What is it about?
The use of excess antioxidants (AO) may result in a condition called reductive stress. Our publication provides data which shows that excess AOs suppresses angiogenesis by impacting permeability across the apical and basolateral membranes of the brain endothelial cells, in effect compromising the blood brain barrier.
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Why is it important?
This is important because we have been indoctrinated by the media to believe that the use of antioxidants (AOs) is a silver bullet remedy for a host of illnesses ranging from the common cold to cancer. However, constant use of high doses of AOs may indeed not only suppress the body's endogenous antioxidants, but may indeed compromise the BBB, thereby increasing the risk of mechanical disruption of the brain's capillaries (mini strokes), but indeed may suppress the endothelial cell division, slowing recovery. The AO induced decreased permeability across the BBB, may also inadvertently, compromise the regulation of the internal environment of the brain, thereby affecting the neural activity.
Perspectives
The paper does more than just report on the effects of AOs on the endothelial cells of the BBB. It also provides a physiological model for the reported results, and for the first time, we make use of an electrical equivalent circuit to explain the permeability pathways across the brain endothelial cells. This will enable much greater clarity in interpreting transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) measurements in the future.
Prof David Fisher
University of the Western Cape
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Aggressive Antioxidant Reductive Stress Impairs Brain Endothelial Cell Angiogenesis and Blood Brain Barrier Function, Current Neurovascular Research, January 2017, Bentham Science Publishers,
DOI: 10.2174/1567202613666161129113950.
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