[Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors as neutralizers of hydroxyl radical].

Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors are utilized in the treatment of essential hypertension and of chronic cardiac failure. They are also employed in the treatment of the myocardial lesion of ischemia-reperfusion, which involves oxygen free radicals. In the present study we investigated the possibility of three angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (captopril, enalapril, lisinopril) to act as hydroxyl radical scavengers. The rate constants for reactions of those compounds with .OH were determined using the deoxyribose method. All there compounds proved to be good scavengers of .OH with rate constants of about 10(10)M-1s-1 and are iron chelators specially enalapril. The fact that captopril possesses a thiol group does not confer an higher antioxidative capacity. These results suggest that scavenging of oxygen free radicals may be a possible mechanism contributing to the therapeutic effect of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors.