German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam Rehbrücke, Arthur-Scheunert-Alle 114-116, 14558, Nuthetal, Germany.
Free Radic Biol Med. 2021 Dec;177:381-390. doi: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2021.10.029. Epub 2021 Oct 29.
The early history of vitamin E from its discovery by Herbert M. Evans and Katharine J. S. Bishop in 1922 up to its chemical synthesis by Paul Karrer and coworkers in 1938 and the development of the concept that vitamin E acts as an antioxidant in vivo are recalled. Some more recent results shedding doubt on this hypothesis are reviewed. They comprise influence of vitamin E on enzyme activities, signaling cascades, gene expression and bio-membrane structure. The overall conclusion is that our knowledge of the vitamin's mechanism of action still remains fragmentary. The metabolism of tocopherols and tocotrienols is presented and discussed in respect to bioactivity of the metabolites, interference with drug metabolism and the future design of clinical trials. Some strategies are recommended how to reach the final goal: the identification of the primary vitamin E target(s) and the analysis of the downstream events up to the physiological phenomena.
从赫伯特·M·埃文斯和凯瑟琳·J·S·毕晓普于 1922 年发现维生素 E 开始，到保罗·卡雷尔及其同事于 1938 年合成维生素 E，以及维生素 E 在体内作为抗氧化剂发挥作用的概念的发展，这一历史过程被回顾。本文还回顾了一些最近的研究结果，这些结果对这一假说提出了质疑。这些结果包括维生素 E 对酶活性、信号级联、基因表达和生物膜结构的影响。总的结论是，我们对维生素作用机制的认识仍然是零散的。本文介绍并讨论了生育酚和三烯生育酚的代谢，以及代谢物的生物活性、对药物代谢的干扰以及未来临床试验的设计。本文还推荐了一些策略，以达到最终的目标：确定维生素 E 的主要靶标，并分析下游事件，直至出现生理现象。
