Mammalian heme peroxidases: from molecular mechanisms to health implications

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

A marked increase in interest has occurred over the last few years in the role that mammalian heme peroxidase enzymes, primarily myeloperoxidase, eosinophil peroxidase, and lactoperoxidase, may play in both disease prevention and human pathologies. This increased interest has been sparked by developments in our understanding of polymorphisms that control the levels of these enzymes, a greater understanding of the basic chemistry and biochemistry of the oxidants formed by these species, the development of specific biomarkers that can be used in vivo to detect damage induced by these oxidants, the detection of active forms of these peroxidases at most, if not all, sites of inflammation, and a correlation between the levels of these enzymes and a number of major human pathologies. This article reviews recent developments in our understanding of the enzymology, chemistry, biochemistry and biologic roles of mammalian peroxidases and the oxidants that they generate, the potential role of these oxidants in human disease, and the use of the levels of these enzymes in disease prognosis.

Original languageEnglish
JournalAntioxidants & Redox Signaling
Volume10
Issue number7
Pages (from-to)1199-234
Number of pages36
ISSN1523-0864
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2008
Externally publishedYes

    Research areas

  • Animals, Eosinophil Peroxidase, Heme, Humans, Inflammation, Lactoperoxidase, Oxidants, Peroxidase, Peroxidases

ID: 129670839