Radical scavenging activities of alpha-alanine C60 adduct.

Water-soluble alpha-alanine C60 adduct was synthesized, and its scavenging abilities for superoxide anion O2- and hydroxyl radical *OH were studied by the spectrophotometry and chemiluminescence. It was found that alpha-alanine C60 adduct showed an excellent efficiency in eliminating superoxide anion and hydroxyl radical. The 50% inhibiting concentration (IC50) for superoxide was 184 microg/mL by spectrophotometry and 292 microg/mL by chemiluminescence. The IC50 for hydroxyl radical was 42 microg/mL. In different test systems, the results showed that alpha-alanine C60 adduct had comparable radical scavenging abilities as thiourea and ascorbic acid, and was proved to be an effective scavenger for superoxide anion and hydroxyl radical. It can be prospected that water-soluble alpha-alanine C60 adduct will be useful in radical related biomedical fields.