Ascorbic acid radical, superoxide, and hydroxyl radical are detected in reperfusion injury of rat liver using electron spin resonance spectroscopy.

Using electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy, we examined whether reactive oxygen intermediates (ROIs) are produced after reperfusion of isolated, perfused rat livers subjected to global ischemia (10, 30, 60, and 90 min of ischemia). A few drops of effluent (200 microliters) flowed from reperfused liver was mixed immediately with 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO, final concentration 1 M), and ESR measurements were then performed. Immediately after reperfusion, a small amount of ascorbic acid radical and DMPO-OOH, which was formed by the reaction of superoxide with DMPO, was detected. The amount of ascorbic acid radical peaked immediately after reperfusion, but became hardly detectable at 6 min after reperfusion, irrespective of the period of ischemia. Six minutes after reperfusion, not only DMPO-OOH but also DMPO-OH, which was formed by the reaction of hydroxyl radical with DMPO, was detected. Thereafter, DMPO-OOH and DMPO-OH gradually declined and became hardly detectable at 40 min after reperfusion. In accordance with the duration of ischemia, the concentrations of DMPO-OOH and DMPO-OH were highest after 60 min of ischemia, and then after 30, 90, and 10 min of ischemia in decreasing order. These results directly demonstrate that the production of ROIs occurs at an early stage of reperfusion in ischemic liver and that the amount of ROI production is closely related to the duration of ischemia.