Analysis of Reactive Oxygen Species(ROS) by Flow Cytometry (CAT#: STEM-CBT-0071-WXH)

Introduction

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are molecules containing hydroxyl radicals or peroxides with unpaired electrons. In healthy aerobic cells, ROS are produced naturally as a byproduct of oxidative phosphorylation, oxidoreductase enzymes, or metal catalyzed oxidation at a controlled rate. However, ROS can be induced under some stress conditions especially exposure to environmental oxidants and certain drugs that leads to oxidative stress. Exceed ROS can cause damages in the building blocks of cells including DNA, proteins, and lipids, and eventually results in cell death.
Flow cytometry has emerged as an effective rapid method to specifically detect intracellular ROS. The major advantage of flow cytometry is that, unlike other available methods, intracellular ROS levels can be evaluated on a cell-by-cell basis in the absence of tissue background.