{"id":376635,"date":"2026-09-28T14:26:31","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T14:26:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/?p=376635"},"modified":"2026-09-28T14:26:31","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T14:26:31","slug":"unveiling-elemental-sulfur-within-mammalian-cells","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/?p=376635","title":{"rendered":"Unveiling Elemental Sulfur within Mammalian Cells"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Mammalian cells are known to actively generate elemental sulfur (S<sub>8<\/sub>), employing it as an antioxidant to reduce cellular damage. While its production has been attributed to bacteria, plants, and fungi, this marks the first discovery in mammals. Numerous single-celled organisms generate S<sub>8<\/sub>, mainly in its stable eight-membered ring configuration. Additionally, certain plants and fungi leverage S<sub>8<\/sub> for various biochemical reactions thanks to the compound&#8217;s capacity to shift between different oxidation states. Nevertheless, the production, storage, or application of elemental sulfur in mammals remained elusive until now, despite the existence of various sulfur-containing compounds in mammalian cells.<\/p>\n<p>An international research team spearheaded by Uladzimir Barayeu from the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and Takaaki Akaike from Tohoku University utilized a polyaromatic capsule to trap and stabilize S<sub>8<\/sub> through hydrophobic interactions. This approach facilitated the application of Raman microscopy and mass spectrometry, enabling the identification and quantification of elemental sulfur within cells taken from both mice and humans. Elevated levels of S<sub>8<\/sub> were detected in mitochondria and lipid droplets, suggesting that this compound is likely stored in these locations. The researchers hypothesize that by extrapolating the measured concentrations across various tissues, tens of grams of elemental sulfur could be present in the human body.<\/p>\n<p>The study uncovered an enzymatic mechanism that transforms small polysulfides into lengthier sulfur chains, ultimately producing S<sub>8<\/sub>. This transformation occurs within lipid droplets adjacent to mitochondria, reinforcing the hypothesis that mitochondria originated from sulfur-utilizing proteobacteria that merged with host cells eons ago.<\/p>\n<p>Experiments illustrated that elemental sulfur engages with thiol-containing cellular compounds to generate antioxidants, thereby restricting lipid oxidation and averting cell damage and inflammation. Administering elemental sulfur into the joints of osteoarthritic mice reduced lipid oxidation, suggesting potential therapeutic uses for inflammation alleviation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mammalian cells are known to actively generate elemental sulfur (S8), employing it as an antioxidant to reduce cellular damage. While its production has been attributed to bacteria, plants, and fungi, this marks the first discovery in mammals. Numerous single-celled organisms generate S8, mainly in its stable eight-membered ring configuration. Additionally, certain plants and fungi leverage [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":376636,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[174],"class_list":["post-376635","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-source-chemistryworld-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376635","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=376635"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376635\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/376636"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=376635"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=376635"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolfscientific.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=376635"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}