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ozone (O3)

Function: - excited or reactive oxygen species & a powerful oxidizing agent Structure: - ozone is a form of oxygen in which three atoms combine to form a molecule - oxygen is normally divalent Pharmacokinetics: - 1/2life in air is 10-20 minutes at ambient temperatures Occurrence: Ozone may be formed either electrically or photochemically. Ozone that is produced photochemically is found in two distinctly different parts of the atmosphere. In the upper stratosphere ozone is created when UV light from the sun converts divalent (normal) oxygen to ozone. This ozone layer protects us from harmful radiation from the sun. Ozone is also created in the troposphere when exhaust from internal combustion engines is photochemically degraded. Characteristics: Typically odorless & colorless Electrically created ozone is a blue gas with a pungent odor in high concentrations If trapped near the ground by thermal inversions, low lying ozone begins a process of oxidation which eventually converts the components of smog to cleaner air Uses: Ozone has been in commercial use for over 100 years - Water treatment - sewage treatment - fire deodorizing - spas & pools - food storage - other uses. Antiseptic properties of ozone: - reduces airborne & surface bacteria by 71% - reduces molds & fungus by 83% - 3,000 times more germicidal than chlorine - 160 times more bactericidal than sulfur dioxide - 37 times more bactericidal than formaldehyde Pathology: may be harmful if inhaled (smog) Upper limit for tolerable environmental ozone is 0.1 ppm [2]. Ozone may be generated in the brain during inflammation. - the ozone in turn reacts with biomolecules, including cholesterol in a reaction called ozonolysis.

Interactions

molecular events

Related

ozonolysis

General

radical small molecule

Database Correlations

PUBCHEM cid=24823

References

  1. EcoQuest Air Purification System http://marketplace.wvec.com/ecoquest.htm
  2. http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/ozonegen.html
  3. Zhang, Q et al, Metabolite-initiated protein misfolding may trigger Alzheimer's disease, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 10.1073/pnas.0400924101 http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/abstract/0400924101
  4. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Ozone https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/ozone/index.cfm