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Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 45, 1846-1851, October 2004 Decreased membrane fluidity and altered susceptibility to peroxidation and lipid composition in overweight and obese female erythrocytes
* Department of Preclinical Sciences "LITA Vialba,", University of Milan via G. B. Grassi, 74-20157 Milan, Italy
1 To whom correspondence should be addressed. e-mail: roberta.cazzola{at}unimi.it The increased generation of reactive oxygen species that occurs in the condition of obesity may be responsible for oxidative injury to erythrocyte membranes, which could lead to a decrease in tissue oxygenation. Therefore, we have looked into the effects of obesity on both indexes of oxidative damage and physical-chemical properties of erythrocyte membranes in 50 overweight or obese [25 < body mass index (BMI) < 33], normotensive, nondiabetic women and 50 age-matched lean healthy women (BMI < 25). In the obese group compared with the lean group, we found that a) the onset of free radical-induced erythrocyte hemolysis and the ratio between reduced and oxidized glutathione were reduced, whereas the rate of free radical-induced damage increased; b) the n-3 fatty acid and the phospholipid contents decreased; c) the ratio between cholesterol and phospholipids increased; and d) the membrane fluidity decreased. These findings suggest an impairment of erythrocyte membrane physical-chemical properties in overweight and obese people as a consequence of oxidative injury that might be part of a pathogenetic mechanism responsible for obesity-related pathologies such as atherosclerosis and hypertension.
Supplementary key words fluorescence anisotropy oxidative stress essential fatty acids membrane cholesterol
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