The importance of anti-oxidant defenses in the maintenance of general well-being and optimal health is becoming increasingly recognized both among health specialists and also among the general public. Furthermore, elevated levels of free radical generation and consequent oxidative damage to macromolecules, have been implicated in an increasing number of progressive neurological disoders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinsons disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy. Antioxidant therapy is being tested experimentally for all the above diseases. Antioxidant utilization has also been proposed as a possible means of reducing the very high incidence of colon cancer in the United States. The use of antioxidants may be of especial value to certain high risk segments of the population such as smokers. Taken together, these issues suggest that this is an appropriate time to promote the development of a convenient means of quantitating the parameter of total bodily oxidant status. This application plans to develop an inexpensive, portable, compact and easily usable chromatographic kit to allow a rapid and accurate quantitative analysis of expired ethane. The measurement of exhaled hydrocarbon gases constitutes a totally non-invasive means of estimating oxidative stress in living organisims.
This project has a very high commercial potential. The device/product can find applications in wide ranging areas from medical and clinical diagnostics to health centers,spas and doctors' offices.
