Radicals play important roles in biology. Many of these are necessary for life, such as the intracellular killing of bacteria by phagocytic cells such as granulocytes and macrophages. Radicals are involved in cell signalling processes, known as redox signaling. For example, radical attack of linoleic acid produces a series of 13-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acids and 9-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acids, which may act to regulate localized tissue inflammatory and/or healing responses, pain perception, and the proliferation of malignant cells. Radical attacks on arachidonic acid and docosahexaenoic acid produce a similar but broader array of signaling products.
Radicals may also be involved in Parkinsons disease, senile and drug-induced deafness, schizophrenia, and Alzheimers. The classic free-radical syndrome, the iron-storage disease hemochromatosis, is typically associated with a constellation of free-radical-related symptoms including movement disorder, psychosis, skin pigmentary melanin abnormalities, deafness, arthritis, and diabetes mellitus. The free-radical theory of aging proposes that radicals underlie the aging process itself. Similarly, the process of mitohormesis suggests that repeated exposure to radicals may extend life span.
Because radicals are necessary for life, the body has a number of mechanisms to minimize radical-induced damage and to repair damage that occurs, such as the enzymes superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase. In addition, antioxidants play a key role in these defense mechanisms. These are often the three vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E and polyphenol antioxidants. Furthermore, there is good evidence indicating that bilirubin and uric acid can act as antioxidants to help neutralize certain radicals. Bilirubin comes from the breakdown of red blood cells' contents, while uric acid is a breakdown product of purines. Too much bilirubin, though, can lead to jaundice, which could eventually damage the central nervous system, while too much uric acid causes gout.