Characterization of the superoxide anion radical scavenging activity by tetracycline antibiotics in aprotic media.

The tetracycline family antibiotics are widely used as human and veterinary treatments. The drugs are effective as antibiotics and also show antimicrobial and non-microbial action. However, the antioxidant properties of tetracyclines have not been characterized in aprotic media. To better understand their biological functions, the in vitro superoxide anion radical (O2•¯) scavenging activities of tetracycline, chlortetracycline, oxytetracycline, doxycycline and methacycline were characterized, along with a very efficient O2•¯ scavenger, tiron, in dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO), using ultra-weak chemiluminescence (CL). We found that tetracycline, chlortetracycline and doxycycline efficiently inhibited CL from the O2•¯-generating system at concentration levels of 0.02-1.0 mmol/L. Methacycline and oxytetracycline were the O2•¯ scavengers at concentration levels of 0.01-0.1 mmol/L, whereas when their concentration was lowered the drugs were capable of generating O2•¯, leading to CL enhancement. For all the data obtained in this study, the scavenging activity for the compounds tested decreased in the following order: tetracycline > doxycycline > chlortetracycline > tiron methacycline > oxytetracycline. These results indicate that the tetracycline drugs directly alter O2•¯ redox chemistry in aprotic media.