Rate constants for autoxidation propagation of several unsaturated lipids in benzene solution at 37°C and in phosphatidylcholine liposomes were determined by a linoleate radical clock. This radical clock is based on competition between hydrogen atom abstraction by an intermediate peroxyl radical derived from linoleic acid that leads to a trans,cis-conjugated hydroxyoctadecadienoic product and β–fragmentation of the same peroxyl that gives the trans,trans-product hydroxyoctadecadienoic acid. Rate constants determined by this approach in solution relative to linoleic acid (kp = 62 M−1s−1) were: arachidonic acid (kp = 197 ± 13 M−1s−1), eicosapentaenoic acid (kp = 249 ± 16 M−1s−1), docosahexaenoic acid (kp = 334 ± 37 M−1s−1), cholesterol (kp = 11 ± 2 M−1s−1), and 7-dehydrocholesterol (kp = 2,260 ± 40 M−1s−1). Free radical oxidations of multilamellar and unilamellar liposomes of various mixtures of glycerophosphatidylcholine molecular species were also carried out. In some experiments, cholesterol or 7-dehydrocholesterol was incorporated into the lipid mixture undergoing oxidation. A phosphatidylcholine bearing a linoleate ester at sn-2 was a component of each liposome peroxidation reaction and the ratio of trans,cis/trans,trans (t,c/t,t)-conjugated diene oxidation products formed from this phospholipid was determined for each oxidation reaction. This t,c/t,t-product ratio from linoleate was used to “clock” liposome constituents as hydrogen atom donors in the lipid bilayer. Application of this lipid bilayer radical clock gives relative autoxidation propagation rate constants of arachidonate (20:4), eicosapentaenoate (20:5), docosahexaenoate (22:6), and 7-dehydrocholesterol to be 115 ± 7, 145 ± 8, 172 ± 13, and 832 ± 86, respectively, a reactivity trend that parallels the one in solution. We also conclude from the liposome oxidations that linoleate peroxyl radicals at different positions on the eighteen-carbon chain (at C-9 and C-13) have different kinetic properties. This is in contrast to the results of solution oxidations of linoleate in which the C-9 and C-13 peroxyl radicals have similar reactivities. We suggest that peroxyl radical β–scission depends on solvent polarity and the polarity of the local environment of peroxyl radicals in liposomal oxidations depends on the position of the peroxyl radical on the eighteen-carbon chain.

Accumulation of β-amyloid peptide is a key step in Alzheimer’s disease pathogenesis. Yuede et al. propose a novel method to track β-amyloid levels in vivo.

The effect of lipid composition on the distribution of free radical oxidation products derived from arachidonic acid (20:4) esters has been studied in vitro and in vivo. Pro-inflammatory prostaglandin (PG) F2-like compounds, termed F2-isoprostanes (IsoPs), are produced in vivo and in vitro by the free radical-catalyzed peroxidation of arachidonic acid. Controlled free radical oxidation of mixtures of fatty acid esters in vitro showed that the formation of IsoPs from arachidonate is dramatically influenced by the presence of other fatty acid esters in the reaction mixture. Thus, three lipid mixtures containing the same arachidonate concentration but different amounts of other fatty esters (16:0; 18:1; 18:2; 20:5, and 22:6) were oxidized, and the product yields were determined by GC and LC/MS/MS analysis. The yield of F2-IsoP formed after 1 h of oxidation was 18% (based on arachidonate consumed) for mixtures containing arachidonate as the only oxidizable PUFA, but yields of these biologically active compounds dropped to 6% in polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) mixtures typical of those found in tissues of fish oil-fed animals. F2-IsoP levels were also monitored in the livers of mice on diets supplemented with eicosapentaenoic acid (C20:5 omega-3; EPA), the PUFA most abundant in fish oil. While the level of arachidonic acid present in livers was not significantly different from that in control animals, levels of IsoPs in the liver were reduced in the EPA-fed mice compared to those in controls under conditions of oxidative stress (60 +/- 25% reduction, n = 5) or at baseline (48 +/- 14% reduction, n = 5). These results suggest that dietary omega-3 PUFAs may influence the formation of bio-active peroxidation products derived from omega-6 PUFAs by channeling the free radical pathway away from the F2-IsoPs.

Rationale:Several neurotransmitter receptors activate signaling pathways that alter processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) into amyloid-β (Aβ). Serotonin signaling through a subset of serotonin receptors suppresses Aβ generation. We proposed that escitalopram, the most specific selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) that inhibits the serotonin transporter , SERT, would suppress Aβ levels in mice.Objectives:We hypothesized that acute treatment with ESC would reduce Aβ generation which would be reflected chronically with a significant reduction in Aβ plaque load.Methods:We performed in vivo microdialysis and in vivo two-photon imaging to assess changes in brain interstitial fluid (ISF) Aβ and Aβ plaque size over time, respectively, in the APP/PS1 mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease treated with vehicle or ESC. We also chronically treated mice with ESC to determine the effect on plaques histologically.Results:ESC acutely reduced ISF Aβ by 25% by increasing α-secretase cleavage of APP. Chronic administration of ESC significantly reduced plaque load by 28% and 34% at 2.5 mg/day and 5 mg/day, respectively. ESC at 5mg/kg did not remove existing plaques, but completely arrested individual plaque growth over time.Conclusions:ESC significantly reduced Aβ in mice similar to previous findings in humans treated with acute dosing of an SSRI.