By the way — happy new year, Baste, and welcome back!

thanks for you comments and the vitamin E article!

I agree:
a) that alpha-toc must not be underestimated in its importance for various body functions (especially in the brain) - although clinical signs of alpha-toc deficiency are very rare in otherwise healthy humans,
b) that alpha-toc is certainly more than a direct free radical/ROS scavenger, and
c) that there’s indeed a trend to look at other vitamine E derivatives, in particular gamma-toc, which is more abundant than alpha-toc in many human diets.

Below a list of recent articles especially addressing latter question:

Wolf G:
How an increased intake of alpha-tocopherol can suppress the bioavailability of gamma-tocopherol.
Nutr. Rev. 2006;64(6):295-9

Comment on Nutr. Rev. 64(6):295-9:
Parker RS:
A recent brief critical review on how an increased intake of alpha-tocopherol can suppress the bioavailability of gamma-tocopher.
Nutr. Rev. 2007;65(3):139

Devaraj S et al.:
Failure of vitamin E in clinical trials: is gamma-tocopherol the answer?
Nutr. Rev. 2005;63(8):290-3

Reboul E et al.:
Effect of the main dietary antioxidants (carotenoids, gamma-tocopherol, polyphenols, and vitamin C) on alpha-tocopherol absorption.
Eur. J. Clin. Nutr. 2007;61(10):1167-73

Yoshikawa S et al.:
The effect of gamma-tocopherol administration on alpha-tocopherol levels and metabolism in humans.
Eur J Clin Nutr. 2005;59(8):900-5.

Sundl I et al.:
The decrease in gamma-tocopherol in plasma and lipoprotein fractions levels off within two days of vitamin E supplementation.
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2004;1031:378-80

Wagner KH et al.:
Gamma-tocopherol–an underestimated vitamin?
Ann Nutr Metab. 2004;48(3):169-88

Jiang Q et al.:
gamma-tocopherol, the major form of vitamin E in the US diet, deserves more attention.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2001;74(6):714-22