Inhibitors of oxidative degradation of protein: gerontological implications.

Compounds were studied that inhibit the oxidative degradation of human serum albumin by peroxidase and the enzyme model, iron hydroxide. Differences between the two oxidants gave clues for the mechanism of inhibition. The inhibitors studied were inorganic anions, phosphate, sulfate, carbonate and molybdate; organic anions, decanoate and glycocholate; and the nonionic species, glycogen. Such inhibitors might be considered as adjuvants in senescence: by decreasing the rate of enzymic oxidation of essential body proteins, they would, in the course of aging, reduce some of the physiological changes occurring as a result of accumulation of degraded protein.