Final answer:
Reduced glutathione acts as a reducing agent, donating electrons to H₂O₂ and transforming it into water, while it itself becomes oxidized glutathione.
Step-by-step explanation:
The role of reduced glutathione in neutralizing H₂O₂ is that it acts as a reducing agent. In this reaction, reduced glutathione donates electrons to hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), reducing it to water (H₂O). As this happens, glutathione itself is oxidized to form oxidized glutathione.
This is a typical redox reaction where reduced glutathione is allowing another substance (H₂O₂) to gain electrons, making reduced glutathione a reducing agent.
Common reducing agents include hydrogen, carbon, and antioxidants like ascorbic acid and vitamin E, which help protect cells from damage by neutralizing harmful substances such as H₂O₂. The process of oxidation for these agents usually involves the transformation of these molecules into different compounds as they undergo a loss of electrons, as evidenced by reduced glutathione becoming oxidized glutathione.