The simultaneous increase and further reaction of NO with superoxide, which yields the oxidant peroxynitrite anion, occurs in cellular systems in response to inflammatory mediators. In addition, in sepsis-associated adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), the presence of nitrotyrosine residues (formed by reaction of peroxynitrite and the tyrosine residues of proteins) are apparent throughout the lung. administration of the iron (III) complex of diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA iron (III), prevented death in Corynebacterium parvum 1 LPS-treated mice. Using electrochemistry, the binding of NO to DTPA iron (II) is confirmed. The DTPA iron (II) form can be easily formed by common biological reductants, because the potential for the iron (III/II) couple is E = 0.22. Treatment with DTPA iron (III) resulted in a significant decrease in mortality compared to the untreated controls. The efficacy of DTPA iron (III) increased when given to mice 2 h or more after infection. The best results were observed when DTPA iron (III) was given 5 h after infection. The iron (III) complex of diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA iron [III]) protected mice and baboons from the lethal effects of an infusion with live LD 100 Escherichia coli. In mice, optimal results were obtained when DTPA iron (III) was administered two or more hours after infection. Prevention of death occurred in spite of the fact that the adverse effects of TNFa were well underway in the mouse model. In septic baboons, survival was observed after administration of two doses of DTPA iron (III) at 2.125 mg/kg, the first one given before, or as late as 2 h after, severe hypotension. Administration of DTPA iron (III) did not alter mean systemic arterial pressure, but did protect baboons in the presence of high levels of TNFa and free radical overproduction. Furthermore, exaggerated production of nitric oxide was attenuated. Because of its ability to interact in vitro with free radicals, its poor cell permeability, and its short half-life, we postulate that DTPA iron (III) and/or its reduced form may have protected the mice and baboons by sequestration and subsequent elimination of free radicals (including nitric oxide) from their systems. (J. Clin. Invest.1996. 98:192 - 198.)

## Inhibitor Of Poly(Adenosine 5'-Diphosphate-Ribose) Synthetase

Poly(adenosine 5'-diphosphate [ADP]-ribose) synthetase (PARS) is a nuclear enzyme which, when activated by DNA singlestrand breaks, initiates an energy-consuming, inefficient metabolic cycle by transferring ADP-ribose units to nuclear proteins. The result of this process is a rapid depletion of intracellular oxidized nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and adenosine 5'-triphosphate energetic pools, which slows the rate of glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration, leading to cellular dysfunction and death. Reactive oxygen-centered radicals (superoxide, hydroxyl radicals, singlet oxygen, and hydrogen peroxide) and peroxynitrite (a reactive oxidant produced from the reaction of superoxide and nitric oxide) are powerful triggers of DNA single strand breakage, and they induce activation of a cell suicide cycle governed by PARS in various cell types in vitro.