Highly efficient conversion of superoxide to oxygen using hydrophilic carbon clusters
Abstract
Mechanistic studies of nontoxic hydrophilic carbon cluster nanoparticles show that they are able to accomplish the direct conversion of superoxide to dioxygen and hydrogen peroxide. This is accomplished faster than in most single-active-site enzymes, and it is precisely what dioxygen-deficient tissue needs in the face of injury where reactive oxygen species, particularly superoxide, overwhelm the natural enzymes required to remove superoxide. We confirm here that the hydrophilic carbon clusters are unreactive toward nitric oxide radical, which is a potent vasodilator that also has an important role in neurotransmission and cytoprotection. The mechanistic results help to explain the preclinical efficacy of these carbon nanoparticles in mitigating the deleterious effects of superoxide on traumatized tissue.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Feb 09, 2015
- Source ID
- 10.1073/pnas.1417047112
Entities
People
- Ah-lim Tsai
- Austin Potter
- Brittany R. Bitner
- Daniela C. Marcano
- Errol L. G. Samuel
- Gang Wu
- James Tour
- Robia G. Pautler
- Roderic H. Fabian
- Thomas A. Kent
- Vladimir Berka
Organizations
- Baylor College of Medicine
- Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Houston
- National Institutes of Health
- Rice University
- United States Department of Defense
- University of Texas at Austin
- Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry