Use of H2O2 to Cause Oxidative Stress, the Catalase Issue

Addition of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a method commonly used to trigger cellular oxidative stress. However, the doses used (often hundreds of micromolar) are disproportionally high with regard to physiological oxygen concentration (low micromolar). In this study using polarographic measurement of oxygen concentration in cellular suspensions we show that H2O2 addition results in O2 release as expected from catalase reaction. This reaction is fast enough to, within seconds, decrease drastically H2O2 concentration and to annihilate it within a few minutes. Firstly, this is likely to explain why recording of oxidative damage requires the high concentrations found in the literature. Secondly, it illustrates the potency of intracellular antioxidant (H2O2) defense. Thirdly, it complicates the interpretation of experiments as subsequent observations might result from high/transient H2O2 exposure and/or from the diverse possible consequences of the O2 release.