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**5** 

*1Italy 2USA* 

**Oxidative Stress of Newborn** 

*1Institute of Medical Pediatrics, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit,* 

Free radicals are highly reactive molecules containing one or more unpaired electrons. They donate or abstract electrons from other molecules in an attempt to pair their electrons and generate a more stable species. Oxygen-derived reactants collectively termed reactive oxygen species (ROS) as well as reactive nitrogen species (RNS) are normally produced in living organisms. When produced in excess, they are important mediators of cell and tissue injury [Halliwell, B. (1999), Fridovich, I. (1998), Gitto, E. et al. (2002)]. The resulting damage is referred to as oxidative stress. Free radicals are highly unstable and several enzymes and small-molecular-weight molecules with antioxidant capabilities protect against them [Halliwell, B. (1992)]; these protective molecules are part of the antioxidative defence system. There is a critical balance between free radical generation and antioxidant defences. Free radical reactions lead to the oxidation of lipids, proteins, polysaccharides and to DNA damage (fragmentation, base modifications and strand breaks); as a consequence, radicals have a wide range of biologically toxic effects [Saugstad, OD. (1996), Sarker, AH. et al.

Newborns and especially pre-term infants are probably more prone to oxidative stress than are children and young adults. There are some special reasons for this. These infants very often 1) are exposed to high oxygen concentrations, 2) have infections or inflammation, 3) have reduced antioxidant defence, and 4) have free iron which enhances the Fenton reaction leading to production of highly toxic hydroxyl radicals [Saugstad, OD. (2003, 2005)]. The Fenton reaction describes the interaction of hydrogen peroxide with a transition metal resulting in the generation of the highly toxic hydroxyl radical. Oxidative stress has been postulated to be implicated in several newborn conditions and, in 1988, SAUGSTAD [Saugstad, OD. (1988)] coined the phrase ''oxygen radical diseases of neonatology''. The idea contends that oxidative stress affects different organs, often simultaneously, giving rise to different signs according to the organ most affected. He included bronchopulmonary dysplasia/chronic lung disease, retinopathy of prematurity and necrotising enterocolitis in this category. Later, it became clear that free radicals are also involved in periventricular

(1995)]. The generation of both ROS and RNS are summarised in figure 1.

**1. Introduction** 

Eloisa Gitto1, Gabriella D'Angelo1, Erika Cusumano1 and Russel J. Reiter2

*2Department of Cellular and Structural Biology,* 

 *University of Messina,* 

*The University of Texas,* 
