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A study of free radicals in paraffin embedded and deparaffinized human heart muscle tissue using electron spin resonance (ESR)

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Summary

Free radicals (spectroscopic splitting factor; g factor=2.003–2.005) were investigated in formol-fixed, paraffin embedded heart-muscle tissue sections using electron spin resonance (ESR) spectra. Changes in signal amplitude, g factor and line width were registered during deparaffinization, chloroform-methanol extraction, vapour treatment and bromination. An attempt was made to identify the source of the ESR signals by a correlation between the signal amplitude and number of fluorescent and/or Sudan-black-positive granules counted in the tissue sections. An increase in signal amplitude, g value and line narrowing were characteristic of the ascorbyl radical after deparafinization in air. Vapour treatment revelated that the broader signal has lower g factor, a characteristic that is tentatively assigned to oxidized lipids. The bromination resistant minor fraction of free radical centres with small g factor might be associated with the pigment content of the samples.

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Elek, G., Rockenbauer, A., Magyar, É. et al. A study of free radicals in paraffin embedded and deparaffinized human heart muscle tissue using electron spin resonance (ESR). Histochemistry 87, 499–504 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00496824

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00496824

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