[Isoprostanes and oxidative stress in brain damage in newborns]

Isoprostanes are a family of biologically active molecules recently characterized, which is emerging as a new class of specific and reliable markers of in vivo and ex vivo lipid peroxidation and oxidative damage. These molecules are stable, relatively abundant and easily detectable by sensitive and specific analytical methods. In the last years, the measurement of their levels in tissue homogenates or biological fluids has significantly improved our knowledge on the involvement of oxidative stress in several neurological diseases. Here we present evidence indicating that isoprostanes can be successfully used also to study the mechanisms involved in free radical brain damage following hypoxic-ischaemic or inflammatory conditions in newborns and preterm infants.