Biomarkers

Free radical biologists have used the word "biomarker" from molecular epidemiology to characterise a molecular alteration in a biological molecule caused by reactive oxygen, nitrogen, or halide species. It is equally applicable to compounds formed from the consumption of lipids, DNA, proteins, and antioxidants, when the chemical basis of the process is proton abstraction, electron transfer, or direct addition. The rates at which these molecules react with the hydroxyl radical reveal that the reaction is governed by diffusion, and hence by closeness to the source of the radical.

Author(s): Mikako Sakaguchi

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