OXIDATIVE STRESS AND LUNG-FUNCTION

It has been suggested that lung function can be altered by both free r adical and oxidant exposure, while antioxidant vitamin intake is posit ively related to lung function. However, the information on the relati on of blood levels of oxidants and antioxidants to lung function is sp arse, The present cross-sectional study, conducted from September 1995 to May 1996, analyzes the association between lung function measured as forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) with 1) levels of thiob arbituric acid-reactive substances in plasma (p-TBARS) and in low and very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL cholesterol/VLDL cholest erol-TBARS) as indicators of lipid peroxidation and 2) compounds with antioxidant activity, erythrocytic glutathione, plasma glutathione per oxidase, trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity, and serum bilirubin, which may protect against lipid peroxidation. The analysis was carried out in 132 nonsmoking subjects aged 37-73 years who were randomly sel ected from the residents of Erie and Niagara counties, New York. FEV1 in percent of the predicted value (FEV1%) was negatively and statistic al significantly associated with p-TBARS (r = 0.19), A negative associ ation with borderline statistical significance was observed between FE V1% with low density lipoprotein cholesterol/very low density lipoprot ein cholesterol-TBARS (r = -0.16) and glutathione (r = -0.16), while F EV1% was positively related to serum bilirubin (r = 0.15), Participant s in the lowest quartile of FEV1% showed significantly higher levels o f p-TBARS (p = 0.02) and lower levels of bilirubin (p = 0.04) than did those in the highest quartile, Our results suggest that increased lip id peroxidation is associated with pulmonary airway narrowing in the g eneral population.