Polymorphisms of antioxidant enzymes, blood pressure and risk of hypertension.

Objective: To assess the association of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes codifying for antioxidant enzymes to blood pressure (BP) values and risk of hypertension.

Methods: Population-based study including 1388 participants (704 women) older than 18 years in which 300 were untreated hypertensive patients. In 335 untreated hypertensive patients referred to one hypertension clinic, the study was replicated.

Association of a mineralocorticoid receptor gene polymorphism with hypertension in a Spanish population.

Background: To assess the association of polymorphisms and haplotypes of the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) (NR3C2) gene to the risk of essential hypertension (HTN) in a Spanish population.

Methods: This is a population-based study which included 1,502 subjects (748 women) >18 years old. Twenty-four polymorphisms of NR3C2 gene were analyzed by using SNPlex (Genotyping System based on OLA/PCR technology).

Nitric oxide promotes strong cytotoxicity of phenolic compounds against Escherichia coli: the influence of antioxidant defenses.

The induction of mutagenic and cytotoxic effects by simple phenolics, including catechol (CAT), 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), hydroquinone (HQ), and 2,5-dihydroxyphenylacetic (homogentisic) acid (HGA), appears to occur through an oxidative mechanism based on the ability of these compounds to undergo autoxidation, leading to quinone formation with the production of reactive oxygen species. This is supported by the detection of such adverse effects in plate assays using Escherichia coli tester strains deficient in the OxyR function, but not in OxyR(+) strains. The OxyR protein is a redox-sensitive regulator of genes encoding antioxidant enzymes including catalase and alkyl hydroperoxide reductase, which would eliminate hydrogen peroxide.