Age changes in visceral content of glutathione in the senescence accelerated mouse (SAM).

Free radical formation is known to play a role in the aging processes. However, it is still disputable whether the scavengers of free radicals including glutathione (GSH) decrease during aging. The senescence accelerated mice (SAM) are known to show age-related disorders. Some of these syndromes were thought to be closely associated with oxidative damages. Using the two strains of SAM, SAM-R/1 and SAM-P/2, we examined age-related changes in GSH content in the tissues and its oxidation. In the eye, GSH levels were significantly decreased at the age of 16 months in SAM-P/2 and female SAM-R/1. The ratio of oxidized glutathione to total GSH increased, indicating GSH may play an important role in the eyes. But there were no remarkable age-related changes in GSH contents of other tissues such as liver, kidney and lung in both SAM-R/1 and SAM-P/2. These data suggest that the GSH level of the tissues in general can not be a proper indicator for senescence.