Free radical toxicity and antioxidants in Guillain-Barre syndrome, a preliminary study.

Background: The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of a vast array of disease processes including some neurological disorders.

Method: Ten patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) and 10 age and sex-matched controls were included in this study. The erythrocyte glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, as well as plasma antioxidant vitamins C and E and serum glutathione-S-transferase (GST) levels were estimated spectrophotometrically.