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Lewis electron configuration of superoxide. The six outer shell electrons of each oxygen atom are shown in black; one electron pair is shared (middle); the unpaired electron is shown in the upper left and the additional electron conferring a negative charge is shown in red.

Superoxide is the anion O₂⁻.^[1] With one unpaired electron, the superoxide ion is a free radical and therefore paramagnetic.

The salts CsO₂, RbO₂, KO₂, and NaO₂ are prepared by the direct reaction of O₂ with the respective alkali metal.^[2] The O-O bond distance in O₂⁻ is 1.33 Å, vs. 1.21 Å in O₂ and 1.49 Å in O₂²⁻. The overall trend corresponds to a reduction in the bond order from 2 (O₂), to 1.5 (O₂⁻), to 1 (O₂²⁻). Superoxides are compounds in which the oxidation number of oxygen is -1/2.

The alkali salts of O₂⁻ are orange-yellow in color and quite stable, provided they are kept dry. Upon dissolution of these salts in water, however, the dissolved O₂⁻ undergoes disproportionation (dismutation) extremely rapidly:

2 O₂⁻ + 2 H₂O → O₂ + H₂O₂ + 2 OH⁻

In this process O₂⁻ acts as a strong Brønsted base, initially forming HO₂. The pKa of its conjugate acid, hydrogen superoxide (HO₂, also known as "hydroperoxyl" or "perhydroxy radical"), is 4.88 so that at neutral pH 7 the vast majority of superoxide in the anionic form, O₂⁻.

Salts also decompose in the solid state, but this process requires heating:

2NaO₂ → Na₂O₂ + O₂

This reaction is the basis of the use of potassium superoxide as an oxygen source in chemical oxygen generators, such as those used on the space shuttle and on submarines.

Superoxide is biologically quite toxic and is deployed by the immune system to kill invading microorganisms. In phagocytes, superoxide is produced in large quantities by the enzyme NADPH oxidase for use in oxygen-dependent killing mechanisms of invading pathogens. Mutations in the gene coding for the NADPH oxidase cause an immunodeficiency syndrome called chronic granulomatous disease, characterized by extreme susceptibility to infection. Superoxide is also deleteriously produced as a byproduct of mitochondrial respiration (most notably by Complex I and Complex III), as well as several other enzymes, for example xanthine oxidase.

The biological toxicity of superoxide is due to its capacity to inactivate iron-sulfur cluster containing enzymes (which are critical in a wide variety of metabolic pathways), thereby liberating free iron in the cell, which can undergo Fenton chemistry and generate the highly reactive hydroxyl radical. In its HO₂ form, superoxide can also initiate lipid peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids. It also reacts with carbonyl compounds and halogenated carbons to create toxic peroxy radicals. Superoxide can also react with nitric oxidae (NO) to form ONOO⁻. As such, superoxide is one of the main causes of oxidative stress.

Because superoxide is toxic, nearly all organisms living in the presence of oxygen contain isoforms of the superoxide scavenging enzyme, superoxide dismutase, or SOD. SOD is an extremely efficient enzyme; it catalyzes the neutralization of superoxide nearly as fast as the two can diffuse together spontaneously in solution. Genetic inactivation ("knockout") of SOD produces deleterious phenotypes in organisms ranging from bacteria to mice. The latter species dies around 21 days after birth if the mitochondrial variant of SOD (Mn-SOD) is inactivated, and suffers from multiple pathologies, including reduced lifespan, liver cancer, muscle atrophy, cataracts and female infertility when the cytoplasmic (Cu,Zn-SOD) variant is inactivated.

1. ^ Sawyer, D. T. Superoxide Chemistry, McGraw-Hill, DOI:10.1036/1097-8542.669650
2. ^ Holleman, A. F.; Wiberg, E. "Inorganic Chemistry" Academic Press: San Diego, 2001. ISBN 0-12-352651-5.

• McCord, J. M.; Fridovich, I. Superoxide dismutase. An enzymic function for erythrocuprein (hemocuprein). J. Biol. Chem. 244:6049-6055.; 1969.
• Li, Y. et al. Dilated cardiomyopathy and neonatal lethality in mutant mice lacking manganese superoxide dismutase. Nat. Genet. 11:376-381; 1995.
• Elchuri, S. et al. CuZnSOD deficiency leads to persistent and widespread oxidative damage and hepatocarcinogenesis later in life. Oncogene 24:367-380; 2005.
• Muller, F. L.; et al. Absence of CuZn superoxide dismutase leads to elevated oxidative stress and acceleration of age-dependent skeletal muscle atrophy. Free Radic. Biol. Med. 40:1993-2004; 2006.

• ozonide, O₃⁻
• superoxide, O₂⁻
• peroxide, O₂²⁻
• oxide, O²⁻
• dioxygenyl, O₂⁺
• Antimycin A - used in fishery management, this compund produces large quantities of this free radical.