1967 Volume 16 Issue 7 Pages 406-409
Phosphorylcholine (PC), phosphorylethanolamine (PE), glycerylphosphorylethanolamine (GPE) and glycerylphosphorylcholine (GPC) exhibited antioxidant activities in a concentration range from 0.01 to 0.04% in unsaturated fatty acid esters, and these compounds as well as β-glycerylphosphoric acid (β-GP) and tributyl phosphate (TBP) showed synergistic activities with hydroquinone. The infrared spectrum of methyl linoleate (MeL) containing 0.03 % of GPC showed the same characteristic absorption bands as those observed in the case of β-GP and TBP added to the same substrate. These results suggest that a mechanism for the antioxidant activity of GPC also involves an interaction of the PO group possibly with the α-methylene group of the MeL molecule. Accordingly, a mechanism for the synergism shown by GPC, β-GP and TBP with hydroquinone and that reported by Olcott for lecithins and inositol phosphatides with ethoxyquin may not conform with the general concept that phosphate esters act as hydroperoxide decomposer.
