Abstract:

Condenced aromatics in the environment are harmful to the organisms for its carcinogenesis. When it is metabolized in organism, several kinds of radicals and active oxygen intermediates such as superoxide radical anion (O₂^-) and hydrogen peroxide would produce. These active oxygen intermediates may cause DNA damage. Catalase (CAT), a major endogenous antioxidant, presents in all aerobes and has a crucial function in protecting living organisms against the unrestrained reactivity of H₂O₂. When the amount of H₂O₂ generated in the body increase due to the outside factors, the activity of the CAT will be induced to rise significantly. Thus the activity of CAT, as a biomarker, may reflect die exist of condensed aromatics in the environment. Now there are many methods to detect CAT, such as spectrophotometric methods, titration,electrochemical process, volumetric analysis, but they are not sensitive enough for direct detection of CAT in marine biological samples.