Formation of free radicals from steroid hormones: possible significance in environmental carcinogenesis.
In order to clarify the mechanism of environmental carcinogenesis, steroid hormones were checked for formation of free radicals and active oxygen species. In alkaline DMSO in vitro, glucocorticoids, progestines, androgens and estrogens exhibited distinct ESR signals with characteristic hyperfine structures. Accumulated data on a great number of steroid derivatives suggest that an unpaired electron is localized at position 20 in the case of glucocorticoids, whereas it is at position 3 in other steroid hormones. Since experimental conditions include oxygenation reactions and more or less reflect enzymatic reactivity, the results obtained suggest further study on the physiological formation of free radicals from steroid hormone is warranted. Although detection of the free radicals of steroid hormones in several enzyme systems was limited to estrogens, evidence suggests that glucocorticoids as well as androgens may also share the physiological formation of free radicals. The production of active oxygen species was confirmed in certain cases.
Kodama
M
M
Biophysics Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan.
Inoue
F
F
Saito
H
H
Oda
T
T
Sato
Y
Y
D000818:Animals; D002274:Carcinogens, Environmental / Q000633:toxicity*; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide; D004578:Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy; D005609:Free Radicals; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity; D013256:Steroids / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000633:toxicity*
D002274:Carcinogens, Environmental; D005609:Free Radicals; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D013256:Steroids; D006854:Hydrocortisone; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide