Chemistry and Biology of Reactive Oxygen Species in Signaling or Stress Responses

Overview

Journal Nat Chem Biol

Specialties Biochemistry
Biology
Chemistry

Date 2011 Jul 20

PMID 21769097

Citations 481

Authors

Bryan C Dickinson

Christopher J Chang

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are a family of molecules that are continuously generated, transformed and consumed in all living organisms as a consequence of aerobic life. The traditional view of these reactive oxygen metabolites is one of oxidative stress and damage that leads to decline of tissue and organ systems in aging and disease. However, emerging data show that ROS produced in certain situations can also contribute to physiology and increased fitness. This Perspective provides a focused discussion on what factors lead ROS molecules to become signal and/or stress agents, highlighting how increasing knowledge of the underlying chemistry of ROS can lead to advances in understanding their disparate contributions to biology. An important facet of this emerging area at the chemistry-biology interface is the development of new tools to study these small molecules and their reactivity in complex biological systems.

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