Background/aims: The goal of this study was to determine the ability of two putative antioxidant solutions to suppress the formation of superoxide anion radicals created by optical excitation of a photosensitizer and measured by highly sensitive luminometric detection.
Methods/results: Solutions containing 3% antioxidant complex and 1% idebenone were tested. The antioxidant complex is an aqueous combination of botanical extracts rich in ferulic acid, caffeic acid, and other polyphenols. Idebenone is a lower molecular weight analog of coenzyme Q(10) (a potent antioxidant). Each was dissolved in lipid soluble reagents (solutions) and run through a Photochem (photochemiluminometer system) device. Their antioxidant capacity was expressed as nmol equivalents of synthetic vitamin E. Nine aliquots of each compound were measured. The mean antioxidant capacities for the 3% antioxidant complex and 1% idebenone were 525 +/- 23 and 213 +/- 14 nmol, respectively, with a statistically significant difference between the two compounds (P < 0.001).
Conclusion: The 3% antioxidant solution possesses a significant antioxidative capacity, which was 2.5 times greater than the known antioxidant idebenone in a 1% solution as shown by the quenching of superoxide anion radicals measured by photochemiluminescence. This method provides rapid, accurate, and sensitive measurement of the antioxidant properties of lipid-soluble compounds.