Dual effect of deferoxamine on free radical formation and reoxygenation injury in isolated hepatocytes

The effects of low concentrations (10 and 100 microM) and high concentrations (1, 10, and 20 mM) of deferoxamine (DFO) on superoxide (O2-.) formation, lipid peroxidation, and cell injury were studied in freshly isolated perfused rat hepatocytes during a 2-h reoxygenation period after 2.5 h of anoxia. O2-. production was measured by lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence, lipid peroxidation by malondialdehyde (MDA) formation, and cell injury by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release. On reoxygenation and in the absence of DFO, O2-. generation increased 11-fold, MDA increased 3.7-fold, and LDH release practically doubled. Low concentrations of DFO had no effect on O2-. generation but decreased MDA and LDH release from 44 to 75%. High concentrations of DFO significantly depressed O2-. formation, with very little additional effect on MDA or LDH release. These experiments illustrate in a biological system the dual effect of DFO: 1) at low Concentrations, DFO acts as a specific iron chelator and inhibits lipid peroxidation and cell injury without preventing O2-. formation, and 2) at high concentrations, DFO acts as a nonspecific scavenger of oxygen free radicals such as O2-.