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Oxidative stress is widely recognized as an important factor in the delayed wound healing in diabetes. However, the role of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species in this process is unknown. It was assumed that mitochondrial reactive oxygen species are involved in many wound-healing processes in both diabetic humans and animals. We have applied the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant 10-(6′-plastoquinonyl)decyltriphenylphosphonium (SkQ1) to explore the role of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species in the wound healing of genetically diabetic mice. Healing of full-thickness excisional dermal wounds in diabetic C57BL/KsJ-db−/db− mice was significantly enhanced after long-term (12 weeks) administration of SkQ1. SkQ1 accelerated wound closure and stimulated epithelization, granulation tissue formation, and vascularization. On the 7th day after wounding, SkQ1 treatment increased the number of α-smooth muscle actin-positive cells (myofibroblasts), reduced the number of neutrophils, and increased macrophage infiltration. SkQ1 lowered lipid peroxidation level but did not change the level of the circulatory IL-6 and TNF. SkQ1 pretreatment also stimulated cell migration in a scratch-wound assay in vitro under hyperglycemic condition. Thus, a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant normalized both inflammatory and regenerative phases of wound healing in diabetic mice. Our results pointed to nearly all the major steps of wound healing as the target of excessive mitochondrial reactive oxygen species production in type II diabetes.

An increase in the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mitochondria due to targeted delivery of redox active compounds may be useful in studies of modulation of cell functions by mitochondrial ROS. Recently, the mitochondria-targeted derivative of menadione (MitoK3) was synthesized. However, MitoK3 did not induce mitochondrial ROS production and lipid peroxidation while exerting significant cytotoxic action. Here we synthesized 1,4-naphthoquinone conjugated with alkyltriphenylphosphonium (SkQN) as a prototype of mitochondria-targeted prooxidant, and its redox properties, interactions with isolated mitochondria, yeast cells and various human cell lines were investigated. According to electrochemical measurements, SkQN was more active redox agent and, due to the absence of methyl group in the naphthoquinone ring, more reactive as electrophile than MitoK3. SkQN (but not MitoK3) stimulated hydrogen peroxide production in isolated mitochondria. At low concentrations, SkQN stimulated state 4 respiration in mitochondria, decreased membrane potential, and blocked ATP synthesis, being more efficient uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation than MitoK3. In yeast cells, SkQN decreased cell viability and induced oxidative stress and mitochondrial fragmentation. SkQN killed various tumor cells much more efficiently than MitoK3. Since many tumors are characterized by increased oxidative stress, the use of new mitochondria-targeted prooxidants may be a promising strategy for anticancer therapy.

Neonatal hypoxia&ndash, ischemia is one of the main causes of mortality and disability of newborns. To study the mechanisms of neonatal brain cell damage, we used a model of neonatal hypoxia&ndash, ischemia in seven-day-old rats, by annealing of the common carotid artery with subsequent hypoxia of 8% oxygen. We demonstrate that neonatal hypoxia&ndash, ischemia causes mitochondrial dysfunction associated with high production of reactive oxygen species, which leads to oxidative stress. Targeted delivery of antioxidants to the mitochondria can be an effective therapeutic approach to treat the deleterious effects of brain hypoxia&ndash, ischemia. We explored the neuroprotective properties of the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant SkQR1, which is the conjugate of a plant plastoquinone and a penetrating cation, rhodamine 19. Being introduced before or immediately after hypoxia&ndash, ischemia, SkQR1 affords neuroprotection as judged by the diminished brain damage and recovery of long-term neurological functions. Using vital sections of the brain, SkQR1 has been shown to reduce the development of oxidative stress. Thus, the mitochondrial-targeted antioxidant derived from plant plastoquinone can effectively protect the brain of newborns both in pre-ischemic and post-stroke conditions, making it a promising candidate for further clinical studies.

Mitochondria-targeted cationic plastoquinone derivatives (SkQs, e.g. SkQ1, SkQR1) and their analogs lacking plastoquinol moiety (C12TPP, C12R1) can pass through bilayer phospholipid membrane. Their cationic forms are accumulated in isolated mitochondria or in mitochondria of living cells, driven by membrane potential. These compounds were extensively tested in model lipid membranes, isolated mitochondria and in living human cells in culture. It was found that SkQs are antioxidants that quench reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mitochondria, and mild uncouplers that facilitate transmembrane proton transport by fatty acids. Both properties result in efficient prevention of oxidative stress and protection of mitochondria and cells from damage by ROS, making SkQs a promising drug candidate against pathologies caused by excess mitochondrial ROS generation. Recent discovery of SkQ1 antibacterial activity at concentrations not toxic to human cells opens a perspective for development of new antibiotics. In this chapter, we summarize recent in vitro experiments with mitochondria-targeted plastoquinones.

We show here that mitochondria-targeted antioxidant composed of plastoquinone conjugated through hydrocarbon linker with cationic rhodamine 19 (SkQR1) protected against nuclear DNA damage induced by gamma radiation in K562 erythroleukemia cells. We also demonstrate that SkQR1 prevented the early (1 h postirradiation) accumulation of phosphorylated histone H2AX (γ-H2AX) an indicator of DNA double-strand break formation, as well as the radiation-induced increase in chromosomal aberrations. These data suggested that nuclear DNA damage induced by gamma radiation may be mediated by mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. We show that SkQR1 suppressed delayed accumulation of ROS 32 h after irradiation probably by inhibiting mitochondrial ROS-induced ROS release mechanisms. This suggests that mitochondria-targeted antioxidants may protect cells from the late consequences of radiation exposure related to delayed oxidative stress. We have previously reported that SkQRl is the substrate of multidrug resistance pump P-glycoproten (Pgp 170) and selectively protects Pgp 170-negative cells against oxidative stress. In line with this finding, we demonstrate here that SkQR1 did not protect Pgp170-positive K562 subline against DNA damage induced by gamma radiation. The selective radioprotection of normal Pgp 170-negative cells by mitochondria-targeted antioxidants could be a promising strategy to increase the efficiency of radiotherapy for multidrug-resistant tumors.

Initially regarded solely as “power plants of the living cell”, mitochondria are now also acknowledged as key regulators of cell survival, death, and ageing. Mitochondrial malfunction correlates with aging in a broad variety of species, including yeast, invertebrates and mammals. An important consequence of the mitochondrial malfunction is an increase in the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Excessive level of mitochondrial ROS (mROS) results in imbalance of regulatory mitochondrial pathways, oxidative stress, and cell death, which triggers several age-related pathologies. Mitochondria-targeted rechargeable antioxidants (e.g. SkQ1, SkQR, MitoQ) are promising candidates for development of therapeutic drugs capable of suppressing mitochondria-initiated oxidative stress and thereby promoting healthy aging and longevity. In this review, we focus on the studies of mitochondria-targeted rechargeable antioxidants in animal models, with a special focus on experiments with Drosophila melanogaster.

During the last decade, evidence has been accumulating supporting the hypothesis that aging is genetically programmed and, therefore, precisely timed. This hypothesis poses a question: what is the mechanism of the biological clock that controls aging? Measuring the level of the advanced glycation end products (AGE) is one of the possible principles underlying the functioning of the biological clock. Protein glycation is an irreversible, non-enzymatic, and relatively slow process. Moreover, many types of cells have receptors that can measure AGE level. We propose the existence of a protein that has a lifespan comparable to that of the whole organism. Interaction of the advanced glycation end product generated from this protein with a specific AGE receptor might initiate apoptosis in a vitally important non-regenerating tissue that produces a primary juvenile hormone. This could result in the age-dependent decrease in the level of this hormone leading to aging of the organism.

Previously it has been shown by our group that berberine and palmatine, penetrating cations of plant origin, when conjugated with plastoquinone (SkQBerb and SkQPalm), can accumulate in isolated mitochondria or in mitochondria of living cells and effectively protect them from oxidative damage. In the present work, we demonstrate that SkQBerb, SkQPalm, and their analogs lacking the plastoquinone moiety (C10Berb and C10Palm) operate as mitochondria-targeted compounds facilitating protonophorous effect of free fatty acids. These compounds induce proton transport mediated by small concentrations of added fatty acids both in planar and liposomal model lipid membranes. In mitochondria, such an effect can be carried out by endogenous fatty acids and the adenine nucleotide translocase.

The stability of plastoquinonyldecyltriphenylphosphonium bromide (PDTP) in Visomitin eye drops was evaluated. The shelf life of these drops stored in a refrigerator and at room temperature and after opening the packaging was established. The importance of using light-protective secondary packaging was demonstrated.

Since the times of the Bible, an extract of black cumin seeds was used as a medicine to treat many human pathologies. Thymoquinone (2-demethylplastoquinone derivative) was identified as an active antioxidant component of this extract. Recently, it was shown that conjugates of plastoquinone and penetrating cations are potent mitochondria-targeted antioxidants effective in treating a large number of age-related pathologies. This review summarizes new data on the antioxidant and some other properties of membrane-penetrating cationic compounds where 2-demethylplastoquinone substitutes for plastoquinone. It was found that such a substitution significantly increases a window between anti- and prooxidant concentrations of the conjugates. Like the original plastoquinone derivatives, the novel compounds are easily reduced by the respiratory chain, penetrate through model and natural membranes, specifically accumulate in mitochondria in an electrophoretic fashion, and strongly inhibit H2O2-induced apoptosis at pico- and nanomolar concentrations in cell cultures. At present, cationic demethylplastoquinone derivatives appear to be the most promising mitochondria-targeted drugs of the quinone series.

Protonophores can be considered as candidates for anti-obesity drugs and tools to prevent excessive reactive oxygen species production in mitochondria by means of a limited decrease in the mitochondrial potential. Experimentally used protonophores are weak acids that can carry protons across a membrane in a neutral (protonated) form, and they come back in an anionic (deprotonated) form. A cationic derivative of rhodamine 19 and plastoquinone (SkQR1) was recently shown to possess uncoupling activity in mitochondria and in intact cells. In this article, we studied the mechanism of action of SkQR1 and its plastoquinone-lacking analog (C12R1) on a planar bilayer lipid membrane by applying voltage jumps. The steady-state current was proportional to the C12R1 concentration in a manner as if the monomeric form of the carrier were operative. As predicted by the carrier model, at high pH, when rhodamines were mainly deprotonated, the current changed immediately following a jump in the applied potential and then remained constant. By contrast, at low pH, the current relaxed from an initially high value to a lower value since the protonated carrier cations were redistributed in the membrane. An inverse pH dependence was revealed with the anionic protonophore CCCP. The dependence of the SkQR1 protonophorous activity on voltage exhibited an increase at high voltages, an effect that might facilitate mild (self-limited) uncoupling of mitochondria.

Mitochondrial dysfunctions occur in many diseases linked to the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). Mild uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation is known to rescue model animals from pathologies related to mitochondrial dysfunctions and overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS). To study the potential of SIRS therapy by uncoupling, we tested protonophore dinitrophenol (DNP) and a free fatty acid (FFA) anion carrier, lipophilic cation dodecyltriphenylphosphonium (C12TPP) in mice and in vitro models of SIRS. DNP and C12TPP prevented the body temperature drop and lethality in mice injected with high doses of a SIRS inducer, tumor necrosis factor (TNF). The mitochondria-targeted antioxidant plastoquinonyl decyltriphenylphosphonium (SkQ1) which also catalyzes FFA-dependent uncoupling revealed similar protective effects and downregulated expression of the NFκB-regulated genes (VCAM1, ICAM1, MCP1, and IL-6) involved in the inflammatory response of endothelium in aortas of the TNF-treated mice. In vitro mild uncoupling rescued from TNF-induced endothelial permeability, disassembly of cell contacts and VE-cadherin cleavage by the matrix metalloprotease 9 (ММР9). The uncouplers prevented TNF-induced expression of MMP9 via inhibition of NFκB signaling. Water-soluble antioxidant Trolox also prevented TNF-induced activation and permeability of endothelium in vitro via inhibition of NFκB signaling, suggesting that the protective action of the uncouplers is linked to their antioxidant potential.

Interaction of cytochrome c with cardiolipin converts this respiratory chain electron-transfer protein into a peroxidase, supposedly involved in mitochondria-mediated apoptosis initiation. Liposome membrane permeabilization provoked by peroxidase activity of the cytochrome c/cardiolipin complex has been previously shown to be suppressed by conventional antioxidants. Here, the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant SkQ1 (plastoquinonyl-decyl-triphenylphosphonium) was found to strongly inhibit both cytochrome c/cardiolipin peroxidase activity and the permeabilization of liposomes composed of phosphatidylcholine and cardiolipin. A number of binding assays revealed a significant inhibiting effect of SkQ1 on cytochrome c binding to liposomes, thus suggesting that SkQ1-mediated protection of liposomes from the cytochrome c/H2 O2 -induced permeabilization involved distortion of the cytochrome c-membrane binding. It is suggested that antioxidant and antiapoptotic effects of alkyltriphenylphosphonium cations can be related to the prevention of cytochrome c/cardiolipin interaction.

Many mitochondria-targeted antioxidants (MTAs) that comprise a quinol moiety covalently attached through an aliphatic carbon chain to the lipophilic triphenylphosphonium cation are widely used for evaluating the role of mitochondria in pathological processes involving oxidative stress. The potency of MTAs to carry electrons across biological membranes and thereby mediate transmembrane redox processes was unknown. To assess this, we measured the rate of ferricyanide reduction inside liposomes by external ascorbate. Here, we show that MTAs containing ubiquinone (MitoQ series) or plastoquinone (SkQ series) can carry electrons through lipid membranes, with the rate being inversely proportional to the length of the hydrocarbon linker group. Furthermore, this process was stimulated by the hydrophobic anion tetraphenylborate suggesting that permeation of the cationic MTA through the membrane was the rate-limiting step of the process. This conclusion was supported by the observation that the rate of MTA-induced electron transfer was insensitive to nigericin, in contrast to electron transfer mediated by neutral quinone derivatives. These findings indicate that MTAs can be utilized to transfer electrons across lipid membranes and this may be applicable to the study of the electron-transport chain in mitochondria and other natural membranes exhibiting redox processes.

A protective effect of a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant, a cationic rhodamine derivative linked to a plastoquinone molecule (10-(6'-plastoquinonyl)decylrhodamine-19, SkQR1) was studied in the model of open focal trauma of rat brain sensorimotor cortex. It was found that daily intraperitoneal injections of SkQR1 (100 nmol/kg) for 4 days after the trauma improved performance in a test characterizing neurological deficit and decreased the volume of the damaged cortical area. Our results suggest that SkQR1 exhibits profound neuroprotective effect, which may be explained by its antioxidative activity.

To develop effective mitochondria-targeted antioxidants composed entirely of natural constituents.Novel mitochondria-targeted antioxidants were synthesized containing plant electron carrier and antioxidant plastoquinone conjugated by nonyloxycarbonylmethyl residue with berberine or palmatine, penetrating cations of plant origin. These compounds, SkQBerb and SkQPalm, were tested in model planar phospholipid membranes and micelles, liposomes, isolated mitochondria and living cells.SkQBerb and SkQPalm penetrated across planar bilayer phospholipid membrane in their cationic forms and accumulated in mitochondria isolated or in living human cells in culture. Reduced forms of SkQBerb and SkQPalm as well as C10Berb and C10Palm (SkQBerb and SkQPalm analogs lacking plastoquinol moiety) revealed radical scavenging activity in lipid micelles and liposomes, while oxidized forms were inactive. In isolated mitochondria and in living cells, berberine and palmatine moieties were not reduced, so antioxidant activity of C10Berb and C10Palm was not detected. SkQBerb and SkQPalm inhibited lipid peroxidation in isolated mitochondria at nanomolar concentrations; their prooxidant effect was observed at 1,000 times higher concentrations. In human cell cuture, nanomolar SkQBerb and SkQPalm prevented fragmentation of mitochondria and apoptosis induced by exogenous hydrogen peroxide.This is the first successful attempt to construct mitochondria-targeted antioxidants composed entirely of natural components, namely plastoquinone, nonyl, acetyl and berberine or palmatine residues.

Plastoquinone, a very effective electron carrier and antioxidant of chloroplasts, was conjugated with decyltriphenylphosphonium to obtain a cation easily penetrating through membranes. This cation, called SkQ1, is specifically targeted to mitochondria by electrophoresis in the electric field formed by the mitochondrial respiratory chain. The respiratory chain also regenerates reduced SkQ1H(2) from its oxidized form that appears as a result of the antioxidant activity of SkQ1H(2). SkQ1H(2) prevents oxidation of cardiolipin, a mitochondrial phospholipid that is especially sensitive to attack by reactive oxygen species (ROS). In cell cultures, SkQ1 and its analog plastoquinonyl decylrhodamine 19 (SkQR1) arrest H(2)O(2)-induced apoptosis. When tested in vivo, SkQs (i) prolong the lifespan of fungi, crustaceans, insects, fish, and mice, (ii) suppress appearance of a large number of traits typical for age-related senescence (cataract, retinopathies, achromotrichia, osteoporosis, lordokyphosis, decline of the immune system, myeloid shift of blood cells, activation of apoptosis, induction of β-galactosidase, phosphorylation of H2AX histones, etc.) and (iii) lower tissue damage and save the lives of young animals after treatments resulting in kidney ischemia, rhabdomyolysis, heart attack, arrhythmia, and stroke. We suggest that the SkQs reduce mitochondrial ROS and, as a consequence, inhibit mitochondria-mediated apoptosis, an obligatory step of execution of programs responsible for both senescence and fast "biochemical suicide" of an organism after a severe metabolic crisis.

Mitochondria-targeted antioxidants of the SkQ family that accumulate in energized mitochondria protect cells from oxidative stress by increasing the level of reduced glutathione and decreasing cell damage induced by hydrogen peroxide. The exposure of various human transformed cell lines to SkQR1, a fluorescent member of the SkQ family, showed that SkQR1 was pumped out of the chemotherapy resistant cells by P-glycoprotein, one of the main transport proteins that determines multidrug resistance typical for many neoplastic cells. It was also shown that SkQR1 pumping is neutralized by P-glycoprotein inhibitors (verapamil and pluronic L61). In experiments on K-562 cells, it was found that the subline sensitive to chemotherapy is protected by SkQR1 from apoptosis induced by hydrogen peroxide. The protection of resistant subline cells is only evident after the inhibition of P-glycoprotein.

The present state of the art in studies on the mechanisms of antioxidant activities of mitochondria-targeted cationic plastoquinone derivatives (SkQs) is reviewed. Our experiments showed that these compounds can operate as antioxidants in two quite different ways, i.e. (i) by preventing peroxidation of cardiolipin [Antonenko et al., Biochemistry (Moscow) 73 (2008) 1273-1287] and (ii) by fatty acid cycling resulting in mild uncoupling that inhibits the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mitochondrial State 4 [Severin et al. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 107 (2009), 663-668]. The quinol and cationic moieties of SkQ are involved in cases (i) and (ii), respectively. In case (i) SkQH2 interrupts propagation of chain reactions involved in peroxidation of unsaturated fatty acid residues in cardiolipin, the formed SkQ- being reduced back to SkQH2 by heme bH of complex III in an antimycin-sensitive way. Molecular dynamics simulation showed that there are two stable conformations of SkQ1 with the quinol residue localized near peroxyl radicals at C9 or C13 of the linoleate residue in cardiolipin. In mechanism (ii), fatty acid cycling mediated by the cationic SkQ moiety is involved. It consists of (a) transmembrane movement of the fatty acid anion/SkQ cation pair and (b) back flows of free SkQ cation and protonated fatty acid. The cycling results in a protonophorous effect that was demonstrated in planar phospholipid membranes and liposomes. In mitochondria, the cycling gives rise to mild uncoupling, thereby decreasing membrane potential and ROS generation coupled to reverse electron transport in the respiratory chain. In yeast cells, dodecyltriphenylphosphonium (capital ES, Cyrillic12TPP), the cationic part of SkQ1, induces uncoupling that is mitochondria-targeted since capital ES, Cyrillic12TPP is specifically accumulated in mitochondria and increases the H+ conductance of their inner membrane. The conductance of the outer cell membrane is not affected by capital ES, Cyrillic12TPP.

A unique phenomenon of mitochondria-targeted protonophores is described. It consists in a transmembrane H + -conducting fatty acid cycling mediated by penetrating cations such as 10-(6’-plastoquinonyl)decyltriphenylphosphonium (SkQ1) or dodecyltriphenylphosphonium (C 12 TPP). The phenomenon has been modeled by molecular dynamics and directly proved by experiments on bilayer planar phospholipid membrane, liposomes, isolated mitochondria, and yeast cells. In bilayer planar phospholipid membrane, the concerted action of penetrating cations and fatty acids is found to result in conversion of a pH gradient (ΔpH) to a membrane potential (Δ ψ ) of the Nernstian value (about 60 mV Δ ψ at ΔpH = 1). A hydrophobic cation with localized charge (cetyltrimethylammonium) failed to substitute for hydrophobic cations with delocalized charge. In isolated mitochondria, SkQ1 and C 12 TPP, but not cetyltrimethylammonium, potentiated fatty acid-induced ( i ) uncoupling of respiration and phosphorylation, and ( ii ) inhibition of H 2 O 2 formation. In intact yeast cells, C 12 TPP stimulated respiration regardless of the extracellular pH value, whereas a nontargeted protonophorous uncoupler (trifluoromethoxycarbonylcyanide phenylhydrazone) stimulated respiration at pH 5 but not at pH 3. Hydrophobic penetrating cations might be promising to treat obesity, senescence, and some kinds of cancer that require mitochondrial hyperpolarization.

A conjugate of plastoquinone with decylrhodamine 19 (SkQR1) selectively accumulates in mitochondria of normal and tumor cells. SkQR1 protected the cellular pool of reduced glutathione under oxidative stress. Overexpression of P-glycoprotein (Pgp 170) multidrug resistance pump strongly suppresses accumulation of SkQR1. The inhibitors of Pgp 170 stimulate accumulation of SkQR1 in various cell lines indicating that SkQR1 is a substrate of Pgp 170. The protective effect of SkQR1 against oxidative stress is diminished in the cells overexpressing Pgp 170. It is suggested that mitochondria-targeted antioxidants could selectively protect normal (Pgp 170-negative) cells against the toxic effect of anti-cancer treatments related to oxidative stress.

Much evidence has recently been reported suggesting that reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced in mitochondria play a crucial role in the programmed senescence of organisms. In particular, it has been shown that antioxidants addressed to mitochondria slow down the appearance of symptoms of senescence and development of senile diseases and increase the median lifespan of various organisms from fungi to mammals. At the biochemical level, the mechanism of action of such rechargeable antioxidants as plastoquinonyldecyltriphenyl phosphonium (SkQ1) includes, in particular, prevention of oxidation of mitochondrial cardiolipin by ROS. The hormone melatonin also exhibits a number of such effects, and decrease in its level with age could explain the weakening of antioxidant protection upon aging. According to Moosmann et al., there exists a natural mechanism of antioxidant protection that, like SkQ1, is localized in the internal mitochondrial membrane and is rechargeable. It involves methionine residues in the surface regions of proteins encoded by mitochondrial DNA. It appears that in organisms with high respiratory metabolism the genetic code in the mitochondrial system of protein biosynthesis has changed. In these organisms (including some yeasts, insects, crustaceans, and vertebrates), the AUA codon codes for methionine rather than isoleucine, as in the case of synthesis of proteins encoded either in the nucleus or in mitochondria of organisms with lower rates of metabolism (other yeast species, sponges, and echinoderms). Methionine quenches ROS, being converted to methionine sulfoxide, which is re-reduced to the initial methionine by NADPH.

The chain-breaking antioxidant activities of reduced form of novel type of geroprotectors, mitochondria-targeted quinones (QH(2)) have quantitatively been measured for the first time. To this end, the chain peroxidation of methyl linoleate (ML) in Triton micelles was used as a kinetic testing model. The studied QH(2) were lipophilic triphenylphosphonium cations conjugated by an aliphatic linker to an antioxidant, i.e. a ubiquinol moiety (MitoQH(2)) or plastoquinol moiety (SkQH(2)). The antioxidant activity was characterized by the rate constant k(1) for the reaction between QH(2) and the lipid peroxyl radical (LO(2) (.)) originated from ML: QH(2) + LO(2) (.) --HQ(.) + LOOH. All the tested QH(2) displayed a pronounced antioxidant activity. The oxidized forms of the same compounds did not inhibit ML peroxidation. The value of k(1) for SkQH(2) far exceeded k(1) for MitoQH(2). For the biologically active geroprotectors SkQ1H(2), the k(1) value found to be as high as 2.2 x 10(5) M(-) (1)s(-) (1), whereas for MitoQH(2), it was 0.58 x 10(5) M(-) (1)s(-) (1). The kinetic behavior of QH(2) suggested that SkQ1H(2) can rather easily diffuse through lipid-water microheterogeneous systems.

The antioxidant activity of mitochondria-targeted small molecules, SkQ1 and MitoQ (conjugates of a lipophilic decyltriphenylphosphonium cation with an antioxidant moiety of a plastoquinone and ubiquinone, respectively), was studied in aqueous solution and in a lipid environment, i.e., micelles, liposomes and planar bilayer lipid membranes. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) were generated by azo initiators or ferrous ions with or without tert-butyl-hydroperoxide (t-BOOH). Chemiluminescence, fluorescence, oxygen consumption and inactivation of gramicidin peptide channels were measured to detect antioxidant activity. In all of the systems studied, SkQ1 was shown to effectively scavenge ROS. The scavenging was inherent to the reduced form of the quinone (SkQ1H(2)). In the majority of the above model systems, SkQ1 exhibited higher antioxidant activity than MitoQ. It is concluded that SkQ1H(2) operates as a ROS scavenger in both aqueous and lipid environments, being effective at preventing ROS-induced damage to membrane lipids as well as membrane-embedded peptides.

Antioxidants specifically addressed to mitochondria have been studied for their ability to decelerate aging of organisms. For this purpose, a project has been established with participation of several research groups from Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology and some other Russian research institutes as well as two groups from the USA and Sweden, with support by the "Mitotechnology" company founded by "RAInKo" company (O. V. Deripaska and Moscow State University). This paper summarizes the first results of the project and estimates its prospects. Within the framework of the project, antioxidants of a new type (SkQ) were synthesized comprising plastoquinone (an antioxidant moiety), a penetrating cation, and decane or pentane linker. Using planar bilayer phospholipid membranes, we selected SkQ derivatives with the highest penetrating ability, namely plastoquinonyl-decyl-triphenylphosphonium (SkQ1), plastoquinonyl-decyl-rhodamine 19 (SkQR1), and methylplastoquinonyl-decyl-triphenylphosphonium (SkQ3). Anti- and prooxidant properties of these substances and also of ubiquinone and ubiquinonyl-decyl-triphenylphosphonium (MitoQ) were tested on isolated mitochondria. Micromolar concentrations of cationic quinones are found to be very strong prooxidants, but in lower (sub-micromolar) concentrations they display antioxidant activity. The antioxidant activity decreases in the series SkQ1=SkQR1>SkQ3>MitoQ, so the window between the anti- and prooxidant effects is smallest for MitoQ. SkQ1 is rapidly reduced by complexes I and II of the mitochondrial respiratory chain, i.e. it is a rechargeable antioxidant. Extremely low concentrations of SkQ1 and SkQR1 completely arrest the H2O2-induced apoptosis in human fibroblasts and HeLa cells (for SkQ1 C1/2=1.10(-9) M). Higher concentrations of SkQ are required to block necrosis initiated by reactive oxygen species (ROS). In mice, SkQ1 decelerates the development of three types of accelerated aging (progeria) and also of normal aging, and this effect is especially demonstrative at early stages of aging. The same pattern is shown in invertebrates (drosophila and daphnia). In mammals, the effect of SkQs on aging is accompanied by inhibition of development of such age-related diseases as osteoporosis, involution of thymus, cataract, retinopathy, etc. SkQ1 manifests a strong therapeutic action on some already developed retinopathies, in particular, congenital retinal dysplasia. With drops containing 250 nM SkQ1, vision is recovered in 50 of 66 animals who became blind because of retinopathy. SkQ1-containing drops instilled in the early stage of the disease prevent the loss of sight in rabbits with experimental uveitis and restore vision to animals that had already become blind. A favorable effect is also achieved in experimental glaucoma in rabbits. Moreover, the pretreatment of rats with 0.2 nmol SkQ1 per kg body weight significantly decreases the H2O2-induced arrhythmia of the isolated heart. SkQ1 strongly reduces the damaged area in myocardial infarction or stroke and prevents the death of animals from kidney infarction. In p53-/- mice, SkQ1 decreases the ROS level in the spleen cells and inhibits appearance of lymphomas which are the main cause of death of such animals. Thus, it seems reasonable to perform clinical testing of SkQ preparations as promising drugs for treatment of age-related and some other severe diseases of human and animals.

Reactive oxygen species generated in mitochondria are an important factor contributing to mitochondrial and cellular dysfunction underlying many degenerative diseases, chronic pathologies and aging. The idea of delivering antioxidant molecules to mitochondria in vivo to treat these diseases and slow aging intensively developed in the last 20 years. Derivatives of quinones covalently conjugated to a lipophilic cation (e.g., MitoQ and SkQ) were the most extensively studied mitochondria-targeted antioxidants. These compounds have now been used in a wide range of in vitro and in vivo studies, as well as in clinical trials in humans. Here, we review recent progress in this field with a special attention on molecular mechanisms of rechargeable mitochondria-targeted antioxidants. A simple hypothesis that aging results from gradual accumulation of occasional damage inflicted by ROS to DNA, proteins and lipids is apparently insufficient. More and more pieces of evidence indicate that the damage in question is programmed. Moreover, the imbalance in ROS-dependent regulatory mechanisms and compromised ROS signaling are underlying many pathologies and aging. Chain reactions of cardiolipin peroxidation initiated by mitochondrial ROS seem to play a key role in these degenerative processes. Such reactions are specifically abolished by mitochondriatargeted antioxidants.

We explored the neuroprotective properties of natural plant-derived antioxidants plastoquinone and thymoquinone (2-demethylplastoquinone derivative) modified to be specifically accumulated in mitochondria. The modification was performed through chemical conjugation of the quinones with penetrating cations: Rhodamine 19 or tetraphenylphosphonium. Neuroprotective properties were evaluated in a model of middle cerebral artery occlusion. We demonstrate that the mitochondria-targeted compounds, introduced immediately after reperfusion, possess various neuroprotective potencies as judged by the lower brain damage and higher neurological status. Plastoquinone derivatives conjugated with rhodamine were the most efficient, and the least efficiency was shown by antioxidants conjugated with tetraphenylphosphonium. Antioxidants were administered intraperitoneally or intranasally with the latter demonstrating a high level of penetration into the brain tissue. The therapeutic effects of both ways of administration were similar. Long-term administration of antioxidants in low doses reduced the neurological deficit, but had no effect on the volume of brain damage. At present, cationic decylrhodamine derivatives of plastoquinone appear to be the most promising anti-ischemic mitochondria-targeted drugs of the quinone family. We suggest these antioxidants could be potentially used for a stroke treatment.

This study assesses a protective effect of a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant SkQT1 (a mixture of 10-(6'-toluquinonyl) decyltriphenylphosphonium and 10-(5'-toluquinonyl) decyltriphenylphosphonium in proportion of 1.4:1), using an open focal trauma model of the rat brain sensorimotor cortex and a model of amyloid-beta1-42 (Abeta)-induced impairment of hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP), a kind of synaptic plasticity associated with learning and memory. It was found that a trauma-induced neurological deficit could be partially improved with daily intraperitoneal injections of SkQT1 (250 nmol/kg) for 5 days after the trauma. Neither an analog of SkQT1 without thymoquinone (C12TPP) nor original thymoquinone without a cation residue was effective to improve such conditions. In the SkQ molecule, the phosphonium cation can be replaced by the rhodamine 19 cation, with the SkQTR1 being still active in the treatment of the neurological deficit. Application of 200 nM Abeta to rat hippocampal slices impaired the induction of LTP in the hippocampal CA1 pyramidal layer. A single intraperitoneal injection of SkQT1 (250 nmol/kg body weight) made 24 h before the slice preparation prevented the harmful effect of Abeta on the LTP. Thus mitochondria-targeted antioxidants, containing thymoquinone, have neuroprotective properties.

For many pathological conditions, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated in mitochondria are considered to have a role as a trigger. When mitochondrial ROS (mROS) are formed in the inner mitochondrial membrane, they initiate free radical-mediated chain reactions of lipid peroxidation and are thus especially damaging. The consequences of membrane damage are decreased electrical resistance of the membrane, oxidative damage to cardiolipin (a mitochondria specific lipid essential for functioning of respiratory chain proteins and H(+)-ATP synthase), and damage to mitochondrial DNA localized in close vicinity to the inner membrane, with consequent mitochondrial dysfunction and induction of apoptotic cascade and cell death. To target the starting point of such undesirable events, antioxidants conjugated with mitochondria-targeted, membrane-penetrating cations can be used to scavenge ROS inside mitochondria. The most demonstrative indications favoring this conclusion originate from recent discoveries of the in vivo effects of such cations belonging to the MitoQ and SkQ groups. Here we describe some essential methodological aspects of the application of mitochondria-targeted cations promising in treating oxidative stress-related pathologies.

Recently we have found that the drug amiodarone induces apoptosis in yeast, which is mediated by reactive oxygen species (ROS). Here we have used this finding as a tool to screen for genes involved in the death program. We have described a novel mitochondrial protein, Ysp2, acting in the amiodarone-induced death cascade. After amiodarone addition both the control and amiodarone-resistant ysp2-deleted cells formed ROS, but the mutant (unlike the control) did not undergo the mitochondrial thread-to-grain transition. To test whether the action of Ysp2 is amiodarone-specific we tried to induce PCD by other agents. We have found that acetic acid-induced PCD also depends on Ysp2. We also demonstrate that, like acetic acid, propionic acid or nigericin triggered intracellular acidification causing ROS-dependent death. We suggest that intracellular acidification results in the protonation of superoxide anion (O2−) to form HO2, one of the most aggressive ROS, which in turn induces Ysp2-mediated PCD.

In experiments on isolated kidney and liver mitochondria, it is shown that oleate hydroperoxide induces a much smaller increase in the controlled respiration rate and DeltaPsi decrease than the same concentrations of oleate. Palmitate appears to be less efficient than oleate but more efficient than oleate hydroperoxide. In all cases, GDP and CAtr cause some recoupling, CAtr being more effective. Addition of 0.2 mM GDP before CAtr does not prevent further DeltaPsi increase by subsequent CAtr addition. On the other hand, GDP added after CAtr is without any effect. GDP partially prevents the DeltaPsi lowering by ADP at the State 4--State 3 transition if small amounts of CAtr are present. The data are consistent with the suggestion of F. Goglia and V.P. Skulachev (FASEB J. 17, 1585-1591, 2003) that fatty acid anions are translocated by mitochondrial anion carriers much better than their hydroperoxides. As to GDP recoupling, it cannot be regarded as a specific probe for uncoupling by UCPs since it can be mediated by the ATP/ADP antiporter.

Bacteriorhodopsin-containing fragments of Halobacterium halobium membrane (bacteriorhodopsin sheets) were incorporated into a lecithin-impregnated collodion film, and fast stages of flash-induced electrogenesis were measured by two electrodes separated by this film. It is found that a single turnover of bacteriorhodopsin results in an electrogenic response composed of three main stages of the following tau: the first less than 200 ns, the second 15 - 70 microseconds and the third 10 ms. The second and third phases are of the same direction as an electric response to continuous illumination, whereas the first one is oppositely directed. The microseconds and ms stages were shown to correlate, in the first approximation, with formation and decomposition of the bacteriorhodopsin intermediate absorbing with 412 nm, respectively. Both the second and third phases of the photoelectric response are sums of at least two exponents. The third stage is specifically inhibition by La3+ ions which are also shown to decrease the rate of regeneration of the original bacteriorhodopsin absorbing at 570 nm from the intermediate absorbing at 412 nm. Acidification of the medium induces parallel inhibition of the second and third phases and of formation of the intermediate absorbing at 412 nm as if protonation of a group with pK = 3.6 were responsible for this inhibition. The first (opposite) phase survives acidification. It even increases at pH lower than 1.5. At such a low pH, one can show a good correlation of decays of photopotential and of a bacteriorhodopsin bathointermediate. The decays are biphasic (tau 1 = 200 microseconds and tau 2 = 2 ms), formation of both the photopotential and the bathointermediate being faster than 200 ns. At higher pH, when a three-phase photoelectric response is revealed, decay of the formed electric potential difference gives the average tau value of about 1 s. It can be accelerated by compounds that increase ionic conductance of biomembranes. At pH below 4, fluoride is found to completely inhibit the second and third phases, so that only the first phase is observed. The results are discussed in terms of a scheme postulating that the first electrogenic phase is a result of translocation of the protonated Schiff base inside the membrane due to a light-induced conformation change in retinal or protein. The second and third phases are explained by H+ transfer from the Schiff base to the outer membrane surface and from inner (cytoplasmic) surface of membrane to the Schiff base, respectively.

Bacteriorhodopsin-containing fragments of Halobacterium halobium membrane (bacteriorhodopsin sheets) were incorporated into a lecithin-impregnated collodion film, and fast stages of flash-induced electrogenesis were measured by two electrodes separated by this film. It is found that a single turnover of bacteriorhodopsin results in an electrogenic response composed of three main stages of the following τ: the first < 200 ns, the second 15–70 μs and the third 10 ms. The second and third phases are of the same direction as an electric response to continuous illumination, whereas the first one is oppositely directed. The lts and ms stages were shown to correlate, in the first approximation, with formation and decomposition of the bacteriorhodopsin intermediate absorbing at 412 nm, respectively. Both the second and third phases of the photoelectric response are sums of at least two exponents. The third stage is specifically inhibition by La3+ ions which are also shown to decrease the rate of regeneration of the original bacteriorhodopsin absorbing at 570 nm from the intermediate absorbing at 412 nm. Acidification of the medium induces parallel inhibition of the second and third phases and of formation of the intermediate absorbing at 412 nm as if protonation of a group with pK= 3.6 were responsible for this inhibition. The first (opposite) phase survives acidification. It even increases at pH lower than 1.5. At such a low pH, one can show a good correlation of decays of photopotential and of a bacteriorhodopsin bathointermediate. The decays are biphasic (τ1= 200 μs and τ2= 2 ms), formation of both the photopotential and the bathointermediate being faster than 200 ns. At higher pH, when a three-phase photoelectric response is revealed, decay of the formed electric potential difference gives the average τ value of about 1 s. It can be accelerated by compounds that increase ionic conductance of biomembranes. At pH below 4, fluoride is found to completely inhibit the second and third phases, so that only the first phase is observed. The results are discussed in terms of a scheme postulating that the first electrogenic phase is a result of translocation of the protonated Schiff base inside the membrane due to a light-induced conformation change in retinal or protein. The second and third phases are explained by H+ transfer from the Schiff base to the outer membrane surface and from inner (cytoplasmic) surface of membrane to the Schiff base, respectively.

Direct measurement of the electrogenic activity of purified mitochondrial transhydrogenase has been carried out. To this end, beef-heart transhydrogenase was isolated and reconstituted with phospholipids to form proteoliposomes. The transhydrogenase proteoliposomes were incorporated into a membrane filter impregnated with a decane solution of phospholipids. It is shown that addition of substrates of either the forward (NADPH and NAD+) or the reverse (NADH and NADP+) transhydrogenase reaction gives rise to an electric potential difference across the proteoliposome-treated membrane filter. The electric vector depends upon the direction of the reaction. The proteoliposome-supplemented compartment charges negatively in the case of the forward reaction and positively in the case of the reverse one. Addition of the reaction products after substrates equalizes the potentials. The transhydrogenase-treated membrane filter retains the ability to perform transhydrogenase-linked electrogenesis after removal of excess non-incorporated proteoliposomes. The electric potential difference reaching 20 mV immediately after the transhydrogenase substrate addition, slowly decreases due to accumulation of the reaction products. Such decay is prevented when the mixture is supplemented with the substrate-regenerating and product-utilizing enzymic systems. Under these conditions, a steady continuous electric current of about 10 pA can be observed.

Although programmed cell death (PCD) is extensively studied in multicellular organisms, in recent years it has been shown that a unicellular organism, yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, also possesses death program(s). In particular, we have found that a high doses of yeast pheromone is a natural stimulus inducing PCD. Here, we show that the death cascades triggered by pheromone and by a drug amiodarone are very similar. We focused on the role of mitochondria during the pheromone/amiodarone-induced PCD. For the first time, a functional chain of the mitochondria-related events required for a particular case of yeast PCD has been revealed: an enhancement of mitochondrial respiration and of its energy coupling, a strong increase of mitochondrial membrane potential, both events triggered by the rise of cytoplasmic [Ca2+], a burst in generation of reactive oxygen species in center o of the respiratory chain complex III, mitochondrial thread-grain transition, and cytochrome c release from mitochondria. A novel mitochondrial protein required for thread-grain transition is identified.

The release of cytochrome c from the intermembrane space of mitochondria into the cytosol is one of the critical events in apoptotic cell death. In the present study, it is shown that release of cytochrome c and apoptosis induced by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF) in HeLa cells can be inhibited by (i) overexpression of an oncoprotein Bcl-2, (ii) Cyclosporin A, an inhibitor of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (PTP) or (iii) oligomycin, an inhibitor of H+- ATP-synthase. Staurosporine-induced apoptosis is sensitive to Bcl-2 but insensitive to Cyclosporin A and oligomycin. The effect of oligomycin is not due to changes in mitochondrial membrane potential or to inhibition of ATP synthesis/hydrolysis since (a) uncouplers (CCCP, DNP) which discharge the membrane potential fail to abolish the protective action of oligomycin and (b) aurovertin B (another inhibitor of H+-ATP-synthase, affecting its F1 component) do not affect apoptosis. A role of oligomycin-sensitive F0 component of H+-ATP-synthase in the TNF-induced PTP opening and apoptosis is suggested.

Here we present a concept that considers organism aging as an additional facultative function promoting evolution, but counterproductive for an individual. We hypothesize that aging can be inhibited or even arrested when full mobilization of all resources is needed for the survival of an individual. We believe that the organism makes such a decision based on the analysis of signals of special receptors that monitor a number of parameters of the internal and external environment. The amount of available food is one of these parameters. Food restriction is perceived by the organism as a signal of coming starvation; in response to it, the organism inhibits its counterproductive programs, in particular, aging. We hypothesize that the level of protein obtained with food is estimated based on blood concentration of one of the essential amino acids (methionine), of carbohydrates — via glucose level, and fats — based on the level of one of the free fatty acids. When the amount of available food is sufficient, these receptors transmit the signal allowing aging. In case of lack of food, this signal is cancelled, and as a result aging is inhibited, i.e. age-related weakening of physiological functions is inhibited, and lifespan increases (the well-known geroprotective effect of partial food restriction). In Caenorhabditis elegans, lowering of the ambient temperature has a similar effect. This geroprotective effect is removed by the knockout of one of the cold receptors, and replacement of the C. elegans receptor by a similar human receptor restores the ability of low temperature to increase the lifespan of the nematode. A chain of events linking the receptor with the aging mechanism has been discovered in mice — for one of the pain receptors in neurons, the nerve endings of which entwine pancreas β-cells. Age-related activation of these receptors inhibits the work of insulin genes in β-cells. Problems with insulin secretion lead to oxidative stress, chronic inflammation, and type II diabetes, which can be regarded as one of the forms of senile phenoptosis. In conclusion, we consider the role of some psychological factors in the regulation of the aging program.

In mammalian mitochondria, cardiolipin molecules are the primary targets of oxidation by reactive oxygen species. The interaction of oxidized cardiolipin molecules with the constituents of the apoptotic cascade may lead to cell death. In the present study, we compared the effects of quinol-containing synthetic and natural amphiphilic antioxidants on cardiolipin peroxidation in a model system (liposomes of bovine cardiolipin). We found that both natural ubiquinol and synthetic antioxidants, even being introduced in micro- and submicromolar concentrations, fully protected the liposomal cardiolipin from peroxidation. The duration of their action, however, varied; it increased with the presence of either methoxy groups of ubiquinol or additional reduced redox groups (in the cases of rhodamine and berberine derivates). The concentration of ubiquinol in the mitochondrial membrane substantially exceeds the concentrations of antioxidants we used and would seem to fully prevent peroxidation of membrane cardiolipin. In fact, this does not happen: cardiolipin in mitochondria is oxidized, and this process can be blocked by amphiphilic cationic antioxidants (Y. N. Antonenko et al. (2008) Biochemistry (Moscow), 73, 1273-1287). We suppose that a fraction of mitochondrial cardiolipin could not be protected by natural ubiquinol; in vivo, peroxidation most likely threatens those cardiolipin molecules that, being bound within complexes of membrane proteins, are inaccessible to the bulky hydrophobic ubiquinol molecules diffusing in the lipid bilayer of the inner mitochondrial membrane. The ability to protect these occluded cardiolipin molecules from peroxidation may explain the beneficial therapeutic action of cationic antioxidants, which accumulate electrophoretically within mitochondria under the action of membrane potential.

The mitochondrial matrix is the only intracellular compartment that is negatively charged compared to the cytosol. This is why any cation penetrating the mitochondrial membrane must be accumulated inside mitochondria. This principle was used to construct mitochondria-targeted antioxidants (mtAOX) composed of an antioxidant moiety and a penetrating cation with delocalized positive charge. The mtAOX most active in various in vitro tests are MitoQ and SkQ, cationic derivatives of mitochondrial ubiquinone and chloroplast plastoquinone, respectively. Their high activities are due to the fact that the reduced (active) form of MitoQ and SkQ can be regenerated by the mitochondrial respiratory chain from their oxidized forms produced as a result of the antioxidant action of these quinones. An additional important advantage of SkQ is that the “window” between antiand prooxidant activities of this compound is very much wider than that of MitoQ. Both MitoQ and SkQ have already been tested on animals to treat various diseases that seem to be caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by mitochondria. In several cases, the use of SkQ was more successful than MitoQ. In particular, it was found that SkQ prolongs the life span of various organisms (from fungi to mammals) and retards (sometimes even reverses) a group of traits typical for aging. Clinical trials of drops of an aqueous solution of SkQ as a medicine have already given a positive result in the case of the age-related disease “dry-eye syndrome.” The SkQ1-containing drops of Visomitin are now available in Russian drugstores.

It has been about 15 years since the introduction of the rechargeable mitochondria-targeted antioxidants (RMA). Two major groups have been developing RMA of the MitoQ and SkQ types independently, and many additional trials have been done by other researchers. This has provided solid preclinical evidence of RMA efficacy in various models. Human trials of systemic MitoQ were not followed by further advances, but the safety of MitoQ and, most likely, other RMA in humans has been demonstrated. A prooxidant effect at higher concentrations of RMA was described. For RMA of the SkQ type, a large window between anti- and prooxidant concentrations was observed, which makes SkQs promising as potential medicines. Significant RMA-induced improvements in many diseases that do not have an accepted treatment have been described. This justifies further clinical trials of RMA.

Some organic cations are known to be electrophoretically imported into bacterial cells and actively extruded from these cells by multidrug resistance (MDR) pumps. We have studied penetration of plant antimicrobial agents berberine and palmatine and synthetic antiseptic benzalkonium chloride through black planar phospholipid membrane (BLM) and membrane of Staphylococcus aureus cells. Gradients of these cations across BLM generated an electric potential difference. Penetrating anion tetraphenyl borate and phloretin (a plant substance decreasing membrane dipole potential) stimulated this effect. Under optimal conditions, the magnitude of the electric potential was close to theoretical, that is, 60 mV/10-fold cation gradient. Berberine accumulated in S. aureus cells as shown by direct measurement of berberine with a berberine-sensitive electrode. The berberine accumulation was prevented by protonophore CCCP and was stimulated by mutation in the MDR pump NorA. It is concluded that the plant alkaloids and benzalkonium are penetrating cations and substrates of an MDR pump.

Physiological aspects of uncoupling of oxidation and phosphorylation are reviewed in thecontext of involvement of mitochondrial anion carriers. It is assumed that the carriers facilitateelectrophoretic translation of fatty acid anion, RCOO-, from the inner to the outer leaflet ofthe mitochondrial membrane, whereas back movement of the protonated fatty acid, RCOOH,from the outer to the inner leaflet represents flip-flop of RCOOH via the phospholipid bilayerof the membrane. The RCOO- transport seems to be catalyzed by the ATP/ADP and aspartate/glutamate antiporters, dicarboxylate carrier, and uncoupling proteins (UCP1, UCP2, UCP3L,UCP3s, and plant UCP). The fatty acid uncoupling is shown to be involved in thethermoregulatory heat production in animals and plants exposed to cold, as well as in performance ofrespiratory functions other than ATP synthesis, i.e., formation of useful substances,decomposition of unwanted substances, and antioxidant defense. Moreover, partial uncoupling might takepart in optimization of the rate of ATP synthesis in aerobic cells.

Oxidation of added NADH by rat liver mitochondria has been studied. It is found that exogenous NADH, when oxidized by rat liver mitochondria in sucrose hypotonic medium supplemented with Mg2+ and EGTA, generates a membrane potential (delta psi) even in the absence of added cytochrome c. ADP and phosphate decrease delta psi, the effect being reversed by oligomycin. Rotenone and myxothiazol do not inhibit delta psi generated by oxidation of exogenous NADH. Added cytochrome c increases the rate of the exogenous NADH oxidation and coupled delta psi formation. In sucrose isotonic medium, or in hypotonic medium without Mg2+, exogenous NADH fails to stimulate respiration and to form a membrane potential. In the presence of Mg2+, exogenous NADH appears to be effective in delta psi generation in isotonic sucrose medium if mitochondria were treated with digitonin. In isotonic KCl without Mg2+, oxidation of exogenous NADH is coupled to the delta psi formation and MgCl2 addition before mitochondria prevents this effect. In hypotonic (but not in isotonic) sucrose medium, Mg2+ makes a portion of the cytochrome c pool reducible by exogenous NADH or ascorbate. It is assumed that (i) hypotonic treatment or digitonin causes disruption of the outer mitochondrial membrane, and, as a consequence, desorption of the membrane-bound cytochrome c in a Mg2+-dependent fashion; (ii) incubation in isotonic KCI without Mg2+ results in swelling of mitochondrial matrix, disruption of the outer membrane and cytochrome c desorption whereas Mg2+ lowers the K+ permeability of the inner membrane and, hence, prevents swelling; (iii) desorbed cytochrome c is reduced by added NADH via NADH-cytochrome b5 reductase and cytochrome b5 or by ascorbate and is oxidized by cytochrome oxidase. The role of desorbed cytochrome c in oxidation of superoxide and cytoplasmic NADH as well as possible relations of these events to apoptosis are discussed.

New facts and ideas concerning the membrane-linked mechanisms preventing superoxide formation are summarised here. It is assumed that aerobic cells possess several lines of anti-ROS defence, including optimisation of the intracellular oxygen concentration, decrease in the concentration and life-time of one-electron O2 reductants such as CoQH; and mitochondrial and cell selections, i.e. elimination of mitochondria and cells producing ROS at high rate. It is postulated that ROS-dependent pore opening and ROS-dependent apoptosis are involved in mitochondrial and cell selections.

Male sex hormones [dihydrotestosterone (DTS), and testosterone] and progesterone, when added to the isolated rat liver mitochondria before or after some protonophores, lower the respiration rate and increase the delta psi level, i.e., reverse the protonophore-induced uncoupling. Such a recoupling ability shows specific structural requirements correlating with hormonal activity of steroids studied. For instance, epiandrosterone, a DTS isomer of very low hormonal activity, and deoxycorticosterone, differing from progesterone by additional OH-group and possessing quite different hormonal activity, as well as female sex hormones (estron and estradiol) show no recoupling effect. Like 6-ketocholestanol (kCh), male sex hormones and progesterone recouple mitochondria uncoupled by low concentrations of SF6847, FCCP and CCCP, but not by high concentration of these uncouplers or by any concentration of DNP, palmitate and gramicidin. In contrast to recoupling by kCh, hormonal recoupling requires addition of serum albumin and is inhibited by low concentrations of palmitate. Recoupling can also be shown on the heart and skeletal muscle mitochondria, being absent from the heart muscle submitochondrial particles, the bacterial chromatophores and the cytochrome oxidase proteoliposomes. In mitochondria it does not depend upon the oxidation substrate used (succinate or PMS + ascorbate were tested). Pronounced seasonal effect upon the DTS recoupling degree was revealed. The recoupling is maximal in January, February and from June to November, being minimal in the spring months and in December. In spring, the in vivo administration of thyroxine, di- or triiodothyronine improves the recoupling ability of DTS. 2 x 10 - 6 M. Thyroxine, when added in vitro, does not affect energy coupling if SF6847 was absent. In the presence of small amounts of SF6847, thyroxine stimulates the uncoupling in a DTS-sensitive fashion, di- and triiodothyronines being less effective. Addition of thyroxine to azide-inhibited mitochondria (oligomycin is present) stimulates respiration and normalizes the delta psi level. In this system, triiodothyronine is much less effective, whereas diiodothyronine is not effective at all. In the intact cells (thymocytes and the Krebs-II cells were tested), DTS lowers the respiration rate stimulated by low concentrations of SF6846 or FCCP. In this case, serum albumin is not required. It is suggested that recoupling effects of male sex hormones and progesterone are involved in their anabolic action just as uncoupling takes part in the catabolic activity of thyroid hormones.

The effect of 6-ketocholestanol (kCh) on various natural and reconstituted membrane systems has been studied. 6-ketocholestanol (5 alpha-Cholestan-3 beta-ol-6-one), a compound increasing the membrane dipole potential, completely prevents or reverses the uncoupling action of low concentrations of the most potent artificial protonophore SF6847. This effect can be shown in the rat liver and heart muscle mitochondria, in the intact lymphocytes, in the Rhodobacter sphaeroides chromatophores, and in proteoliposomes with the heart muscle or Rh. sphaeroides cytochrome oxidase. The recoupling effect of kCh disappears within a few minutes after the kCh addition and cannot be observed at all at high SF6847 concentrations. Almost complete recoupling is also shown with FCCP, CCCP, CCP and platanetin. With 2,4-dinitrophenol, fatty acids and gramicidin, kCh is ineffective. With TTFB, PCP, dicoumarol, and zearalenone, low kCh concentrations are ineffective, whereas its high concentrations recouple but partially. The kCh recoupling is more pronounced in mitochondria, lymphocytes and proteoliposomes than in chromatophores. On the other hand, mitochondria, lymphocytes and proteoliposomes are much more sensitive to SF6847 than chromatophores. A measurable lowering of the electric resistance of a planar bilayer phospholipid membrane (BLM) are shown to occur at SF6847 concentrations which are even higher than in chromatophores. In BLMs, kCh not only fails to reverse the effect of SF6847, but even enhances the conductivity increase caused by this uncoupler. It is assumed that action of low concentrations of the SF6847-like uncouplers on coupling membranes involves cytochrome oxidase and perhaps some other membrane protein(s) as well. This involvement is inhibited by the asymmetric increase in the membrane dipole potential, caused by incorporation of kCh to the outer leaflet of the membrane.

This review describes evidence that mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mROS) are of great importance under many physiological and pathological conditions. The most demonstrative indications favoring this conclusion originate from recent discoveries of the in vivo effects of mitochondria-targeted antioxidants (MitoQ and SkQs). The latter compounds look promising in treating several incurable pathologies as well as aging.

Bath application of 200 nM amyloid-β1-42 (Aβ) to rat hippocampal slices impairs induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) of the population spike in pyramidal layer of the CA1 field of the hippocampus. Intraperitoneal injection of mitochondria-targeted plastoquinone derivative SkQ1 at very low concentrations (250 nmol/kg body weight) given 24 h before the slice preparation or 1 h treatment of hippocampal slices with 250 nM SkQ1 prevents the deleterious effect of Aβ on LTP. To elucidate which part of the molecule is responsible for this type of neuroprotective activity, the effect of the analog of SkQ1 lacking plastoquinone (C12TPP) was studied. It was found that C12TPP was much less efficient in LTP protection than SkQ1 itself. It means that the plastoquinone part of the SkQ1 molecule is responsible for the LTP rescue. To summarize, in vivo and in vitro injection of SkQ1 compensates for Aβ-induced oxidative damage of long-term synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus, which is considered to be the main reason of memory loss and impairment of other cognitive functions associated with Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, SkQ1 may be considered as a promising candidate for the treatment of early-stage Alzheimer's disease.

A small but measurable portion of the molecular oxygen consumed by an organism is converted to superoxide anion (O 2 •− ) and H2O2 rather than to H2O. Fe2+ or Cu+ ions can nonenzymatically reduce H2O2 to hydroxyl radical (OH•). At acidic pH, O 2 •− is protonated to HO 2 • . Moreover, O 2 •− can react with NO to form peroxynitrite (NOO−) which, in turn, gives some very aggressive products. These products, together with OH• and HO 2 • , are called reactive oxygen species (ROS). O 2 •− can be formed as a result of leakage of electrons to O2 from intermediates of the initial and middle steps of mitochondrial respiratory chain. Moreover, there are enzymes reducing O2 to O 2 •− or H2O2. Living systems are equipped with a sophisticated antioxidant system. At low concentrations, ROS are used by the cells as short-lived secondary messengers of certain signals. At high concentrations, ROS operate as killers of cells that (a) should be eliminated during ontogenesis, (b) are infected, or (c) are damaged due to cellular senescence. There are some indications that at least in some cases biochemical organismal suicide (phenoptosis) is mediated by mitochondrial ROS (mROS). This may be acute phenoptosis (e.g., septic shock that eliminates from the population the most seriously infected individuals) or slow phenoptosis (programmed aging increasing evolvability of organism). It is suggested that lowering of mROS might be a way to cancel aging of humans since humans are no more interested in their evolution.

The light-induced stages of chlorophyll-dependent photosynthesis are described. The main principles of photon energy transformation by living organisms are explained. The light-driven cyclic redox chain of purple bacteria is thoroughly discussed. Mechanisms of energy storage in the noncyclic photosynthetic chain of green and sulfur bacteria are reviewed. The oxygenic photosynthesis in cyanobacteria and chloroplasts is discussed in detail.