Iron catalysis of lipid peroxidation in ferroptosis: Regulated enzymatic or random free radical reaction?

Duality of iron as an essential cofactor of many enzymatic metabolic processes and as a catalyst of poorly controlled redox-cycling reactions defines its possible biological beneficial and hazardous role in the body. In this review, we discuss these two "faces" of iron in a newly conceptualized program of regulated cell death, ferroptosis. Ferroptosis is a genetically programmed iron-dependent form of regulated cell death driven by enhanced lipid peroxidation and insufficient capacity of thiol-dependent mechanisms (glutathione peroxidase 4, GPX4) to eliminate hydroperoxy-lipids. We present arguments favoring the enzymatic mechanisms of ferroptotically engaged non-heme iron of 15-lipoxygenases (15-LOX) in complexes with phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein 1 (PEBP1) as a catalyst of highly selective and specific oxidation reactions of arachidonoyl- (AA) and adrenoyl-phosphatidylethanolamines (PE). We discuss possible role of iron chaperons as control mechanisms for guided iron delivery directly to their "protein clients" thus limiting non-enzymatic redox-cycling reactions. We also consider opportunities of loosely-bound iron to contribute to the production of pro-ferroptotic lipid oxidation products. Finally, we propose a two-stage iron-dependent mechanism for iron in ferroptosis by combining its catalytic role in the 15-LOX-driven production of 15-hydroperoxy-AA-PE (HOO-AA-PE) as well as possible involvement of loosely-bound iron in oxidative cleavage of HOO-AA-PE to oxidatively truncated electrophiles capable of attacking nucleophilic targets in yet to be identified proteins leading to cell demise.

Effects of laser and LED radiation on mitochondrial respiration in experimental endotoxic shock.

Effects of low-level laser therapy (442 and 532 nm) and LED radiation (650 nm) on mitochondrial respiration in experimental endotoxic shock have been studied. A model of experimental endotoxic shock in rats was obtained by intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide B. It was found that low-level laser therapy and LED radiation dramatically affected the rate of mitochondrial respiration in third and fourth states both in LPS-treated animals and in control experiments. The maximal increase of the mitochondrial respiration rate (of about 40 %) in LPS-treated animals was observed when blue laser was applied at the dose of 6 J/cm(2). Measurements of inner mitochondrial membrane surface potential with fluorescence probe JC-1 in LPS-treated rats showed in approximately 10 % decrease of potential in LPS-treated animals compared to control.

Chemiluminescence as a method for detection and study of free radicals in biological systems.

Chemiluminescence observed during LPO or reactions of nitric oxide and oxygen radicals and was named "ultraweak luminescence". In the presence of chemiluminescence activators (luminol, lucigenin, rhodamine G, or coumarine C-525) the appearance of radicals is associated with intensive fluorescence; the registration of this fluorescence is widely used in biomedical and clinical studies.

Creation of new physicochemical methods for blood analysis on the base of fluorescent probes.

This review deals with the development of new methods for studies of blood cells and plasma, based on the use of special dye molecules, the so-called fluorescent probes. These probes can also be used for clinical diagnosis. Probes and new methods on the basis of these probes were created for measurements of plasma and serum lipoproteins, serum albumin binding centers, blood leukocyte intracellular lipoproteins, allergens.

Binding of fatty acids facilitates oxidation of cysteine-34 and converts copper-albumin complexes from antioxidants to prooxidants.

As a transition metal capable of undergoing one-electron oxidation-reduction conversions, copper (Cu) is essential for life and fulfills important catalytic functions. Paradoxically, the same redox properties of copper can make it extremely dangerous because it can catalyze production of free radical intermediates from molecular oxygen. Factors involved in regulation of redox activity of albumin-bound copper have not been well characterized. In the present study, effects of modification of the albumin cysteine-34 (Cys-34) and binding of nonesterified fatty acids on the redox-cycling activity of the complex of copper with human serum albumin (Cu/HSA) were studied. Because ascorbate is the most abundant natural reductant/scavenger of free radicals in blood plasma, the electron paramagnetic resonance assay of ascorbate radical formation was used as a method to monitor Cu/HSA redox-cycling activity. At Cu/HSA ratios below 1:1, the bound Cu was virtually redox inactive, as long as Cys-34 was in reduced state (Cu/HSA-SH). Alkylation, nitrosylation, or oxidation of Cu/HSA resulted in the appearance of redox-cycling activity. Experiments with ultrafiltration of Cu/HSA alkylated with N-ethylmaleimide (Cu/HSA-NEM) showed that at Cu/HSA-NEM ratios below 1:1, the ascorbate radicals were produced by Cu tightly bound to HSA rather than by Cu released in solution. The rate of ascorbate radical production in HSA-NEM and S-nitrosylated HSA (HSA-NO) was, however, more than one order of magnitude lower than that in a solution containing equivalent concentration of free copper ions. While Cu/HSA-SH was redox inactive, binding of oleic or linoleic acids induced Cu-dependent redox-cycling with maximal activity reached at a fatty acid to protein molar ratio of 3:1 for oleic acid and 2:1 for linoleic acid. Binding of fatty acids caused profound conformational changes and facilitated oxidation of the Cys-34 SH-group at essentially the same ratios as those that caused redox-cycling activity of Cu/HSA. We conclude that fatty acids regulate anti-/prooxidant properties of Cu-albumin via controlling redox status of Cys-34.

Mechanism of therapeutic effect of low-intensity infrared laser radiation.

The effect of infrared low-intensity laser irradiation on functional activity of blood polymorphonuclear leukocytes was studied in vitro. A dose-dependent priming of polymorphonuclear leukocytes induced by infrared low-intensity laser irradiation was demonstrated. Similar effects were also observed in the presence of the photosensitizer photosense.

Effect of the combined action of flavonoids, ascorbate and alpha-tocopherol on peroxidation of phospholipid liposomes induced by Fe2+ ions.

The effect of alpha-tocopherol, ascorbate, rutin and dihydroquercetin on chemiluminescence (CL) accompanying the Fe2+-induced peroxidation of unsaturated fatty acids in phospholipid liposomes has been investigated. The amplitude of CL decreased and the latent period increased in the presence of alpha-tocopherol, rutin and dihydroquercetin which is typical of peroxide radical traps. Ascorbate also reduced the CL amplitude but only at small concentrations up to about 4 microM. A further increase of ascorbate concentration had a negligible effect on the amplitude. At the same time, the latent period in CL development increased with the growth of ascorbate concentration, apparently, as a result of recycling of divalent iron oxidized in the course of lipid peroxidation. The effects of rutin and dihydroquercetin on the liposomal CL in the presence of alpha-tocopherol and ascorbate in all experiments were almost the same as when these compounds were added individually. The antioxidant effects were merely summed up without any mutual enhancement or inhibition of each other's action.

Quinolizin-coumarins as physical enhancers of chemiluminescence during lipid peroxidation in live HL-60 cells.

We investigated whether physical enhancers of low-level chemiluminescence-coumarin laser dyes C-314, C-334, and C-525--may be used to monitor interactions of lipid peroxyl radicals during lipid peroxidation in live cells. We present data demonstrating that two quinolizin-substituted coumarins--C-525 and C-334--can be integrated into HL-60 cells and successfully used as physical enhancers of chemiluminescence induced by the lipid soluble azo-initiator 2,2'-azobis(2,4-dimethyl-valeronitrile) (AMVN). Coumarins did not inhibit AMVN-induced peroxidation of membrane phospholipids in HL-60 cells, and no consumption of these coumarins occurred in the course of AMVN-induced oxidative stress. Redox status, evaluated by intracellular GSH content, remained unchanged after treatment with the coumarins. tert-Butyl hydroperoxide and cumene hydroperoxide (more hydrophilic oxidants) induced a lower chemiluminescence signal with both coumarins. Viability of HL-60 cells was not affected by coumarins both in the presence and in the absence of oxidants. Based on these results we conclude that quinolizin-substituted coumarins represent a promising class of physical enhancers of chemiluminescence for monitoring free radical peroxidation in live cells.

Free radicals in primary photobiological processes.

Formation of a semiquinone free radical derived from chlorophyll in the reaction of photoreduction has been discovered by A. A. Krasnovsky, Sr. in 1953. This review consider the results obtained in the author's laboratory, concerning the participation of free radicals in photochemical reactions under UV-irradiation of aromatic amino acids, proteins, and lipids, as well as in the reactions of chemiluminescence (CL) in the protein and chlorophyll-containing systems. Free radicals are the very first products of photochemical reactions in all systems studied. The back reactions of radicals are accompanied with photon emission. From the point of view of the molecular energetics, the radiativeless electronic transition in molecules is the most probable event, the transition triplet level is less probable, and the transition to the singlet excited level is virtually impossible. This may explain the low quantum yield of CL, similarity of CL and phosphorescence (rather than fluorescence) spectrum of the reaction products, low quantum yield of CL, and its high temperature coefficient.

Two processes responsible for chemiluminescence development in the course of iron-mediated lipid peroxidation.

The kinetics of chemiluminescence (CL) accompanying Fe(2+)-induced lipid peroxidation (LPO) in liposome suspension has been investigated. A sequence of stages was observed, namely: (1) fast CL flash (FF); (2) latent period (LP); (3) slow CL flash (SF) and (4) stationary chemiluminescence (SL). The first three stages are known to reflect the Fe(2+)-mediated LPO process. In spite of the fact that at the stage of SL Fe2+ has completely oxidized and MDA has not accumulated, CL intensity was found to increase and after 0.5-1 h reached a value that was several times higher than SF amplitude. The maximal SL level was linearly dependent on the initial Fe2+ concentration and was not dependent on liposome concentration in the suspension. The nature of the processes responsible for CL emission at the stage of SL has been investigated using free radical reaction inhibitors and measurement of CL spectra. The SL spectrum was observed in the red region (lamda > 590 nm) in contrast to the SF CL spectrum (maximum at 540nm). SL amplitude was strongly inhibited by sodium azide (40%), superoxide dismutase (SOD) (30%), desferrioxamine and EDTA (30%), whereas mannitol, ethanol, alpha-tocopherol and butylated hydroxytoluene were ineffective. The data obtained indicate that CL at the stage of SL is not directly related to LPO process, i.e. lipid free radical recombination. The mechanism of stationary CL generation is discussed.

Hypochlorite induces lipid peroxidation in blood lipoproteins and phospholipid liposomes.

The accumulation of lipid peroxidation products reacting with 2-thiobarbituric acid (TBARS) has been observed both in very low density blood lipoprotein (VLDL) and suspensions of liposomes prepared from VLDL phospholipids incubated with hypochlorite. Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) completely inhibited TBARS formation at a concentration of 100 microM, at which it decreased the concentration of hypochlorite in the absence of liposomes only by 7%. The formation of lipid peroxidation products in course of the incubation of egg yolk phospholipid liposomes with hypochlorite has been revealed using three methods: (1) measurement of TBARS, (2) measurement of additional amounts of TBARS resulting from the introduction of excess Fe2+ to peroxidized liposomes (delta TBARS), and (3) measurement of the chemiluminescence flash amplitude appeared upon the addition of Fe2+ to the suspension. The results obtained by all these methods were similar: Lipid peroxidation products were accumulated during the first 2 to 3 h of liposome incubation with 100 microM hypochlorite, and the amount of lipid peroxidation products accumulated after incubation was directly proportional to the initial hypochlorite concentration. These data suggest that hypochlorite can initiate lipid peroxidation both in lipoproteins and phospholipid liposomes.

Coumarin derivatives enhance the chemiluminescence accompanying lipid peroxidation.

The effect of laser dyes, derivatives of 1,2-benzopyrone (coumarin), on the chemiluminescence (CL) accompanying Fe(2+)-induced lipid peroxidation (LPO) in liposomes prepared from egg yolk phospholipids has been investigated. It was found that quinolizin (9a,9,1-gh)-substituted coumarins enhanced CL at the stages of "fast" and "slow" flashes (abbreviated as FF and SF, respectively), which are known to accompany lipid hydroperoxide decomposition (FF) and chain LPO reaction development (SF). On the other hand, these compounds did not virtually change the shape of CL curve (in particular, lag phase duration) and accumulation of the LPO products reacting with 2-thiobarbituric acid (TBARS). The dependences of FF and SF amplitudes on the concentration of coumarins exhibited for some compounds an effect of saturation with subsequent decrease of CL at high concentrations of the dyes. The highest degree of CL amplification was reached with the compound 2,3,5,6-1H,4H-tetrahydro-9-(2'-benzoimidazolyl)-quinolizin- (9,9a,1-gh)coumarin (C-525), which enhanced CL at the stages of FF and SF by a factor 1600 at a dye concentration of 8 nmoles/mg of phospholipid. On the other hand, C-525 did not increase the intensity of CL associated with the decomposition of H2O2 by Fe2+ ions (Fenton's reaction). Apparently, these coumarin sensitizers may be used for selective enhancement of CL associated with LPO both in experimental and clinical investigations.

Peroxidation of human blood lipoproteins induced by exogenous hypochlorite or hypochlorite generated in the system of "myeloperoxidase + H2O2 + Cl-".

Oxidation of human plasma lipoprotein (LP) was studied in the presence of exogenous hypochlorite anion (OCl-) or OCl- generated in the "myeloperoxidase + H2O2 + Cl-" system. OCl- effectively initiates peroxidation of lipids extracted from LP and those within LP particles, as can be judged from accumulation of secondary (thiobarbituric acid [TBA] reactive) and final (Schiff bases) products of lipid peroxidation (LPO) in LP after incubation with myeloperoxidase or exogenous OCl-. Very low density and low density lipoproteins classified as atherogenic LP are more sensitive to OCl(-)-induced LPO than high density lipoproteins. These data allow us to propose that OCl- secreted by activated neutrophils and monocyte-macrophages can produce oxidative modification of LP in vivo. The latter is known as a risk factor in the development of atherosclerosis.

Simultaneous determination of Fe(III) and Fe(II) in water solutions and tissue homogenates using desferal and 1,10-phenanthroline.

At neutral pH values 1,10-phenanthroline forms a colored complex with Fe(II), but it does not form such a complex with Fe(III). On the contrary, only Fe(III) forms with desferal a yellow complex with a g = 4.3 electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signal, but Fe(II) is rapidly oxidized by desferal to Fe(III), which gives then a yellow complex. On the basis of these facts, a method for simultaneous determination of both Fe(II) and Fe(III) ions was elaborated using a desferal-phenanthroline mixture. Two ways of detecting Fe(II) and Fe(III) have been suggested: (1) the spectrophotometric method for transparent water solutions, and (2) the EPR-spectrometric method for turbid solutions and tissue homogenates. The latter method was applied for determination of free and weakly bound iron in rat liver. The Fe(II) amount in intact liver was 22.2 +/- 7.6 nmol/g of wet tissue; free Fe(III) was not found.

Fe(2+)-induced lipid peroxidation kinetics in liposomes: the role of surface Fe2+ concentration in switching the reaction from acceleration to decay.

Kinetics of malonyldialdehyde (MDA) accumulation, Fe2+ oxidation, and chemiluminescence (CL) at different initial iron ([Fe2+]) and liposome ([L]) concentrations were measured in liposome suspension. Above certain critical Fe2+ concentrations ([Fe2+]*) the latent period (LP) of LPO development was observed. The method of [Fe2+]* estimation by the dependence of LP value (tau) on [Fe2+] was elaborated. The increase of [L] resulted in decrease of tau and increase of delta MDA as well as SF CL amplitude. [Fe2+]* value changed from 10 to 50 microM with change of [L] from 1 to 4 mg/ml, so that the ratio [Fe2+]*/[L] was kept constant. This may be explained under the assumption that the major part of Fe2+ is bound by the membranes. At concentrations of Fe2+ higher than the critical one, iron chelators (desferrioxamine, o-phenanthroline, and EDTA) and cations (Eu3+, Ca2+, and Fe3+) decreased tau without any essential influence on the CL "slow flash" amplitude (h). Apparently, the only result of iron complexones and cations on LPO is the decrease of Fe2+ ion concentration on the membrane surface. Thus, [Fe2+]* value and surface concentration of Fe2+ are the main parameters determining both kinetics and efficiency of Fe(2+)-induced LPO in membrane systems.

Enhancement of chemiluminescence associated with lipid peroxidation by rhodamine dyes.

Rhodamine Zn in concentrations of 300-500 mumole/l enhances Fe(2+)-induced chemiluminescence (CL) in blood serum, liposome and lipoprotein suspensions by two orders of magnitude. Several different rhodamines were compared, chemiluminescence spectra were measured and relationships between dye concentration, medium composition and CL intensity were studied.

Intracellular free iron in liver tissue and liver homogenate: studies with electron paramagnetic resonance on the formation of paramagnetic complexes with desferal and nitric oxide.

Treatment of intact liver and liver homogenate with sodium nitrite, or desferal, brings about the appearance of g = 2.03 and g = 4.3 electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) signals, respectively. The g = 2.03 signal is conditioned by the formation of dinitrosyl complexes of Fe(II); the g = 4.3 signal is related to the appearance of paramagnetic desferal-Fe(III) complexes. Desferal and sodium nitrite were administered successively into liver homogenate, resulting in only a g = 4.3 EPR signal. And, vice versa, if desferal was administered after sodium nitrite, there appeared only the signal with g = 2.03. These data testify to the fact that one and the same endogenous free iron is included in both paramagnetic centers. The concentration of iron ions was measured in intact tissue according to the formation of dinitrosyl-iron complexes and desferal-iron complexes. It was 33.2 +/- 4.6 and 20.3 +/- 4.0 nmol/g of tissue weight, respectively. The data obtained testify to the fact that free endogenous iron is present in intact tissue. Possibilities of the EPR method for estimation of the content of intracellular free iron are discussed.

Free radical modification of lipoproteins and cholesterol accumulation in cells upon atherosclerosis.

An electron spin probe study was made of the effect of lipid peroxidation (LPO) on the structure of surface proteolipid layer of human serum low-density lipoproteins (LDL). The results obtained with a positively charged spin label and stearic acid spin probes with doxyl labels at positions 5, 12, and 16 revealed that LPO caused a decrease in phospholipid molecule mobility both in the region of polar heads and in the region of acyl chains till the depth of at least 1.7 mm from water-lipid interface. Under relatively high levels of oxidation (more than 6 mumol MDA/g LDL phospholipid) the polarity of lipid phase increased. The decrease in efficiency of tryptophan fluorescence quenching by nitroxide fragments incorporated in hydrophobic regions at the depth of approximately 2 nm from water-lipid interface indicated that lipid-protein interaction was disturbed as a result of oxidation of LDL lipids. In addition, the LPO-induced modification of apo-B, the main protein of LDL, was examined with maleimide spin label. LPO led to increase in mobility of strongly immobilized maleimide labels and in the number of weakly immobilized ones. Oxidized LDL revealed decreased ability to incorporate spin-labeled steroid (androstane) as compared to native ones. LPO-induced structural changes of LDL surface are supposed to be a reason of enhanced accumulation of cholesterol in human monocytes during their incubation with oxidized LDL. The cholesterol content in red cells was shown to be directly correlated to MDA content in apo-B containing lipoproteins but not in whole serum. Our findings suggest that free radical modification of serum lipoproteins but not solely an increased level of LPO products in blood is one important cause for cholesterol accumulation in cells and, apparently, for their transformation into foam cells during atherosclerosis.

Neutrophil superoxide production measurement by means of stable nitroxide radical accumulation detected by ESR.

A new assay for superoxide radicals is based on the interaction of hydroxylamine (1-oxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-oxopiperidine) with superoxide, giving rise to a stable nitroxide radical. Working concentration ranges of hydroxylamine and cells are determined. It was shown that the amount of superoxide generated was proportional to the concentration of nitroxide radicals. The sensitivity and specificity of the proposed assay were compared to chemiluminescence and cytochrome-c reduction.

Selective sensitization of chemiluminescence resulted from lipid and oxygen radical reactions.

Eu3+-tetracycline complex (EuT) increased the chemiluminescence (CL) intensity of linolenic acid micells (UFA-somes) oxidized with lipoxygenase and CL of the lecithin liposomes peroxidized with Fe2+ ions by 3 orders of magnitude. In the systems producing oxygen radicals (xanthine + xanthine oxidase and Fenton's reagent) EuT was ineffective. Luminol increased CL intensity up to 4 orders of magnitude in Fenton's reagent and by 2 orders of magnitude in xanthine oxidase reaction. The sensitization of CL in Fe2+-induced lipid peroxidation (LPO) of liposomes was by a factor 40, while in lipoxygenase reaction very low sensitization was observed. By means of cut-off light filter OS-12 (Soviet) having short wave-length transmittance limit at 560 nm it was possible to measure separately in the same sample the luminol-sensitized CL (maximal emission near 480 nm) and EuT-sensitized CL (maximum at 620 nm); these two CL components reflect, correspondingly, the production rate of oxygen- and lipid-free radicals. Mannitol, the OH radical scavenger, inhibited luminol-dependent component of CL in peroxidized liposomes and did not inhibited EuT sensitized CL in the same system. Apparently, hydroxyl radicals are produced in LPO reactions and responsible for the effect of CL sensitization by luminol, but are not involved in the chain LPO process.