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Cigarette Smoking and Endogenous Antioxidants

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Systems Biology of Free Radicals and Antioxidants

Abstract

Cigarette smoke is a significant source of oxidative stress, one contributory pathway for its adverse health effects. Smoking-induced oxidative stress damages protein, DNA, and lipids. The antioxidant defense system is partly comprised of antioxidant micronutrients. Compared to nonsmokers, active smokers have significantly reduced circulating concentrations of ascorbic acid, α-carotene, β-carotene, and cryptoxanthin. These associations are also observed with nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke, showing that even low-dose cigarette smoke exposures result in circulating antioxidant micronutrient concentrations. Cigarette smoke exerts these effects independent of dietary antioxidant intake, a key potential confounding variable. As a significant source of oxidative stress, cigarette smoking is independently associated with lowered circulating concentrations of ascorbic acid and provitamin A carotenoids.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cancer Prevention and Control Program, Hollings Cancer Center and Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, 68 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USA

    Anthony J. Alberg & Phoebe Byers

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  1. Anthony J. Alberg
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  2. Phoebe Byers
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Correspondence to Anthony J. Alberg .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of British Colombia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    Ismail Laher

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Alberg, A.J., Byers, P. (2014). Cigarette Smoking and Endogenous Antioxidants. In: Laher, I. (eds) Systems Biology of Free Radicals and Antioxidants. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-30018-9_124

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