The peroxidation of rat liver microsomal lipids is stimulated in the presence of iron by the addition of NADPH or ascorbate and is inhibited by the addition of glutathione (GSH). The fate of GSH and the oxidative modification of proteins under these conditions have not been well studied. Rat liver microsomes were incubated at 37 degrees C under 95% O2:5% CO2 in the presence of 10 microM ferric chloride, 400 microM ADP, and either 450 microM ascorbic acid or 400 microM NADPH. Lipid peroxidation was assessed in the presence 0, 0.2, 0.5, 1, or 5 mM GSH by measuring thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) and oxidative modification of proteins by measuring protein thiol and carbonyl groups. GSH inhibited TBARS and protein carbonyl group formation in both ascorbate and NADPH systems in a dose-dependent manner. Heat denaturing of microsomes or treatment with trypsin resulted in the loss of this protection. The formation of protein carbonyl groups could be duplicated by incubating microsomes with 4-hydroxynonenal. Ascorbate-dependent peroxidation caused a loss of protein thiol groups which was diminished by GSH only in fresh microsomes. Both boiling and trypsin treatment significantly decreased the basal protein thiol content of microsomes and enhanced ascorbate-stimulated lipid peroxidation. Protection against protein carbonyl group formation by GSH correlated with the inhibition of lipid peroxidation and appeared not to be due to the formation of the GSH conjugate of 4-hydroxynonenal as only trace amounts of this conjugate were detected. Ninety percent of the GSH lost after 60 min of peroxidation was recoverable as borohydride reducible material in the supernatant fraction. The remaining 10% could be accounted for as GSH-bound protein mixed disulfides. However, only 75% of the GSH lost during peroxidation appeared as glutathione disulfide, suggesting that some was converted to other soluble borohydride reducible forms. These data support a role for protein thiol groups in the GSH-mediated protection of microsomes against lipid peroxidation.