Trephined buttons from the posterior central (including the macula) and four peripheral regions of human retina were subjected to in vitro lipid peroxidation initiated by Fe+2. There was an age-related increase in peroxidation in the retinal tissue from the posterior region (P = 0.0019), but not in tissues from any of the four peripheral retinal quadrants (collective P = 0.24). These results suggest that the posterior region of the human retina is susceptible to lipid peroxidation and that age is a factor.