http://www.healthcare.uiowa.edu/corefacilities/esr/publications/buettnerpubs/pdf/FRBM-2001-30-1191-FQS-Redox.pdf

Redox environment of the cell as viewed through the redox state of the glutathione disulfide/glutathione couple.

Oxidative stress is often defined as an imbalance of pro-oxidants and antioxidants, which can be quantified in humans as the redox state of plasma GSH/GSSG. Plasma GSH redox in humans becomes oxidized with age, in response to oxidative stress (chemotherapy, smoking), and in common diseases (type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease). However, data also show that redox of plasma GSH/GSSG is not equilibrated with the larger plasma cysteine/cystine (Cys/CySS) pool, indicating that the "balance" of pro-oxidants and antioxidants cannot be defined by a single entity. The major cellular thiol/disulfide systems, including GSH/GSSG, thioredoxin- 1 (-SH2/-SS-), and Cys/CySS, are not in redox equilibrium and respond differently to chemical toxicants and physiologic stimuli. Individual signaling and control events occur through discrete redox pathways rather than through mechanisms that are directly responsive to a global thiol/disulfide balance such as that conceptualized in the common definition of oxidative stress. ...

Redefining oxidative stress.

Free radical-induced macromolecular damage has been studied extensively as a mechanism of oxidative stress, but large-scale intervention trials with free radical scavenging antioxidant supplements show little benefit in humans. The present review summarizes data supporting a complementary hypothesis for oxidative stress in disease that can occur without free radicals. This hypothesis, which is termed the “redox hypothesis,” is that oxidative stress occurs as a consequence of disruption of thiol redox circuits, which normally function in cell signaling and physiological regulation. The redox states of thiol systems are sensitive to two-electron oxidants and controlled by the thioredoxins (Trx), glutathione (GSH), and cysteine (Cys). Trx and GSH systems are maintained under stable, but nonequilibrium conditions, due to a continuous oxidation of cell thiols at a rate of about 0.5% of the total thiol pool per minute. Redox-sensitive thiols are critical for signal transduction (e.g., H-Ras, PTP-1B), transcription factor binding to DNA (e.g., Nrf-2, nuclear factor-κB), receptor activation (e.g., αIIbβ3 integrin in platelet activation), and other processes. Nonradical oxidants, including peroxides, aldehydes, quinones, and epoxides, are generated enzymatically from both endogenous and exogenous precursors and do not require free radicals as intermediates to oxidize or modify these thiols. Because of the nonequilibrium conditions in the thiol pathways, aberrant generation of nonradical oxidants at rates comparable to normal oxidation may be sufficient to disrupt function. Considerable opportunity exists to elucidate specific thiol control pathways and develop interventional strategies to restore normal redox control and protect against oxidative stress in aging and age-related disease.

https://www.physiology.org/doi/pdf/10.1152/ajpcell.00283.2008

Radical-free biology of oxidative stress

Keap1-dependent proteasomal degradation of transcription factor Nrf2 contributes to the negative regulation of antioxidant response element-driven gene expression

Protein S-glutathiolation, the reversible covalent addition of glutathione to cysteine residues on target proteins, is emerging as a candidate mechanism by which both changes in the intracellular redox state and the generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species may be transduced into a functional response. This review will provide an introduction to the concepts of oxidative and nitrosative stress and outline the molecular mechanisms of protein regulation by oxidative and nitrosative thiol-group modifications. Special attention will be paid to recently published work supporting a role for S-glutathiolation in stress signalling pathways and in the adaptive cellular response to oxidative and nitrosative stress. Finally, novel insights into the molecular mechanisms of S-glutathiolation as well as methodological problems related to the interpretation of the biological relevance of this post-translational protein modification will be discussed.

Sally A. Thompson

Papers

Glutathione redox potential in response to differentiation and enzyme inducers

Induction of glutamate-cysteine ligase (γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase) in the brains of adult female mice subchronically exposed to methylmercury

Modulation of glutathione and glutamate-L-cysteine ligase by methylmercury during mouse development

Induction of the cell cycle regulatory gene p21 (Waf1, Cip1) following methylmercury exposure in vitro and in vivo.

Induction of growth arrest and DNA damage-inducible genes Gadd45 and Gadd153 in primary rodent embryonic cells following exposure to methylmercury.