Alteration of the erythrocyte glutathione redox balance by N-acetylcysteine, captopril and exogenous glutathione

Jim Russell, Corinne M. Spickett, John Reglinski, W. Ewen Smith, John McMurray, Ibrahim B. Abdullah

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The effect of the thiol containing compounds N-acetylcysteine and captopril on glutathione metabolism in human erythrocytes has been investigated non-invasively using 1H spin echo NMR. N-Acetylcysteine was found to increase the reduced form of glutathione while captopril increased the oxidized form, but no changes in the total glutathione concentration were observed. Incubation of the cells with buthionine sulphoximine to inhibit de novo glutathione synthesis did not affect the response. The results show that these compounds act by altering the redox balance of glutathione rather than by stimulating its synthesis, and that their mechanisms of action are different, and not simply due to the presence of the thiol group.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)215-220
Number of pages6
JournalFEBS Letters
Volume347
Issue number2-3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 27 Jun 1994

Keywords

  • NMR
  • antioxidant defense
  • glutathione
  • N-acetylcysteine
  • captopril
  • human erythrocyte
  • Pharmacy and materia medica

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Alteration of the erythrocyte glutathione redox balance by N-acetylcysteine, captopril and exogenous glutathione'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this