Antioxidative defence and glutathione metabolism

Oxidative stress is caused by of an imbalance pro- and antioxidative processes in cells. An important antioxidant is glutathione (GSH), a tripeptide that is present in millimolar concentrations in all brain cells. GSH has essential function in the defence of brain cells against radicals, peroxides and toxins. We are investigating the synthesis, consumption, and regeneration of GSH in brain cells, the cooperation of astrocytes and neurons in GSH metabolism, the oxidation of GSH to glutathione disulfide (GSSG), the conjugation of GSH to drugs and toxins, as well as the multidrug-resistance protein-mediated export of GSH, GSSG and GSH conjugates from brain cells.