Gao, Minghui. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2013. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 168-182). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.

Fresh isolated erythrocyte ghost membranes and erythrocyte suspensions were incubated with an organic hydroperoxide, tert-butyl hydroperoxide, to establish the in vitro oxidative stress models. Circulating erythrocytes from normal individuals were fractionated into subpopulations of different ages by ultracentrifugation and used as an in vivo model. In these models, membrane iPF2alpha-III content accumulation was proportional to oxidative stress and correlated with decreased membrane fluidity. In circulating erythrocytes, membrane iPF2alpha-III increased with age and inversely correlated with membrane fluidity only in the core region. / Oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of a wide variety of human diseases. Isoprostanes, a family of prostaglandin derivatives, are mainly derived from free radical peroxidation of specific polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Measurement of F2-isoprostanes (F2-iPs) or one specific biologically active isomer (iPF2alpha-III) is considered to be a reliable lipid peroxidation marker in human diseases. However, the association observed between increased plasma/urine F2-iPs and diseases does not necessarily reflect tissue oxidative damages. Circulating erythrocytes, a tissue with limited biosynthetic capacity and poor repair mechanism, would offer a number of advantages for assessment of in vivo oxidative damages. In this thesis, human erythrocyte membrane iPF2alpha-III content was investigated as a new marker for in vivo oxidative stress assessment. Membrane fluidity was used as an indirect marker of cellular function. / To use membrane iPF2alpha-III in a human disease with known oxidative stress burden, 49 Chinese patients on long-term haemodialysis and 31 healthy Chinese subjects were recruited. Both plasma and membrane iPF 2alpha-III showed that haemodialysis patients had increased oxidative stress. Only membrane iPF2alpha-III, but not the conventional used plasma iPF2alpha-III, correlated with membrane fluidity. Furthermore, the significant inverse correlation between membrane iPF 2alpha-III and the core region of membrane fluidity was observed for this group of patients too. Since membrane iPF2alpha-III was shown to provide a link between oxidative stress and erythrocyte function, it would be considered as a new marker of in vivo erythrocyte oxidative stress assessment. (Abstract shortened by UMI.) / Yu Xiongwen. / "July 2005." / Advisers: Wai Kei Christopher Lam; Chung Shun Ho. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-07, Section: B, page: 3724. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 198-223). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.