Oxidative stress in the cellular environment results in the formation of highly reactive and unstable lipid hydroperoxides. Decomposition of the unstable peroxides derived from polyunsaturated fatty acids results in the formation of malondialdehyde (MDA), which can be quantified colorimetrically following its controlled reaction with thiobarbituric acid. Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS) assay was proposed over 40 years ago and is now the most commonly used of method to screening and monitoring lipid oxidation.
TBARS method has been used to evaluate a wide range of samples that include human and animal tissues and fluids, drugs, foods and natural products. The sensitivity of measuring Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS) has made this assay the method of choice for screening and monitoring lipid peroxidation, a major indicator of oxidative stress. Even though there remains a controversy cited in literature regarding the specificity of TBARS toward compounds other than MDA, it still remains the most widely employed assay used to determine lipid peroxidation.
This assay is based on the reaction of malondialdehyde (MDA) with thiobarbituric acid (TBA); TBA reacts with MDA to form a pink chromogen, which can be detected spectrophotometrically at 532 nm.
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