title: Association of oxidative stress to the genesis of anxiety: implications for possible therapeutic interventions.
abstract: Oxidative stress caused by reactive species, including reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species, and unbound, adventitious metal ions (e.g., iron [Fe] and copper [Cu]), is an underlying cause of various neurodegenerative diseases. These reactive species are an inevitable by-product of cellular respiration or other metabolic processes that may cause the oxidation of lipids, nucleic acids, and proteins. Oxidative stress has recently been implicated in depression and anxiety-related disorders. Furthermore, the manifestation of anxiety in numerous psychiatric disorders, such as generalized anxiety disorder, depressive disorder, panic disorder, phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder, highlights the importance of studying the underlying biology of these disorders to gain a better understanding of the disease and to identify common biomarkers for these disorders. Most recently, the expression of glutathione reductase 1 and glyoxalase 1, which are genes involved in antioxidative metabolism, were reported to be correlated with anxiety-related phenotypes. This review focuses on direct and indirect evidence of the potential involvement of oxidative stress in the genesis of anxiety and discusses different opinions that exist in this field. Antioxidant therapeutic strategies are also discussed, highlighting the importance of oxidative stress in the etiology, incidence, progression, and prevention of psychiatric disorders.
authors.affiliation: Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil ; Institute of Chemical Sciences, University of Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Waseem
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.affiliation: Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carlos Eduardo Barroso
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chemical Sciences, University of Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Imdad Ullah
authors.initials: IU
authors.lastname: Mohammadzai
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Química, Centro de Ciências Naturais e Exatas, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Joao Batista Teixeira
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: da Rocha
authors.affiliation: Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Landeira-Fernandez
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: J
keywords: Antioxidant therapy; anxiety disorders; oxidative stress; toxicity.