[A comparison of the antioxidative activity of carnosine by using chemical and biological models].

The difference in the efficiency of carnosine as an antioxidant was found to be explained both by the source of carnosine and the specificity of models used to achieve visualization. Commercial carnosine samples were contaminated with compound (s) absorbing at 255-332 nm. At the same time they possessed better antioxidant activity in the models with Fe2-induced peroxidation process. In the case of chemical models for generation of active forms of oxygen (several modifications of the Fenton reaction) or during burst of superoxide generation by leucocytes, the antioxidant effect of carnosine did not depend of the source of the compound under study.