The Developmental and Physiological Interactions between Free Radicals and Antioxidant Defense System: Effect of Environmental Pollutants

Abstract

This review explores the relation between antioxidant defense system and reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the development and shows the effect of environmental pollutants on this process. In normal state, the decline in levels of free radicals is coupled with increased antioxidant and the reverse is true, but there is a critical balance between them during the development. Also, redox signaling induced by environmental pollutants (stressors) involves both alterations in antioxidant defenses and accumulation of ROS leading to oxidative stress which acts as a critical pathophysiological mechanism. This disturbance has deleterious effect on male/female reproductive functions, on the development of the blastocysts and on the health of the embryos, newborns (perinatal life) and adulthood. Also, this overview shows that sperm, egg, zygote or blastocyst derived during the abnormal production of ROS due to environmental pollutants may result into offspring with high risk of any type of diseases producing developmental delay, embryopathy, teratogenic changes and apoptosis. These early insults may then lead to an increased rate of miscarriage and congenital anomalies depending on free radicals signaling and cell-death pathways. Thus, maintaining the balance between antioxidants and ROS during pregnancy or lactation period may modulate normal fetal/neonates growth and development, and may play an important role in a healthy life for the newborns. However, this argument is still ambiguous because of the difficulties of to what degree oxidants could participate as signaling molecules controlling fundamental and developmentally relevant cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation, and death.

Keywords: Antioxidants, Reactive Oxygen Species, Development, Environmental Pollutants.