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Developments in Antioxidants – Retrospective and Prospective Insights

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Systems Biology of Free Radicals and Antioxidants

Abstract

Despite the inconclusive and largely inconsistent reports on the role of antioxidants (ANT) in human health, the multidimensional research approach in this discipline has provided significant evidence for their health benefits. Within the emerging functional healthcare paradigm, research on dietary antioxidant agents has taken center stage in the fight against oxidative damage. Several, mostly plant-derived food sources have been qualitatively and quantitatively assessed as antioxidant agents and for antioxidant activities. In advancing this research dimension, a number of in vitro methods for evaluating the free radical scavenging capacities of ANT agents have evolved concurrently, some of which are more advanced than others. Through these research advancements together with a few successful in vivo studies, dietary supplementation has been formulated for some food stuffs. However, one of the greatest challenges in this field is the applicability of the mechanistic results to human intervention models. Current and future research focus should center on addressing these challenges if the full antioxidant benefits to humans are to be realized.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the University of KwaZulu-Natal and Claude Leon Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Centre for Plant Growth and Development, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal Pietermaritzburg, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, 3201, South Africa

    Ashwell R. Ndhlala, Bhekumthetho Ncube & Johannes Van Staden

Authors
  1. Ashwell R. Ndhlala
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  2. Bhekumthetho Ncube
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  3. Johannes Van Staden
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Correspondence to Johannes Van Staden .

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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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Ndhlala, A.R., Ncube, B., Van Staden, J. (2014). Developments in Antioxidants – Retrospective and Prospective Insights. In: Laher, I. (eds) Systems Biology of Free Radicals and Antioxidants. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-30018-9_33

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