FERRITIN AND CERULOPLASMIN IN OXIDATIVE DAMAGE - REVIEW AND RECENT FINDINGS

The oxidation of biomolecules such as lipid, protein, and DNA is assoc iated with a variety of toxicities and pathologies. In an all-encompas sing definition these oxidative processes have been referred to as ''o xidative stress.'' Although the direct reaction between molecular oxyg en and most biomolecules is spin forbidden, this reaction can be effic iently catalyzed by transition metals such as iron and copper. Iron es pecially has been demonstrated to be a potent catalyst of biological o xidations. This review focuses on the relationship between iron and co pper with respect to the copper protein ceruloplasmin, which may play a role in iron homeostasis by catalyzing the oxidation of iron as it i s placed in ferritin.