu.

What is chain breaking antioxidant?

The primary antioxidants, the so-called chain-breaking antioxidants, are able to react directly with free radicals by transforming them to more stable, nonradical products. The secondary, or preventive, antioxidants work indirectly on limiting lipid oxidation.

How do antioxidants quench free radicals?

Enzymatic antioxidants work by breaking down and removing free radicals. The antioxidant enzymes convert dangerous oxidative products to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and then to water, in a multi-step process in presence of cofactors such as copper, zinc, manganese, and iron.

Is Zinc an antioxidant?

Zinc in human plays an important role in cell mediated immunity and is also an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent. Zinc supplementation studies in the elderly have shown decreased incidence of infections, decreased oxidative stress, and decreased generation of inflammatory cytokines.

What are antioxidants oxygen?

Antioxidants help fight oxidation, a normal chemical process that takes place in the body every day. Oxygen triggers the formation of these destructive little chemicals, and, if left uncontrolled, they can cause damage to cells in the body.

How do you reduce free radicals in your body?

6) Eat foods rich in antioxidants, chemicals that inhibit the oxidation of molecules by neutralizing free radicals, thereby stopping them from causing cellular damage. Antioxidants are found in a variety of plants in the form of vitamins A, C and E, selenium and certain phytonutrients and polyphenols.

Is zinc oxide an antioxidant?

ZnO NPs demonstrated moderate antioxidant activity by scavenging 45.47% DPPH at 1mg/mL and revealed excellent anti-inflammatory activity by dose-dependently suppressing both mRNA and protein expressions of iNOS, COX-2, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α.

What kills free radicals in the body?

Antioxidants are chemicals that interact with and neutralize free radicals, thus preventing them from causing damage. Antioxidants are also known as “free radical scavengers.” The body makes some of the antioxidants that it uses to neutralize free radicals. These antioxidants are called endogenous antioxidants.

What Vitamin donates electrons to neutralize free radicals?

As being a reducing substance and an electron donor, during free radical scavenging, vitamin C donates high-energy electrons to neutralize free radicals, and it is oxidized to dehydroascorbic acid.

Is Hydroquinone monomethyl ether a stabilizer?

In practice, hydroquinone monomethyl ether (p‐methoxyphenol, MeHQ), among others, has established itself as a standard stabilizer. Under the process conditions of acrylic acid production, MeHQ is required at high temperatures and in the presence of dissolved atmospheric oxygen for polymerization inhibition.

How does hydroquinone prevent polymerization?

As a polymerisation inhibitor, exploiting its antioxidant properties, hydroquinone prevents polymerization of acrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, cyanoacrylate, and other monomers that are susceptible to radical-initiated polymerization.

What is hydrohydroquinone used for?

Hydroquinone (HQ) (1,4-DHB), which is one of the isomers of diphenol (Fig. 1.6 ), is very vital in a large number of biological and industrial processes such as paper manufacturing, coal-tar production, and photography [169].

What are the side effects of hydroquinone?

Numerous studies have revealed that hydroquinone, if taken orally, can cause exogenous ochronosis, a disfiguring disease in which blue-black pigments are deposited onto the skin; however, skin preparations containing the ingredient are administered topically.