Many of the effects of carnitine are ascribed to its antioxidant properties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant properties of carnitine in vitro. Carnitine was found to decolorize ABTS•+, and to protect fluorescein against bleaching induced by AAPH-derived peroxyl radicals and peroxynitrite, thiol groups against oxidation induced by hydrogen peroxide, peroxyl radicals, hypochlorite and peroxynitrite, and erythrocytes against hemolysis induced by peroxyl radicals and hypochlorite. These results show that carnitine has a direct antioxidant action against physiologically relevant oxidants.

Carbon nanoparticles are a promising material which finds application in different fields in industry and medicine. For medical applications, biocompatibility of nanoparticles is of critical importance because a lot of medical implants are coated by carbon coating. Our previous results showed that nanoparticles may induce increased production of ROS by the cells so we decided to checked if nanopowders can induce apoptosis. Apoptosis was quantified by double-staining with acridine orange and ethidium bromide. For comparison, we identified apoptotic cells with annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide. Our data demonstrate that treatment of the cells with diamond nanopowders may induce apoptosis and necrosis and this effect is dependent on the time of treatment and concentration of the nanopowders. The highest level of apoptotic cells was observed after incubation with Ultrananocrystalline Detonation Diamond (UDD) suggesting that the size is the main determinant of nanoparticle cytotoxicity.

With the aim of contributing to the knowledge about their potential therapeutic activity, we determined the biological activities of cyanidin and its selected O-glycosides in relation to erythrocytes (RBCs) and human dermal vascular endothelial cells (HMEC-1). Furthermore, on the basis of changes in the physical/functional properties of the cells, the structure–activity relationships of the compounds were determined. Concerning erythrocytes, we analyzed the antioxidant activity of the compounds and their impact on the RBCs’ shape and transmembrane potential. The compounds’ cytotoxic activity, ability to modulate apoptosis, cell cycle, and intracellular ROS generation, as well as inhibitory activity against AAPH-inducted oxidative stress, were determined in relation to HMEC-1 cells. We demonstrated that biological activity of cyanidin and its O-glycosides strongly depends on the number and type of sugar substituents, and varies depending on the extracellular environment and type of cells. The compounds are practically non-cytotoxic, and do not induce apoptosis or disturb the progression of the cell cycle. Additionally, the compounds alter the shape of RBCs, but they do not affect their transmembrane potential. They effectively protect erythrocytes against free radicals and affect intracellular reactive oxygen spices (ROS) generation under physiological and AAPH-induced oxidative stress conditions. Our results suggest a potential beneficial effect of cyanidin on the cardiovascular system.