Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Shi, X.
• Dalal, N.S.
• Jain, A.C.

Titel

Antioxidant behaviour of caffeine: Efficient scavenging of hydroxyl radicals

Ist Teil von

• Food and chemical toxicology, 1991, Vol.29 (1), p.1-6

Ort / Verlag

Oxford: Elsevier Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

1991

Quelle

Elsevier Journal Backfiles on ScienceDirect (DFG Nationallizenzen)

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Considerable controversy exists in the literature regarding the toxicity of coffee, including its possible carcinogenic and anticarcinogenic properties. This study reports on the reaction of 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine (caffeine) with the hydroxyl radical (·OH), as investigated by electron spin resonance (ESR) spin trapping. The ·OH was generated by the Fenton reaction (Fe 2+ + H 2O 2) as well as by the reaction of chromium(V) with H 2O 2. The results show that caffeine effectively scavenges ·OH with a reaction rate constant of ∼ 5.9 × 10 9 m −1 sec −1 that is comparable with those of other efficient ·OH radical scavengers. ESR measurements provide evidence that a caffeine-derived oxygen-centred radical is formed in the reaction of caffeine with ·OH and suggest a biochemical basis for the understanding of the reported anticarcinogenic properties of caffeine and related methylxanthine compounds.