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Superoxide dismutase and malondialdehyde levels in leprosy patients

A study investigated superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in 14 patients with paucibacillary (PB) and 18 patients with multibacillary (MB) leprosy. Twenty normal volunteers served as controls. Tissue SOD and MDA levels were significantly decreased versus controls in PB and MB patients, whereas blood MDA and SOD levels were only decreased in MB patients. In blood, the mean MDA/SOD ratio was increased significantly versus controls only in MB patients, whereas tissue MDA/SOD ratios were increased significantly in both PB and MB groups. These findings may signal important future developments in the prognosis, treatment and control of leprotic conditions (Abdel-Hafez, H.Z. et al. JEADV 2010, 24(6): 704).