High-throughput synchronous erythrocyte cellular antioxidant activity and protection screening of phenolic-rich extracts: Protocol validation and applications

Food Chem. 2024 May 15:440:138281. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2023.138281. Epub 2023 Dec 28.

Abstract

Oxidative/nitrosative damage takes part in chronic disease development, which generates an urgent need for intervention and better therapies to manage them. The scientific community has demanded easy-to-run, cheap, and reliable methods for cellular antioxidant activity assays. This work standardised and validated an erythrocyte cellular antioxidant activity and membrane protection/injury (HERYCA-P) protocol to study food-derive extracts. The method measures intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, lipoperoxidation, and haemolysis induced by 2,2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride. Quercetin decreased ROS generation by 50.4% and haemolysis by 2.2%, while ascorbic acid inhibited lipid peroxidation by 40.1%. Total phenolic contents of teas were correlated with decreased ROS generation (r = -0.924), lipoperoxidation (r = -0.951), and haemolysis (r = -0.869). The erythrocyte ROS generation and lipoperoxidation were also associated with CUPRAC (r = -0.925; r = -0.951) and hydroxyl radical scavenging activity (r = -0.936; r = -0.949). The precision rates of antioxidant standards and tea samples were below 15%. HERYCA-P is feasible as a complementary antioxidant assay for food matrices.

Keywords: AAPH; Haemolysis; In vitro assays; Phenolic compounds; Reactive oxygen species; Red blood cells; TBARS.

MeSH terms

  • Antioxidants* / pharmacology
  • Erythrocytes
  • Hemolysis*
  • Humans
  • Lipid Peroxidation
  • Oxidative Stress
  • Phenols / pharmacology
  • Plant Extracts / pharmacology
  • Reactive Oxygen Species

Substances

  • Antioxidants
  • Reactive Oxygen Species
  • Phenols
  • Plant Extracts