Chemical kinetic behavior of chlorogenic acid in protecting erythrocyte and DNA against radical-induced oxidation

As an abundant ingredient in coffee, chlorogenic acid (CGA) is a well-known antioxidant. Although some works have dealt with its radical-scavenging property, the present work investigated the protective effects of CGA on the oxidation of DNA and on the hemolysis of human erythrocytes induced by 2,2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane hydrochloride) (AAPH) by means of chemical kinetics. The inhibition period (t(inh)) derived from the protective effect of CGA on erythrocyte and DNA was proportional to its concentration, t(inh) = (n/R(i))[CGA], where R(i) refers to the radical-initiation rate, and n indicates the number of radical-propagation chains terminated by CGA. It was found that the n of CGA to protect erythrocytes was 0.77, lower than that of vitamin E (2.0), but higher than that of vitamin C (0.19). Furthermore, CGA facilitated a mutual protective effect with VE and VC on AAPH-induced hemolysis by increasing n of VE and VC. CGA was also found to be a membrane-stabilizer to protect erythrocytes against hemin-induced hemolysis. Moreover, the n of CGA was only 0.41 in the process of protecting DNA. This fact revealed that CGA served as an efficient antioxidant to protect erythrocytes more than to protect DNA. Finally, the reaction between CGA and 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) radical cation (ABTS(+*)) or 2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) revealed that CGA was able to trap radicals by reducing radicals more than by donating its hydrogen atoms to radicals.