1 1233 102 CROSSTALK BETWEEN KIDNEY AND LIVER IN NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE: MECHANISMS AND THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES. LIVER AND KIDNEY ARE VITAL ORGANS THAT MAINTAIN HOMEOSTASIS AND INJURY TO EITHER OF THEM TRIGGERS PATHOGENIC PATHWAYS AFFECTING THE OTHER. FOR EXAMPLE, NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) PROMOTES THE PROGRESSION OF CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD), VICE VERSA ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY (AKI) ENDORSES THE INDUCTION AND PROGRESSION OF LIVER DYSFUNCTION. PROGRESS IN CLINICAL AND BASIC RESEARCH SUGGEST A ROLE OF EXCESSIVE FRUCTOSE INTAKE, INSULIN RESISTANCE, INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES PRODUCTION, ACTIVATION OF THE RENIN-ANGIOTENSIN SYSTEM, REDOX IMBALANCE, AND THEIR IMPACT ON EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF GENE EXPRESSION IN THIS CONTEXT. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN EXPERIMENTAL AND CLINICAL RESEARCH HAVE IDENTIFIED SEVERAL BIOCHEMICAL AND MOLECULAR PATHWAYS FOR AKI-LIVER INTERACTION, INCLUDING ALTERED LIVER ENZYMES PROFILE, METABOLIC ACIDOSIS, OXIDATIVE STRESS, ACTIVATION OF INFLAMMATORY AND REGULATED CELL DEATH PATHWAYS. THIS REVIEW FOCUSES ON THE CURRENT PRECLINICAL AND CLINICAL FINDINGS ON KIDNEY-LIVER CROSSTALK IN NAFLD-CKD AND AKI-LIVER DYSFUNCTION SETTINGS AND HIGHLIGHTS POTENTIAL MOLECULAR MECHANISMS AND THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. 2022 2 4369 32 MIRNAS AND NAFLD: FROM PATHOPHYSIOLOGY TO THERAPY. NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) IS ASSOCIATED WITH A THOROUGH REPROGRAMMING OF HEPATIC METABOLISM. EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, IN PARTICULAR THOSE ASSOCIATED WITH DEREGULATION OF THE EXPRESSIONS AND ACTIVITIES OF MICRORNAS (MIRNAS), PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN METABOLIC DISORDERS ASSOCIATED WITH NAFLD AND THEIR PROGRESSION TOWARDS MORE SEVERE STAGES OF THE DISEASE. IN THIS REVIEW, WE DISCUSS THE RECENT PROGRESS ADDRESSING THE ROLE OF THE MANY FACETS OF COMPLEX MIRNA REGULATORY NETWORKS IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESSION OF NAFLD. THE BASIC CONCEPTS AND MECHANISMS OF MIRNA-MEDIATED GENE REGULATION AS WELL AS THE VARIOUS SETBACKS ENCOUNTERED IN BASIC AND TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH IN THIS FIELD ARE DEBATED. MIRNAS IDENTIFIED SO FAR, WHOSE EXPRESSIONS/ACTIVITIES ARE DEREGULATED IN NAFLD, AND WHICH CONTRIBUTE TO THE OUTCOMES OF THIS PATHOLOGY ARE FURTHER REVIEWED. FINALLY, THE POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC USAGES IN A SHORT TO MEDIUM TERM OF MIRNA-BASED STRATEGIES IN NAFLD, IN PARTICULAR TO IDENTIFY NON-INVASIVE BIOMARKERS, OR TO DESIGN PHARMACOLOGICAL ANALOGUES/INHIBITORS HAVING A BROAD RANGE OF ACTIONS ON HEPATIC METABOLISM, ARE HIGHLIGHTED. 2019 3 1491 34 DNA HYDROXYMETHYLATION AT THE INTERFACE OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE. NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) IS ONE OF THE MOST PREVALENT FORMS OF CHRONIC LIVER DISORDERS AMONG ADULTS, CHILDREN, AND ADOLESCENTS, AND A GROWING EPIDEMIC, WORLDWIDE. NOTWITHSTANDING THE KNOWN SUSCEPTIBILITY FACTORS FOR NAFLD, I.E., OBESITY AND METABOLIC SYNDROME, THE EXACT CAUSE(S) OF THIS DISEASE AND THE UNDERLYING MECHANISMS OF ITS INITIATION AND PROGRESSION ARE NOT FULLY ELUCIDATED. NAFLD IS A MULTI-FACETED DISEASE WITH METABOLIC, GENETIC, EPIGENETIC, AND ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINANTS. ACCUMULATING EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT EXPOSURE TO ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICANTS CONTRIBUTES TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF NAFLD BY PROMOTING MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION AND GENERATING REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES IN THE LIVER. IMBALANCES IN THE REDOX STATE OF THE CELLS ARE KNOWN TO CAUSE ALTERATIONS IN THE PATTERNS OF 5-HYDROXYMETHYLCYTOSINE (5HMC), THE OXIDATIVE PRODUCT OF 5-METHYLCYTOSINE (5MC), THEREBY INFLUENCING GENE REGULATION. THE 5HMC-MEDIATED DEREGULATION OF GENES INVOLVED IN HEPATIC METABOLISM IS AN EMERGING AREA OF RESEARCH IN NAFLD. THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES OUR CURRENT KNOWLEDGE ON THE INTERACTIVE ROLE OF XENOBIOTIC EXPOSURE AND DNA HYDROXYMETHYLATION IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF FATTY LIVER DISEASE. INCREASING THE MECHANISTIC KNOWLEDGE OF NAFLD INITIATION AND PROGRESSION IS CRUCIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW AND EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF THIS DISEASE. 2019 4 2795 42 FATTY LIVER AND CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE: NOVEL MECHANISTIC INSIGHTS AND THERAPEUTIC OPPORTUNITIES. CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) IS A RISK FACTOR FOR END-STAGE RENAL DISEASE (ESRD) AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE (CVD). ESRD OR CVD DEVELOP IN A SUBSTANTIAL PROPORTION OF PATIENTS WITH CKD RECEIVING STANDARD-OF-CARE THERAPY, AND MORTALITY IN CKD REMAINS UNCHANGED. THESE DATA SUGGEST THAT KEY PATHOGENETIC MECHANISMS UNDERLYING CKD PROGRESSION GO UNAFFECTED BY CURRENT TREATMENTS. GROWING EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) AND CKD SHARE COMMON PATHOGENETIC MECHANISMS AND POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. COMMON NUTRITIONAL CONDITIONS PREDISPOSING TO BOTH NAFLD AND CKD INCLUDE EXCESSIVE FRUCTOSE INTAKE AND VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY. MODULATION OF NUCLEAR TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS REGULATING KEY PATHWAYS OF LIPID METABOLISM, INFLAMMATION, AND FIBROSIS, INCLUDING PEROXISOME PROLIFERATOR-ACTIVATED RECEPTORS AND FARNESOID X RECEPTOR, IS ADVANCING TO STAGE III CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT. THE RELEVANCE OF EPIGENETIC REGULATION IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF NAFLD AND CKD IS ALSO EMERGING, AND MODULATION OF MICRORNA21 IS A PROMISING THERAPEUTIC TARGET. ALTHOUGH SINGLE ANTIOXIDANT SUPPLEMENTATION HAS YIELDED VARIABLE RESULTS, MODULATION OF KEY EFFECTORS OF REDOX REGULATION AND MOLECULAR SENSORS OF INTRACELLULAR ENERGY, NUTRIENT, OR OXYGEN STATUS SHOW PROMISING PRECLINICAL RESULTS. OTHER EMERGING THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES TARGET KEY MEDIATORS OF INFLAMMATION, SUCH AS CHEMOKINES; FIBROGENESIS, SUCH AS GALECTIN-3; OR GUT DYSFUNCTION THROUGH GUT MICROBIOTA MANIPULATION AND INCRETIN-BASED THERAPIES. FURTHERMORE, NAFLD PER SE AFFECTS CKD THROUGH LIPOPROTEIN METABOLISM AND HEPATOKINE SECRETION, AND CONVERSELY, TARGETING THE RENAL TUBULE BY SODIUM-GLUCOSE COTRANSPORTER 2 INHIBITORS CAN IMPROVE BOTH CKD AND NAFLD. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE TREATMENT OF NAFLD AND CKD ARE DISCUSSED IN LIGHT OF THIS NEW THERAPEUTIC ARMAMENTARIUM. 2016 5 3293 29 HIGH FAT DIET-TRIGGERED NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE: A REVIEW OF PROPOSED MECHANISMS. OBESITY IS CHARACTERIZED BY THE DEPOSITION OF EXCESSIVE BODY FAT, AND IS CAUSED BY ENERGY IMBALANCE, ESPECIALLY WHEN CONSUMING FAT-RICH DIETS. HIGH FAT DIET (HFD)-ASSOCIATED OBESITY IS GREATLY COMMON IN PATIENTS WITH NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) THAT IS EMERGING AS ONE OF THE MOST UNIVERSAL CAUSES OF LIVER DISEASE WORLDWIDE, ESPECIALLY IN WESTERN COUNTRIES. IN SPITE OF ITS HIGH PREVALENCE, ONLY A SMALL PROPORTION OF AFFECTED INDIVIDUALS WILL BECOME INFLAMED, FOLLOWED BY FIBROSIS AND CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES, AND MOST PATIENTS ONLY SHOW SIMPLE STEATOSIS. IN THIS CASE, THE FULL COMPREHENSION OF THE MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE PROGRESSION OF NAFLD IS OF EXTREME SIGNIFICANCE; IN SPITE OF PROGRESS IN THIS FIELD, AWARENESS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF NAFLD IS STILL INCOMPLETE. TRADITIONALLY, LIVER STEATOSIS IS COMMONLY CONNECTED WITH HFD, OBESITY, AND INSULIN RESISTANCE (IR). RECENTLY, VARIOUS POSSIBLE MECHANISMS HAVE BEEN PUT FORWARD FOR LIVER DAMAGE, INCLUDING ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS, PERTURBATION OF AUTOPHAGY, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, HEPATOCELLULAR APOPTOSIS, GUT MICROBIOTA IMBALANCE, DYSREGULATION OF MICRORNAS, AND GENETIC/EPIGENETIC RISK FACTORS, AS WELL AS AN INCREASE IN INFLAMMATORY RESPONSES, AMONG MANY OTHERS. COLLECTIVELY, THESE PROPOSED MECHANISMS ALLOW FOR A VARIETY OF HITS ACTING TOGETHER ON SUBJECTS TO MEDIATED NAFLD AND WILL OFFER A MORE ACCURATE EXPLANATION FOR PROGRESSION OF NAFLD. THEREFORE, THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES THE PRESENT INFORMATION CONCERNING NAFLD AFTER HFD EXPOSURE, AS WELL AS DISCUSSES POSSIBLE MECHANISMS THROUGH WHICH IT MAY ARISE. 2020 6 4456 24 MOLECULAR MECHANISMS IN RENAL DEGENERATIVE DISEASE. CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) HAS BECOME A MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM WORLDWIDE. THEREFORE, A CONSIDERABLE EFFORT IS CURRENTLY DIRECTED TO UNDERSTAND THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF RENAL DEGENERATIVE PROCESSES. REGARDLESS OF THEIR INITIATING CAUSE, ALL CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASES (CKD) DEVELOP AT SOME LEVEL ORGAN FIBROSIS THAT INTERFERES WITH KIDNEY FUNCTION. THIS IS ALSO TRUE FOR THE TWO MOST COMMON INHERITED CKD SYNDROMES, NEPHRONOPHTHITIS AND POLYCYSTIC KIDNEY DISEASE, WHOSE PRIMARY DEFECTS RESIDE WITHIN THE CILIUM OF KIDNEY EPITHELIAL CELLS. A COHORT OF ELEGANT RECENT STUDIES HAS ELICITED THE ROLE OF THE PRIMARY CILIUM AS A VERSATILE MECHANOSENSORY ORGANELLE THAT ALSO MIGHT COORDINATE CROSS-TALK BETWEEN MULTIPLE SIGNALING PATHWAYS. IN ADDITION, EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS ARE NOW REALIZED TO BE ESSENTIAL IN THE MAINTENANCE OF ADULT RENAL ARCHITECTURE. IN THIS REVIEW, WE WILL DISCUSS RECENT ADVANCES IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE SIGNALING SYSTEMS IMPLICATED IN KIDNEY HOMEOSTASIS AND REPAIR. 2010 7 4719 34 NONCODING RNA AND EPIGENETIC GENE REGULATION IN RENAL DISEASES. KIDNEYS HAVE A MAJOR ROLE IN NORMAL PHYSIOLOGY AND METABOLIC HOMEOSTASIS. LOSS OR IMPAIRMENT OF KIDNEY FUNCTION IS A COMMON OCCURRENCE IN SEVERAL METABOLIC DISORDERS, INCLUDING HYPERTENSION AND DIABETES. CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) AFFECT NEARLY 10% OF THE POPULATION WORLDWIDE; RANKS 18TH IN THE LIST OF CAUSES OF DEATH; AND CONTRIBUTES TO A SIGNIFICANT PROPORTION OF HEALTHCARE COSTS. THE TISSUE REPAIR AND REGENERATIVE POTENTIAL OF KIDNEYS ARE LIMITED AND THEY DECLINE DURING AGING. RECENT STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED A KEY ROLE FOR EPIGENETIC PROCESSES AND PLAYERS, SUCH AS DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, NONCODING (NC)RNA, AND SO ON, IN BOTH KIDNEY DEVELOPMENT AND DISEASE. IN THIS REVIEW, WE HIGHLIGHT THESE RECENT FINDINGS WITH AN EMPHASIS ON ABERRANT EPIGENETIC CHANGES THAT ACCOMPANY RENAL DISEASES, KEY TARGETS, AND THEIR THERAPEUTIC VALUE. 2017 8 6913 28 [VARIOUS PATHWAYS LEADING TO THE PROGRESSION OF CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES]. AS THE RESULT OF VARIOUS EFFECTS (VIRUSES, METABOLIC DISEASES, NUTRITIONAL FACTORS, TOXIC AGENTS, AUTOIMMUNE PROCESSES) ABNORMAL LIVER FUNCTION, LIVER STEATOSIS AND CONNECTIVE TISSUE REMODELING MAY DEVELOP. PROGRESSION OF THIS PROCESS IS COMPLEX INCLUDING VARIOUS PATHWAYS AND A NUMBER OF FACTORS. THE AUTHORS SUMMARIZE THE FACTORS INVOLVED IN THE PROGRESSION OF CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE. THEY DESCRIBE THE ROLE OF CELLS AND THE PRODUCED INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS AND CYTOKINES, AS WELL AS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE DISEASE AND THE INTESTINAL FLORA. THEY EMPHASIZE THE ROLE OF OXIDATIVE STRESS, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION AND CELL DEATH IN DISEASE PROGRESSION. INSULIN RESISTANCE AND MICRO-ELEMENTS (IRON, COPPER) IN RELATION TO LIVER DAMAGE ARE ALSO DISCUSSED, AND GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ASPECTS UNDERLYING DISEASE PROGRESSION ARE SUMMARIZED. DISCOVERY OF NOVEL TREATMENT OPTIONS, ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TREATMENT, AS WELL AS THE SUCCESS AND PROPER TIMING OF LIVER TRANSPLANTATION MAY DEPEND ON A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE PROCESS OF DISEASE PROGRESSION. 2016 9 2195 29 EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN INFLAMMATION AND FIBROSIS IN RENAL PATHOLOGY. THE GROWING INCIDENCE OF OBESITY, HYPERTENSION, AND DIABETES, COUPLED WITH THE AGING OF THE POPULATION, IS INCREASING THE PREVALENCE OF RENAL DISEASES IN OUR SOCIETY. CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) IS CHARACTERIZED BY PERSISTENT INFLAMMATION, FIBROSIS, AND LOSS OF RENAL FUNCTION LEADING TO END-STAGE RENAL DISEASE. NOWADAYS, CKD TREATMENT HAS LIMITED EFFECTIVENESS UNDERSCORING THE IMPORTANCE OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF INNOVATIVE THERAPEUTIC OPTIONS. RECENT STUDIES HAVE IDENTIFIED HOW EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS PARTICIPATE IN THE SUSCEPTIBILITY TO CKD AND HAVE EXPLAINED HOW THE ENVIRONMENT INTERACTS WITH THE RENAL CELL EPIGENOME TO CONTRIBUTE TO RENAL DAMAGE. EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS REGULATE CRITICAL PROCESSES INVOLVED IN GENE REGULATION AND DOWNSTREAM CELLULAR RESPONSES. THE MOST RELEVANT EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS THAT PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN RENAL DAMAGE INCLUDE DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, AND CHANGES IN MIRNA LEVELS. IMPORTANTLY, THESE EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS ARE REVERSIBLE AND, THEREFORE, A SOURCE OF POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. HERE, WE WILL EXPLAIN HOW EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS MAY REGULATE ESSENTIAL PROCESSES INVOLVED IN RENAL PATHOLOGY AND HIGHLIGHT SOME POSSIBLE EPIGENETIC THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES FOR CKD TREATMENT. 2018 10 5390 37 REDOX-FIBROSIS: IMPACT OF TGFBETA1 ON ROS GENERATORS, MEDIATORS AND FUNCTIONAL CONSEQUENCES. FIBROSIS IS ONE OF THE MOST PREVALENT FEATURES OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES LIKE OBESITY, DIABETES, NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE, CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE, OR CARDIOMYOPATHY AND AFFECTS MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN ALL COUNTRIES. ALTHOUGH THE UNDERSTANDING ABOUT THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF FIBROSIS HAS IMPROVED A LOT DURING THE RECENT YEARS, A NUMBER OF MECHANISMS STILL REMAIN UNKNOWN. ALTHOUGH TGF-BETA1 SIGNALING, LOSS OF METABOLIC HOMEOSTASIS AND CHRONIC LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION APPEAR TO PLAY IMPORTANT ROLES IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF FIBROSIS, RECENT EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT OXIDATIVE STRESS AND THE ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEM MAY ALSO BE CRUCIAL FOR FIBROSIS DEVELOPMENT AND PERSISTENCE. THESE FINDINGS POINT TO A CONCEPT OF A REDOX-FIBROSIS WHERE THE CELLULAR OXIDANT AND ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEM COULD BE POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. THE CURRENT REVIEW AIMS TO SUMMARIZE THE EXISTING LINKS BETWEEN TGF-BETA1 SIGNALING, GENERATION AND ACTION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES, EXPRESSION OF ANTIOXIDATIVE ENZYMES, AND FUNCTIONAL CONSEQUENCES INCLUDING EPIGENETIC REDOX-MEDIATED RESPONSES DURING FIBROSIS. 2015 11 6106 31 THE EMERGING ROLE OF MICRORNAS IN NAFLD: HIGHLIGHT OF MICRORNA-29A IN MODULATING OXIDATIVE STRESS, INFLAMMATION, AND BEYOND. NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) IS A COMMON CAUSE OF CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE AND RANGES FROM STEATOSIS TO STEATOHEPATITIS AND TO LIVER FIBROSIS. LIPOTOXICITY IN HEPATOCYTES, ELEVATED OXIDATIVE STRESS AND THE ACTIVATION OF PROINFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS OF KUPFFER CELLS, AND FIBROGENIC PATHWAYS OF ACTIVATED HEPATIC STELLATE CELLS CAN CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF NAFLD. MICRORNAS (MIRS) PLAY A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THE DYSREGULATED METABOLISM AND INFLAMMATORY SIGNALING CONNECTED WITH NAFLD AND ITS PROGRESSION TOWARDS MORE SEVERE STAGES. OF NOTE, THE PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF NON-CODING MIR-29A ON LIVER DAMAGE AND ITS VERSATILE ACTION ON EPIGENETIC ACTIVITY, MITOCHONDRIAL HOMEOSTASIS AND IMMUNOMODULATION MAY IMPROVE OUR PERCEPTION OF THE PATHOGENESIS OF NAFLD. HEREIN, WE REVIEW THE BIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS OF CRITICAL MIRS IN NAFLD, AS WELL AS HIGHLIGHT THE EMERGING ROLE OF MIR-29A IN THERAPEUTIC APPLICATION AND THE RECENT ADVANCES IN MOLECULAR MECHANISMS UNDERLYING ITS LIVER PROTECTIVE EFFECT. 2020 12 1487 26 DNA DAMAGE AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES IN KIDNEY DISEASES - FOCUSED ON TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS IN PODOCYTES. RECENTLY IT HAS BEEN SHOWN THAT EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS ARE INVOLVED IN INITIATION AND PROGRESSION OF CARIDIOVASCULAR AND METABOLIC DISEASES, INCLUDING DIABETES, OBESITY, ATHEROSCLEROSIS, HEART FAILURE, HYPERTENSION AND KIDNEY DISEASES. IN THESE CHRONIC DISEASES, VARIOUS EXOGENOUS AND ENDOGENOUS STRESSES CAUSE DNA DAMAGE, FOLLOWED BY DNA REPAIR PROCESS. ACCUMULATION OF DNA DAMAGES AND IMPAIRED REPAIR PROCESS CAN LEAD TO EPIGENETIC CHANGES, WHICH MAY CONTRIBUTE TO ONSET AND PROGRESSION OF DISEASES. RECENTLY WE HAVE SHOWN THAT THERAPEUTIC EFFECT OF TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR KLF4 (KRUPPEL-LIKE FACTOR 4) IN KIDNEY GLOMERULAR EPITHELIAL CELLS (PODOCYTES) ON PROTEINURIC KIDNEY DISEASES THROUGH EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS. OUR RESULT SUGGESTS THE POSSIBILITY OF TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS AS A TARGET OF SELECTIVE EPIGENETIC THERAPY. MOREOVER, WE HAVE REPORTED THAT RENIN-ANGIOTENSIN SYSTEM (RAS) BLOCKERS, WHICH ARE WIDELY PRESCRIBED FOR THE TREATMENT OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, CAN RESTORE EPIGENETIC CHANGES THROUGH KLF4 IN PART. THESE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT ACTIVATION OF RAS CAUSES EPIGENETIC CHANGES IN DISEASE STATES, AND ELUCIDATION OF THE PRECISE MECHANISM MAY LEAD TO ESTABLISHMENT OF NOVEL THERAPEUTIC TARGET OF KIDNEY DISEASES. IN THIS REVIEW WE FOCUS ON DNA DAMAGE REPAIR SYSTEM AND EPIGENETIC MODULATORS IN DISEASE STATES, AND SPECULATE A CANDIDATE FOR EPIGENETIC THERAPY OF KIDNEY DISEASES. 2016 13 4722 37 NONCODING RNAS IN NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE: POTENTIAL DIAGNOSIS AND PROGNOSIS BIOMARKERS. NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) IS CURRENTLY THE MOST COMMON CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE WORLDWIDE IN PART DUE TO THE CONCOMITANT OBESITY PANDEMIC AND INSULIN RESISTANCE (IR). IT IS INCREASINGLY BECOMING EVIDENT THAT NAFLD IS A DISEASE AFFECTING NUMEROUS EXTRAHEPATIC VITAL ORGANS AND REGULATORY PATHWAYS. THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE NONALCOHOLIC STEATOSIS FORMATION ARE POORLY UNDERSTOOD, AND LITTLE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ON THE PATHWAYS THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PROGRESSIVE HEPATOCELLULAR DAMAGE THAT FOLLOWS LIPID ACCUMULATION. RECENTLY, MUCH RESEARCH HAS FOCUSED ON THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO NAFLD PATHOGENESIS. NONCODING RNAS (NCRNAS) ARE ONE OF SUCH EPIGENETIC FACTORS THAT COULD BE IMPLICATED IN THE NAFLD DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESSION. IN THIS REVIEW, WE SUMMARIZE THE CURRENT KNOWLEDGE OF THE GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC FACTORS POTENTIALLY UNDERLYING THE DISEASE. PARTICULAR EMPHASIS WILL BE PUT ON THE CONTRIBUTION OF MICRORNAS (MIRNAS), LONG NONCODING RNAS (LNCRNAS), AND CIRCULAR RNAS (CIRCRNAS) TO THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF NAFLD AS WELL AS THEIR POTENTIAL USE AS THERAPEUTIC TARGETS OR AS MARKERS FOR THE PREDICTION AND THE PROGRESSION OF THE DISEASE. 2020 14 5660 29 SEX-SPECIFIC EPIGENETIC PROGRAMMING IN RENAL FIBROSIS AND INFLAMMATION. THE GROWING PREVALENCE OF HYPERTENSION, HEART DISEASE, DIABETES, AND OBESITY ALONG WITH AN AGING POPULATION, IS LEADING TO HIGHER INCIDENCE OF RENAL DISEASES IN THE SOCIETY. CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) IS CHARACTERIZED MAINLY BY PERSISTENT INFLAMMATION, FIBROSIS, AND GRADUAL LOSS OF RENAL FUNCTION LEADING TO RENAL FAILURE. SEX IS A KNOWN CONTRIBUTOR TO THE DIFFERENCES IN INCIDENCE AND PROGRESSION OF CKD. EPIGENETIC PROGRAMMING IS AN ESSENTIAL REGULATOR OF RENAL PHYSIOLOGY AND IS CRITICALLY INVOLVED IN THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF RENAL INJURY AND FIBROSIS. EPIGENETIC SIGNALING INTEGRATES INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC SIGNALS ONTO THE GENOME, AND VARIOUS ENVIRONMENTAL AND HORMONAL STIMULI, INCLUDING SEX HORMONES, WHICH REGULATE GENE EXPRESSION AND DOWNSTREAM CELLULAR RESPONSES. THE MOST EXTENSIVELY STUDIED EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS THAT PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN RENAL DAMAGE INCLUDE HISTONE MODIFICATIONS AND DNA METHYLATION. NOTABLY, THESE EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS ARE REVERSIBLE, MAKING THEM CANDIDATES FOR POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS FOR THE TREATMENT OF RENAL DISEASES. HERE, WE WILL SUMMARIZE THE CURRENT KNOWLEDGE ON SEX-DIFFERENCES IN EPIGENETIC MODULATION OF RENAL FIBROSIS AND INFLAMMATION AND HIGHLIGHT SOME POSSIBLE EPIGENETIC THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES FOR CKD TREATMENT. 2023 15 5079 30 PHYSIOPATHOLOGY OF NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE: FROM DIET TO NUTRIGENOMICS. PURPOSE OF REVIEW: NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD) IS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE OF CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE WORLDWIDE AND IS STRONGLY ASSOCIATED WITH METABOLIC DISORDERS, SUCH AS OBESITY, TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS, AND METABOLIC SYNDROME, TO THE EXTENT THAT A NEW DEFINITION OF METABOLIC ASSOCIATED FATTY LIVER DISEASE HAS BEEN PROPOSED. RECENT FINDINGS: INSULIN RESISTANCE, WORSENED BY A HIGH-FAT AND HIGH-CARBOHYDRATE DIET, IS THE KEY TO THE PHYSIOPATHOLOGY OF HEPATIC STEATOSIS. THIS IS DRIVEN BY SEVERAL MECHANISMS THAT ARE MOSTLY ACTIVATED AT A GENETIC LEVEL, SUCH AS DE-NOVO LIPOGENESIS AND TRIGLYCERIDE SYNTHESIS. THEREFORE, MANY DIET REGIMENS HAVE BEEN STUDIED, ALTHOUGH SIGNIFICANT CONTROVERSIES REMAIN REGARDING THEIR METABOLIC EFFECTS AND LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY. SUMMARY: IN THIS REVIEW, WE SUMMARIZED THE ROLE AND EFFECTS OF THE MAIN MACRONUTRIENTS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF NAFLD AND DISCUSSED THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS INVOLVED. WE ALSO DISCUSSED THE IMPORTANCE OF GENETIC POLYMORPHISMS, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, AND DYSBIOSIS TO DETERMINE IF LIFESTYLE MODIFICATION AND A SPECIFIC DIETARY REGIMEN COULD BE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF NAFLD TREATMENT. 2022 16 5805 32 STRATEGIES TO PREVENT AND REVERSE LIVER FIBROSIS IN HUMANS AND LABORATORY ANIMALS. LIVER FIBROSIS RESULTS FROM CHRONIC DAMAGE TO THE LIVER IN CONJUNCTION WITH VARIOUS PATHWAYS AND IS MEDIATED BY A COMPLEX MICROENVIRONMENT. BASED ON CLINICAL OBSERVATIONS, IT IS NOW EVIDENT THAT FIBROSIS IS A DYNAMIC, BIDIRECTIONAL PROCESS WITH AN INHERENT CAPACITY FOR RECOVERY AND REMODELING. THE MAJOR MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN LIVER FIBROSIS INCLUDE THE REPETITIVE INJURY OF HEPATOCYTES, THE ACTIVATION OF THE INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE AFTER INJURY STIMULATION, AND THE ACTIVATION AND PROLIFERATION OF HEPATIC STELLATE CELLS (HSCS), WHICH REPRESENTS THE MAJOR EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX (ECM)-PRODUCING CELLS, STIMULATED BY HEPATOCYTE INJURY AND INFLAMMATION. THE MICROENVIRONMENT IN THE LIVER IS SYNERGISTICALLY REGULATED ABNORMAL ECM DEPOSITION, SCAR FORMATION, ANGIOGENESIS, AND FIBROGENESIS. MOREOVER, RECENT STUDIES HAVE CLARIFIED NOVEL MECHANISM IN FIBROSIS SUCH AS EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF HSCS, THE LEPTIN AND PPARGAMMA PATHWAYS, THE COAGULATION SYSTEM, AND EVEN AUTOPHAGY. UNCOVERING THE MECHANISMS OF LIVER FIBROGENESIS PROVIDES A BASIS TO DEVELOP POTENTIAL THERAPIES TO REVERSE AND TREAT THE FIBROTIC RESPONSE, THEREBY IMPROVING THE OUTCOMES OF PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE. ALTHOUGH BOTH SCIENTIFIC AND CLINICAL CHALLENGES REMAIN, EMERGING STUDIES ATTEMPT TO REVEAL THE IDEAL ANTI-FIBROTIC DRUG THAT COULD BE EASILY DELIVERED TO THE LIVER WITH HIGH SPECIFICITY AND LOW TOXICITY. THIS REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS THE MECHANISMS, INCLUDING NOVEL PATHWAYS UNDERLYING FIBROGENESIS THAT MAY BE TRANSLATED INTO PREVENTIVE AND TREATMENT STRATEGIES, REVIEWS BOTH CURRENT AND NOVEL AGENTS THAT TARGET SPECIFIC PATHWAYS OR MULTIPLE TARGETS, AND DISCUSSES NOVEL DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEMS SUCH AS NANOTECHNOLOGY THAT CAN BE APPLIED IN THE TREATMENT OF LIVER FIBROSIS. IN ADDITION, WE ALSO DISCUSS SOME CURRENT TREATMENT STRATEGIES THAT ARE BEING APPLIED IN ANIMAL MODELS AND IN CLINICAL TRIALS. 2015 17 6092 32 THE EFFECTS OF EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION ON THE OCCURRENCE AND PROGRESSION OF LIVER DISEASES AND THE INVOLVED MECHANISM. INTRODUCTION: EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION IS A TYPE OF GENE EXPRESSION AND REGULATION THAT DOES NOT INVOLVE CHANGES IN DNA SEQUENCES. AN INCREASING NUMBER OF STUDIES HAVE PROVEN THAT EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE OCCURRENCE AND PROGRESSION OF LIVER DISEASES THROUGH THE GENE REGULATION AND PROTEIN EXPRESSIONS OF HEPATOCELLULAR LIPID METABOLISM, INFLAMMATORY REACTION, CELL PROLIFERATION, AND ACTIVATION, ETC.AREAS COVERED: IN THIS STUDY, WE ELABORATED AND ANALYZED THE UNDERLYING FUNCTIONAL MECHANISM OF EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION IN ALCOHOLIC LIVER DISEASE (ALD), NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE (NAFLD), LIVER FIBROSIS (LF), VIRAL HEPATITIS, HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA (HCC), AND RESEARCH PROGRESS OF RECENT YEARS.EXPERT OPINION: THE FURTHER UNDERSTANDING OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS THAT CAN REGULATE GENE EXPRESSION AND CELL PHENOTYPE LEADS TO NEW INSIGHTS IN EPIGENETIC CONTROL OF CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE. CURRENTLY, HEPATOLOGISTS ARE EXPLORING THE ROLE OF DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE/CHROMATIN MODIFICATION, AND NON-CODING RNA IN SPECIFIC LIVER PATHOLOGY. THESE FINDINGS HAVE LED TO ADVANCES IN DIRECT EPIGENETIC BIOMARKER TESTING OF PATIENT TISSUE OR BODY FLUID SPECIMENS, AS WELL AS QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS. BASED ON THESE FINDINGS, DRUG VALIDATION OF SOME TARGETS INVOLVED IN THE EPIGENETIC MECHANISM OF LIVER DISEASE IS GRADUALLY BEING CARRIED OUT CLINICALLY. 2020 18 2283 23 EPIGENETIC REGULATION IN FIBROSIS PROGRESS. FIBROSIS, A COMMON PROCESS OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES, IS DEFINED AS A REPAIR RESPONSE DISORDER WHEN ORGANS UNDERGO CONTINUOUS DAMAGE, ULTIMATELY LEADING TO SCAR FORMATION AND FUNCTIONAL FAILURE. AROUND THE WORLD, FIBROTIC DISEASES CAUSE HIGH MORTALITY, UNFORTUNATELY, WITH LIMITED TREATMENT MEANS IN CLINICAL PRACTICE. WITH THE DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION OF DEEP SEQUENCING TECHNOLOGY, COMPREHENSIVELY EXPLORING THE EPIGENETIC MECHANISM IN FIBROSIS HAS BEEN ALLOWED. EXTENSIVE REMODELING OF EPIGENETICS CONTROLLING VARIOUS CELLS PHENOTYPE AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN FIBROGENESIS WAS SUBSEQUENTLY VERIFIED. IN THIS REVIEW, WE SUMMARIZE THE REGULATORY MECHANISMS OF DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATION, NONCODING RNAS (NCRNAS) AND N6-METHYLADENOSINE (M6A) MODIFICATION IN ORGAN FIBROSIS, FOCUSING ON HEART, LIVER, LUNG AND KIDNEY. ADDITIONALLY, WE EMPHASIZE THE DIVERSITY OF EPIGENETICS IN THE CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS RELATED TO FIBROSIS. FINALLY, THE POTENTIAL AND PROSPECT OF TARGETED THERAPY FOR FIBROSIS BASED ON EPIGENETIC IS DISCUSSED. 2021 19 2502 25 EPIGENETICS AND LIVER FIBROSIS. LIVER FIBROSIS ARISES BECAUSE PROLONGED INJURY COMBINED WITH EXCESSIVE SCAR DEPOSITION WITHIN HEPATIC PARENCHYMA ARISING FROM OVERACTIVE WOUND HEALING RESPONSE MEDIATED BY ACTIVATED MYOFIBROBLASTS. FIBROSIS IS THE COMMON END POINT FOR ANY TYPE OF CHRONIC LIVER INJURY INCLUDING ALCOHOLIC LIVER DISEASE, NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE, VIRAL HEPATITIS, AND CHOLESTATIC LIVER DISEASES. ALTHOUGH GENETIC INFLUENCES ARE IMPORTANT, IT IS EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS THAT HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO ORCHESTRATE MANY ASPECTS OF FIBROGENESIS IN THE LIVER. NEW DISCOVERIES IN THE FIELD ARE LEADING TOWARD THE DEVELOPMENT OF EPIGENETIC BIOMARKERS AND TARGETED THERAPIES. THIS REVIEW CONSIDERS EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS AS WELL AS RECENT ADVANCES IN EPIGENETIC PROGRAMMING IN THE CONTEXT OF HEPATIC FIBROSIS. 2017 20 2341 26 EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF LIVER FIBROSIS. FIBROSIS IS A COMMON AND IMPORTANT PATHOLOGY ASSOCIATED WITH PROGRESSIVE CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES AND UNDERLIES THE DEVELOPMENT OF CIRRHOSIS AND HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA. RESEARCH INTO THE MOLECULAR REGULATION OF FIBROSIS HAS DISCOVERED THAT IT IS UNDER THE CONTROL OF A NUMBER OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS INCLUDING DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS AND THE ACTIVITIES OF NON-CODING RNAS. A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW EPIGENETIC REGULATORS SUCH AS DNA METHYLTRANSERASES, METHYL-DNA BINDING PROTEINS, HISTONE MODIFYING ENZYMES AND REGULATORY RNA MOLECULES IMPACT ON THE FIBROGENIC PROCESS IS EXPECTED TO RESULT IN NEW BIOMARKERS FOR DISEASE PROGRESSION AS WELL AS NOVEL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. THE AIM OF THIS MINI-REVIEW IS TO BRIEFLY INTRODUCE THE READER TO THE MAJOR EPIGENETIC REGULATORS SO FAR IDENTIFIED AS BEING IMPLICATED IN FIBROSIS. 2015