Association of Oxidative Stress with Neurological Disorders

Abstract

Backgorund: Oxidative stress is one of the main contributing factors involved in cerebral biochemical impairment. The higher susceptibility of the central nervous system to reactive oxygen species mediated damage could be attributed to several factors. For example, neurons use a greater quantity of oxygen, many parts of the brain have higher concentraton of iron, and neuronal mitochondria produce huge content of hydrogen peroxide. In addition, neuronal membranes have polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are predominantly vulnerable to oxidative stress (OS). OS is the imbalance between reactive oxygen species generation and cellular antioxidant potential. This may lead to various pathological conditions and diseases, especially neurodegenerative diseases such as, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Huntington's diseases.

Objectives: In this study, we explored the involvement of OS in neurodegenerative diseases.

Methods: We used different search terms like "oxidative stress and neurological disorders" "free radicals and neurodegenerative disorders" "oxidative stress, free radicals, and neurological disorders" and "association of oxidative stress with the name of disorders taken from the list of neurological disorders. We tried to summarize the source, biological effects, and physiologic functions of ROS.

Results: Finally, it was noted that more than 190 neurological disorders are associated with oxidative stress.

Conclusion: More elaborated studies in the future will certainly help in understanding the exact mechanism involved in neurological diseases and provide insight into revelation of therapeutic targets.

Keywords: Oxidative stress (OS); Reactive oxygen species (ROS); brain; free radicals; neurological disorders; oxidation.