Antioxidant enzymes of the human retina: effect of age on enzyme activity of macula and periphery

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the effect of age on protective antioxidant enzyme activity of normal fresh cadaver human retina of the macula and periphery. Antioxidant enzymes were assayed in tissue extracts generated from 5 mm trephined punches of retina obtained centered over the macula and the superior midperiphery of normal fresh human cadaver retina. Cadaver tissue was obtained from donors of a wide age range (age 7 to 85 years). The assays were performed within 6 h of enucleation and within 24 h of donor death. Antioxidant enzymes assayed included superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase. Hexokinase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, enzymes not directly involved in protection against oxidative damage, were assayed for comparison. Enzyme specific activities were calculated for the macula and periphery using protein concentration of the extract as the denominator. Using linear regression analysis, over the age range of 25 to 75 years, superoxide dismutase activity of the periphery but not the macula tended to decline with age (p = 0.04, R2 = 0.21). Interindividual variability was high, and variability increased with age. The difference between the macular and peripheral enzyme activities for glutathione peroxidase tended to decline with increasing donor age (p = 0.025, R2 = 0.33). There was no effect of age on the specific activities of catalase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, and glutathione reductase. The specific activity of hexokinase from the macula declined with increasing donor age (p = 0.022, R2 = 0.43). Time from death to enucleation or beginning of experiment was not a significant factor. In summary, age does not have an effect on the activity of major antioxidant enzymes of the macula in normal human retina. There is a tendency for an effect of age on peripheral superoxide dismutase activity and the difference between macular and peripheral glutathione peroxidase activity. High interindividual variability of antioxidant enzyme activity exists in humans.