McCord J M
Webb-Waring Institute, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado, USA.
Am J Med. 2000 Jun 1;108(8):652-9. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9343(00)00412-5.
The superoxide free radical has come to occupy an amazingly central role in a wide variety of diseases. Our metabolic focus on aerobic energy metabolism in all cell types, coupled with some chemical peculiarities of the oxygen molecule itself, contribute to the phenomenon. Superoxide is not, as we once thought, just a toxic but unavoidable byproduct of oxygen metabolism. Rather it appears to be a carefully regulated metabolite capable of signaling and communicating important information to the cell's genetic machinery. Redox regulation of gene expression by superoxide and other related oxidants and antioxidants is beginning to unfold as a vital mechanism in health and disease.
超氧自由基在多种疾病中已占据了惊人的核心地位。我们对所有细胞类型中需氧能量代谢的代谢关注，再加上氧分子本身的一些化学特性，促成了这一现象。超氧自由基并不像我们曾经认为的那样，仅仅是氧代谢产生的一种有毒但不可避免的副产物。相反，它似乎是一种受到精细调节的代谢产物，能够向细胞的遗传机制传递重要信息并进行信号传导。超氧自由基以及其他相关氧化剂和抗氧化剂对基因表达的氧化还原调节，正逐渐展现出其在健康与疾病中的关键作用机制。
