Jeejeebhoy K N
Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, ON, Canada.
Free Radic Biol Med. 1991;10(3-4):191-3. doi: 10.1016/0891-5849(91)90075-e.
Interaction of active oxygen species with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) results in a series of reactions called lipid peroxidation. During the process of peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids there is a scission of an alkane fragment extending from the methyl end of the fatty acid to the double bond. Thus, with a w-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid pentane is released, and with a w-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid ethane is released. These hydrocarbons are distributed in the body, partly metabolized, and excreted in the breath, making it possible to estimate the magnitude of in vivo lipid peroxidation by measuring pentane and ethane exhaled in breath. Advantages of this method are discussed as well as limitations and possible sources of error.
活性氧物质与多不饱和脂肪酸（PUFA）相互作用会引发一系列称为脂质过氧化的反应。在多不饱和脂肪酸过氧化过程中，从脂肪酸甲基端延伸至双键的烷烃片段会发生断裂。因此，对于ω-6多不饱和脂肪酸会释放出戊烷，而对于ω-3多不饱和脂肪酸则会释放出乙烷。这些碳氢化合物分布于体内，部分被代谢，并通过呼吸排出，这使得通过测量呼出气体中的戊烷和乙烷来估计体内脂质过氧化程度成为可能。本文讨论了该方法的优点以及局限性和可能的误差来源。
