A metal-catalyzed nucleophilic addition mechanism for the formation of radical adducts of the spin trap 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide (DMPO) has been described recently (It. Makino, T. Hagiwara, A Hagi, M. Nishi, and A Murakami, 1990, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 172, 1073-1080; P. M. Hanna, W. Chamulitrat, and R. P. Mason, 1992, Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 296, 640-644). In the present investigation, we have demonstrated that the recently reported inhibition of copper-dependent hydroxyl radical formation by the complexing agent 1,10-phenanthroline (OP), which appears to contradict the well-known chemical nuclease properties of Cu-I(OP)(2), is an artifact resulting from an inhibition of the nucleophilic addition of water to DMPO by OP (A C. Mello-Filho and R. Meneghini, 1991, Mutat. Res. 251, 109-113). Copper bound to OP was found to be a good catalyst of hydroxyl radical formation: the Cu-II(OP)(2) complex can be reduced by H2O2 and the Cu-(I)(OP)(2) generated reacts with the peroxide to form (OH)-O-.. In contrast, no evidence could be obtained for oxidant formation from the Cu-(aq(II))/H2O2 reaction system, despite the detection of a prominent signal from the DMPO hydroxyl radical adduct (DMPO/(OH)-O-.) (the formation of which was due solely to the nucleophilic addition of water to DMPO). The failure to generate an oxidant in this reaction mixture was attributed to the failure of hydrogen peroxide to reduce Cu-(aq(II)), as hydroxyl radical formation did occur when Cu-(aq(I)) was added directly to H2O2. However, in order to account for the high concentration of alpha-hydroxyethanol radicals detected when ethanol was included in the Cu-(aq(I))/H2O2 reaction, the possibility that an oxidant in addition to (OH)-O-. (e.g., CuO+) is generated is discussed. (C) 1995 Academic Press, Inc.
