1 2263 153 EPIGENETIC PROGRAMMING AT THE MOGAT1 LOCUS MAY LINK NEONATAL OVERNUTRITION WITH LONG-TERM HEPATIC STEATOSIS AND INSULIN RESISTANCE. POSTNATAL OVERFEEDING INCREASES THE RISK OF CHRONIC DISEASES LATER IN LIFE, INCLUDING OBESITY, INSULIN RESISTANCE, HEPATIC STEATOSIS, AND TYPE 2 DIABETES. EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS MIGHT UNDERLIE THE LONG-LASTING EFFECTS ASSOCIATED WITH EARLY NUTRITION. HERE WE AIMED TO EXPLORE THE MOLECULAR PATHWAYS INVOLVED IN EARLY DEVELOPMENT OF INSULIN RESISTANCE AND HEPATIC STEATOSIS, AND WE EXAMINED THE POTENTIAL CONTRIBUTION OF DNA METHYLATION AND HISTONE MODIFICATIONS TO LONG-TERM PROGRAMMING OF METABOLIC DISEASE. WE USED A WELL-CHARACTERIZED MOUSE MODEL OF NEONATAL OVERFEEDING AND EARLY ADIPOSITY BY LITTER SIZE REDUCTION. NEONATAL OVERFEEDING LED TO HEPATIC INSULIN RESISTANCE VERY EARLY IN LIFE THAT PERSISTED THROUGHOUT ADULTHOOD DESPITE NORMALIZING FOOD INTAKE. UP-REGULATION OF MONOACYLGLYCEROL O-ACYLTRANSFERASE ( MOGAT) 1 CONCEIVABLY MEDIATES HEPATIC STEATOSIS AND INSULIN RESISTANCE THROUGH INCREASING INTRACELLULAR DIACYLGLYCEROL CONTENT. EARLY AND SUSTAINED DEREGULATION OF MOGAT1 WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A COMBINATION OF HISTONE MODIFICATIONS THAT MIGHT FAVOR MOGAT1 EXPRESSION. IN SUM, POSTNATAL OVERFEEDING CAUSES EXTREMELY RAPID DERANGEMENTS OF HEPATIC INSULIN SENSITIVITY THAT REMAIN RELATIVELY STABLE UNTIL ADULTHOOD. EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, PARTICULARLY HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, COULD CONTRIBUTE TO SUCH LONG-LASTING EFFECTS. OUR DATA SUGGEST THAT TARGETING HEPATIC MONOACYLGLYCEROL ACYLTRANSFERASE ACTIVITY DURING EARLY LIFE MIGHT PROVIDE A NOVEL STRATEGY TO IMPROVE HEPATIC INSULIN SENSITIVITY AND PREVENT LATE-ONSET INSULIN RESISTANCE AND FATTY LIVER DISEASE.-RAMON-KRAUEL, M., PENTINAT, T., BLOKS, V. W., CEBRIA, J., RIBO, S., PEREZ-WIENESE, R., VILA, M., PALACIOS-MARIN, I., FERNANDEZ-PEREZ, A., VALLEJO, M., TELLEZ, N., RODRIGUEZ, M. A., YANES, O., LERIN, C., DIAZ, R., PLOSCH, T., TIETGE, U. J. F., JIMENEZ-CHILLARON, J. C. EPIGENETIC PROGRAMMING AT THE MOGAT1 LOCUS MAY LINK NEONATAL OVERNUTRITION WITH LONG-TERM HEPATIC STEATOSIS AND INSULIN RESISTANCE. 2018 2 2640 25 EPIGENOMIC AND TRANSCRIPTIONAL PROFILING IDENTIFIES IMPAIRED GLYOXYLATE DETOXIFICATION IN NAFLD AS A RISK FACTOR FOR HYPEROXALURIA. EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS (E.G. DNA METHYLATION) IN NAFLD AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO DISEASE PROGRESSION AND EXTRAHEPATIC COMPLICATIONS ARE POORLY EXPLORED. HERE, WE USE AN INTEGRATED EPIGENOME AND TRANSCRIPTOME ANALYSIS OF MOUSE NAFLD HEPATOCYTES AND IDENTIFY ALTERATIONS IN GLYOXYLATE METABOLISM, A PATHWAY RELEVANT IN KIDNEY DAMAGE VIA OXALATE RELEASE-A HARMFUL WASTE PRODUCT AND KIDNEY STONE-PROMOTING FACTOR. DOWNREGULATION AND HYPERMETHYLATION OF ALANINE-GLYOXYLATE AMINOTRANSFERASE (AGXT), WHICH DETOXIFIES GLYOXYLATE, PREVENTING EXCESSIVE OXALATE ACCUMULATION, IS ACCOMPANIED BY INCREASED OXALATE FORMATION AFTER METABOLISM OF THE PRECURSOR HYDROXYPROLINE. VIRAL-MEDIATED AGXT TRANSFER OR INHIBITING HYDROXYPROLINE CATABOLISM RESCUES EXCESSIVE OXALATE RELEASE. IN HUMAN STEATOTIC HEPATOCYTES, AGXT IS ALSO DOWNREGULATED AND HYPERMETHYLATED, AND IN NAFLD ADOLESCENTS, STEATOSIS SEVERITY CORRELATES WITH URINARY OXALATE EXCRETION. THUS, THIS WORK IDENTIFIES A REDUCED CAPACITY OF THE STEATOTIC LIVER TO DETOXIFY GLYOXYLATE, TRIGGERING ELEVATED OXALATE, AND PROVIDES A MECHANISTIC EXPLANATION FOR THE INCREASED RISK OF KIDNEY STONES AND CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE IN NAFLD PATIENTS. 2021 3 238 23 ADENOSINE KINASE: A KEY REGULATOR OF PURINERGIC PHYSIOLOGY. ADENOSINE (ADO) IS AN ESSENTIAL BIOMOLECULE FOR LIFE THAT PROVIDES CRITICAL REGULATION OF ENERGY UTILIZATION AND HOMEOSTASIS. ADENOSINE KINASE (ADK) IS AN EVOLUTIONARY ANCIENT RIBOKINASE DERIVED FROM BACTERIAL SUGAR KINASES THAT IS WIDELY EXPRESSED IN ALL FORMS OF LIFE, TISSUES AND ORGAN SYSTEMS THAT TIGHTLY REGULATES INTRACELLULAR AND EXTRACELLULAR ADO CONCENTRATIONS. THE FACILE ABILITY OF ADK TO ALTER ADO AVAILABILITY PROVIDES A "SITE AND EVENT" SPECIFICITY TO THE ENDOGENOUS PROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF ADO IN SITUATIONS OF CELLULAR STRESS. IN ADDITION TO MODULATING THE ABILITY OF ADO TO ACTIVATE ITS COGNATE RECEPTORS (P1 RECEPTORS), NUCLEAR ADK ISOFORM ACTIVITY HAS BEEN LINKED TO EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS BASED ON TRANSMETHYLATION PATHWAYS. PREVIOUS DRUG DISCOVERY RESEARCH HAS TARGETED ADK INHIBITION AS A THERAPEUTIC APPROACH TO MANAGE EPILEPSY, PAIN, AND INFLAMMATION. THESE EFFORTS GENERATED MULTIPLE CLASSES OF HIGHLY POTENT AND SELECTIVE INHIBITORS. HOWEVER, CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT OF EARLY ADK INHIBITORS WAS STOPPED DUE TO APPARENT MECHANISTIC TOXICITY AND THE LACK OF SUITABLE TRANSLATIONAL MARKERS. NEW INSIGHTS REGARDING THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF THE NUCLEAR ADK ISOFORM (ADK-LONG) IN THE EPIGENETIC MODULATION OF MALADAPTIVE DNA METHYLATION OFFERS THE POSSIBILITY OF IDENTIFYING NOVEL ADK-ISOFORM SELECTIVE INHIBITORS AND NEW INTERVENTIONAL STRATEGIES THAT ARE INDEPENDENT OF ADO RECEPTOR ACTIVATION. 2021 4 681 29 BRAIN LIPOTOXICITY OF PHYTANIC ACID AND VERY LONG-CHAIN FATTY ACIDS. HARMFUL CELLULAR/MITOCHONDRIAL ACTIVITIES IN REFSUM DISEASE AND X-LINKED ADRENOLEUKODYSTROPHY. IT IS INCREASINGLY UNDERSTOOD THAT IN THE AGING BRAIN, ESPECIALLY IN THE CASE OF PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES, SOME FATTY ACIDS AT PATHOLOGICALLY HIGH CONCENTRATIONS EXERT DETRIMENTAL ACTIVITIES. TO STUDY SUCH ACTIVITIES, WE HERE ANALYZE GENETIC DISEASES, WHICH ARE DUE TO COMPROMISED METABOLISM OF SPECIFIC FATTY ACIDS, EITHER THE BRANCHED-CHAIN PHYTANIC ACID OR VERY LONG-CHAIN FATTY ACIDS (VLCFAS). MICROMOLAR CONCENTRATIONS OF PHYTANIC ACID OR OF VLCFAS DISTURB THE INTEGRITY OF NEURAL CELLS BY IMPAIRING CA(2+) HOMEOSTASIS, ENHANCING OXIDATIVE STRESS OR DE-ENERGIZING MITOCHONDRIA. FINALLY, THESE COMBINED HARMFUL ACTIVITIES ACCELERATE CELL DEATH. MITOCHONDRIA ARE MORE SEVERELY TARGETED BY PHYTANIC ACID THAN BY VLCFAS. THE INSERTION OF VLCFAS INTO THE INNER MEMBRANE DISTORTS THE ARRANGEMENT OF MEMBRANE CONSTITUENTS AND THEIR FUNCTIONAL INTERACTIONS. PHYTANIC ACID EXERTS SPECIFIC PROTONOPHORIC ACTIVITY, INDUCES REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS) GENERATION, AND REDUCES ATP GENERATION. A CLEAR INHIBITION OF THE NA(+), K(+)-ATPASE ACTIVITY BY PHYTANIC ACID HAS ALSO BEEN REPORTED. IN ADDITION TO THE INSTANTANEOUS EFFECTS, A CHRONIC EXPOSURE OF BRAIN CELLS TO LOW MICROMOLAR CONCENTRATIONS OF PHYTANIC ACID MAY PRODUCE NEURONAL DAMAGE IN REFSUM DISEASE BY ALTERING EPIGENETIC TRANSCRIPTIONAL REGULATION. MYELIN-PRODUCING OLIGODENDROCYTES RESPOND WITH PARTICULAR SENSITIVITY TO VLCFAS. DELETERIOUS ACTIVITY OF VLCFAS ON ENERGY-DEPENDENT MITOCHONDRIAL FUNCTIONS DECLINES WITH INCREASING THE HYDROCARBON CHAIN LENGTH (C22:0 > C24:0 > C26:0). IN CONTRAST, THE REVERSE SEQUENCE HOLDS TRUE FOR CELL DEATH INDUCTION BY VLCFAS (C22:0 < C24:0 < C26:0). IN ADRENOLEUKODYSTROPHY, THE UPTAKE OF VLCFAS BY PEROXISOMES IS IMPAIRED BY DEFECTS OF THE ABCD1 TRANSPORTER. STUDYING MITOCHONDRIA FROM ABCD1-DEFICIENT AND WILD-TYPE MICE PROVES THAT THE ENERGY-DEPENDENT FUNCTIONS ARE NOT ALTERED IN THE DISEASE MODEL. THUS, A DEFECTIVE ABCD1 APPARENTLY EXERTS NO OBVIOUS ADAPTIVE PRESSURE ON MITOCHONDRIA. FURTHER RESEARCH HAS TO ELUCIDATE THE DETAILED MECHANISTIC BASIS FOR THE FAILURES CAUSING FATTY ACID-MEDIATED NEURODEGENERATION AND SHOULD HELP TO PROVIDE POSSIBLE THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS. 2016 5 5511 17 RIBONUCLEASES IN TUMOR GROWTH. THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES DATA ON AMBIGUOUS BIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS OF RIBONUCLEASES (RNASES) AT TUMOR GROWTH. IN SOME CASES THE RAISED LEVEL OF ENZYME ACTIVITY IN BIOLOGICAL FLUIDS CAN BE REGARDED AS AN ADDITIONAL MARKER OF MALIGNANT GROWTH (PANCREAS CANCER, CHRONIC MYELOID LEUKEMIA, ETC.). AT THE SAME TIME THE ACTIVITY OF RNASES IS OFTEN LOWERED IN TUMOR TISSUE. HIGH SUBSTRATE SPECIFICITY OF PARTICULAR RNASES PROVIDES METABOLIC BALANCE BETWEEN VARIOUS KINDS OF RNAS WITH VARIOUS HALF-TIME EXCHANGE TURN. RNASES ARE THE IMPORTANT FACTORS OF EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF GENE ACTIVITY IN CELLS. THE ACTIVITY OF RNASES IS ADJUSTABLE BY INHIBITORS AND OTHER FACTORS, AND DEFINES TIME OF EXISTENCE OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF RNAS. RNASES (THE MODIFIED VARIANTS OF RNASE A, RNASES OF SEMEN FLUID OF THE CATTLE, RNASE OF AMPHIBIA OOCYTES) CAN BE USED AS ANTI-TUMOR THERAPEUTIC AGENTS. ON THE OTHER HAND, SOME INHIBITORS OF RNASES OF NATURAL OR SYNTHETIC ORIGIN WERE DEMONSTRATED TO BE PERSPECTIVE DRUGS THAT INHIBIT TUMOR GROWTH. 2009 6 1679 25 DRUG RESISTANCE IN GIARDIA DUODENALIS. GIARDIA DUODENALIS IS A MICROAEROPHILIC PARASITE OF THE HUMAN GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT AND A MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR TO DIARRHEAL AND POST-INFECTIOUS CHRONIC GASTROINTESTINAL DISEASE WORLD-WIDE. TREATMENT OF G. DUODENALIS INFECTION CURRENTLY RELIES ON A SMALL NUMBER OF DRUG CLASSES. NITROHETEROCYCLICS, IN PARTICULAR METRONIDAZOLE, HAVE REPRESENTED THE FRONT LINE TREATMENT FOR THE LAST 40 YEARS. NITROHETEROCYCLIC-RESISTANT G. DUODENALIS HAVE BEEN ISOLATED FROM PATIENTS AND CREATED IN VITRO, PROMPTING CONSIDERABLE RESEARCH INTO THE BIOMOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF RESISTANCE. THESE COMPOUNDS ARE REDOX-ACTIVE AND ARE BELIEVED TO DAMAGE PROTEINS AND DNA AFTER BEING ACTIVATED BY OXIDOREDUCTASE ENZYMES IN METABOLICALLY ACTIVE CELLS. IN THIS REVIEW, WE EXPLORE THE MOLECULAR PHENOTYPES OF NITROHETEROCYCLIC-RESISTANT G. DUODENALIS DESCRIBED TO DATE IN THE CONTEXT OF THE PROTIST'S UNUSUAL GLYCOLYTIC AND ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEMS. WE PROPOSE THAT RESISTANCE MECHANISMS ARE LIKELY TO EXTEND WELL BEYOND CURRENTLY DESCRIBED RESISTANCE-ASSOCIATED ENZYMES (I.E., PYRUVATE FERREDOXIN OXIDOREDUCTASES AND NITROREDUCTASES), TO INCLUDE NAD(P)H- AND FLAVIN-GENERATING PATHWAYS, AND POSSIBLY REDOX-SENSITIVE EPIGENETIC REGULATION. MECHANISMS THAT ALLOW G. DUODENALIS TO TOLERATE OXIDATIVE STRESS MAY LEAD TO RESISTANCE AGAINST BOTH OXYGEN AND NITROHETEROCYCLICS, WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR CLINICAL CONTROL. THE PRESENT REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS THE POTENTIAL FOR SYSTEMS BIOLOGY TOOLS AND ADVANCED BIOINFORMATICS TO FURTHER INVESTIGATE THE MULTIFACETED MECHANISMS OF NITROHETEROCYCLIC RESISTANCE IN THIS IMPORTANT PATHOGEN. 2015 7 1109 23 COMMERCIAL PROCESSED SOY-BASED FOOD PRODUCT CONTAINS GLYCATED AND GLYCOXIDATED LUNASIN PROTEOFORMS. NUTRACEUTICALS HAVE BEEN PROPOSED TO EXERT POSITIVE EFFECTS ON HUMAN HEALTH AND CONFER PROTECTION AGAINST MANY CHRONIC DISEASES. A MAJOR BIOACTIVE COMPONENT OF SOY-BASED FOODS IS LUNASIN PEPTIDE, WHICH HAS POTENTIAL TO EXERT A MAJOR IMPACT ON THE HEALTH OF HUMAN CONSUMERS WORLDWIDE, BUT THE BIOCHEMICAL FEATURES OF DIETARY LUNASIN STILL REMAIN POORLY CHARACTERIZED. IN THIS STUDY, LUNASIN WAS PURIFIED FROM A SOY-BASED FOOD PRODUCT VIA STRONG ANION EXCHANGE SOLID PHASE EXTRACTION AND THEN SUBJECTED TO TOP-DOWN MASS SPECTROMETRY ANALYSIS THAT REVEALED IN DETAIL THE MOLECULAR DIVERSITY OF LUNASIN IN PROCESSED SOYBEAN FOODS. WE DETECTED MULTIPLE GLYCATED PROTEOFORMS TOGETHER WITH POTENTIALLY TOXIC ADVANCED GLYCATION END PRODUCTS (AGES) DERIVED FROM LUNASIN. IN BOTH CASES, MODIFICATION SITES WERE LYS24 AND LYS29 LOCATED AT THE HELICAL REGION THAT SHOWS STRUCTURAL HOMOLOGY WITH A CONSERVED REGION OF CHROMATIN-BINDING PROTEINS. THE IDENTIFIED POST-TRANSLATIONAL MODIFICATIONS MAY HAVE AN IMPORTANT REPERCUSSION ON LUNASIN EPIGENETIC REGULATORY CAPACITY. TAKING TOGETHER, OUR RESULTS DEMONSTRATE THE IMPORTANCE OF PROPER CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF COMMERCIAL PROCESSED FOOD PRODUCTS TO ASSESS THEIR IMPACT ON CONSUMER'S HEALTH AND RISK OF CHRONIC DISEASES. 2016 8 2818 12 FIBROSIS UNDER ARREST. APPROXIMATELY 5% OF PEOPLE THAT ARE HOSPITALIZED FOR ANY REASON DEVELOP ACUTE KIDNEY FAILURE, WHICH, IN SOME CASES, PROGRESSES TO A CHRONIC CONDITION RESULTING IN FIBROSIS OF THE KIDNEY AND PERMANENT CHANGES IN THE ORGAN'S FUNCTION. TWO NEW STUDIES SUGGEST THAT CELL CYCLE ARREST OF EPITHELIAL CELLS AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS HAVE KEY ROLES IN THE SWITCH TO CHRONIC DISEASE (PAGES 535-543 AND 544-550). 2010 9 760 20 CASZ1: CURRENT IMPLICATIONS IN CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES AND CANCERS. CASTOR ZINC FINGER 1 (CASZ1) IS A C2H2 ZINC FINGER FAMILY PROTEIN THAT HAS TWO SPLICING VARIANTS, CASZ1A AND CASZ1B. IT IS INVOLVED IN MULTIPLE PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, SUCH AS TISSUE DIFFERENTIATION AND ALDOSTERONE ANTAGONISM. GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ALTERNATIONS OF CASZ1 HAVE BEEN CHARACTERIZED IN MULTIPLE CARDIOVASCULAR DISORDERS, SUCH AS CONGENITAL HEART DISEASES, CHRONIC VENOUS DISEASES, AND HYPERTENSION. HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT HOW CASZ1 MECHANICALLY PARTICIPATES IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF THESE DISEASES. OVER THE PAST DECADES, AT FIRST GLANCE, PARADOXICAL INFLUENCES ON CELL BEHAVIORS AND PROGRESSIONS OF DIFFERENT CANCER TYPES HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED FOR CASZ1, WHICH MAY BE EXPLAINED BY A "DOUBLE-AGENT" ROLE FOR CASZ1. IN THIS REVIEW, WE DISCUSS THE PHYSIOLOGICAL FUNCTION OF CASZ1, AND FOCUS ON THE ASSOCIATION OF CASZ1 ABERRATIONS WITH THE PATHOGENESIS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES AND CANCERS. 2023 10 6484 16 TOXICOLOGIC PROFILE OF ACRYLONITRILE. ACRYLONITRILE IS A MONOMER USED EXTENSIVELY AS A RAW MATERIAL IN THE MANUFACTURING OF ACRYLIC FIBERS, PLASTICS, SYNTHETIC RUBBERS, AND ACRYLAMIDE. IT HAS BEEN CLASSIFIED AS A PROBABLE HUMAN CARCINOGEN ACCORDING TO THE RESULTS OF NUMEROUS CHRONIC RAT BIOASSAYS. THE PRESENT REPORT SUMMARIZES THE TOXICITY DATA ON ACRYLONITRILE AND REVIEWS AVAILABLE DATA CONCERNING THE MECHANISM (GENETIC VERSUS EPIGENETIC) BY WHICH ACRYLONITRILE IS CARCINOGENIC IN RATS. FROM THE EVALUATION OF THE RELEVANT TOXICITY DATA, IT CAN BE CONCLUDED THAT ACRYLONITRILE IS INDEED CARCINOGENIC TO RATS AFTER EITHER ORAL OR INHALATIONAL EXPOSURE. HOWEVER, INFORMATION ON OTHER MAMMALIAN SPECIES IS LACKING, AND, MOREOVER, THE EXACT MECHANISM OF THE CARCINOGENIC PROCESS IS UNCLEAR. THEREFORE, IT IS RECOMMENDED TO CONDUCT AN ADDITIONAL LONG-TERM INHALATION CARCINOGENICITY STUDY WITH ACRYLONITRILE IN MICE, AS WELL AS STUDIES INTO THE MECHANISM BY WHICH ACRYLONITRILE INDUCES (BRAIN) TUMORS IN RATS (GENETIC VERSUS EPIGENETIC). 1998 11 3381 26 HLA AND AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES: TYPE 1 DIABETES (T1D) AS AN EXAMPLE. AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES NEED TO BE CONSIDERED AT A GENETIC AND MECHANISTIC LEVEL. T1D IS AN AUTOIMMUNE, CHRONIC, MULTIFACTORIAL AND POLYGENIC DISEASE CHARACTERIZED BY THE DESTRUCTION OF THE PANCREATIC BETA-CELLS ASSOCIATED WITH LONG TERM DYSFUNCTION OF SEVERAL ORGANS AND TISSUES. MECHANISMS OF SUSCEPTIBILITY INCLUDE EPI-GENETIC AND POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL EFFECTS THAT REGULATE TRANSMISSION AND EXPRESSION OF THE INHERITED GENES. THE HLA COMPLEX, CONSTITUTES THE MOST RELEVANT REGION CONTRIBUTING 50% OF THE INHERITED RISK FOR T1D. AN ADDITIONAL 17 GENES WITH VARIABLE BUT SMALL EFFECTS HAVE BEEN DESCRIBED. IN NON-CAUCASIANS, THE PRESENCE OF E-DRBETA1-74 AND/OR D-DRBETA1-57 ARE RELEVANT IN PREDISPOSITION. THE "DIABETOGENIC HAPLOTYPES" IN MEXICANS WERE DRB1*0301-DQA1*0501-DQB1*0201 (OR = 21.4); DRB1*0405-DQA1-*0301-DQB1*0302 (OR = 44.5) AND THE SAME DQA1/DQB1 WITH DRB1*0404/*0401 CONFERRING LOWER RISK, INCREASING (OR = 61.3) WITH AN EARLY AGE AT ONSET AND A HETEROZYGOTE DR3/DR4 GENOTYPE. IN MOST POPULATIONS, THE ABSENCE OF D-57 AND THE PRESENCE OF R-52 ARE IMPORTANT TO THE SUSCEPTIBILITY, BUT IN HISPANICS, ALL DR4S (INCLUDING THE PROTECTIVE DRB1*0403/*0407/*0411) ARE IN LINKAGE DISEQUILIBRIUM WITH DQA1/DQB1 SUSCEPTIBILITY ALLELES. THUS, SUSCEPTIBILITY ALLELES IN LATIN AMERICAN MESTIZOS ARE OF MEDITERRANEAN ANCESTRY WHEREAS PROTECTIVE ALLELES ARE OF AMERINDIAN ORIGIN. IN THIS REVIEW, WE DISCUSS THE COMPLEXITY OF T1D AND SOME ASPECTS OF PREVENTION/INTERVENTION BASED ON IMMUNOGENETICS. 2006 12 3130 28 GLAST BUT NOT LEAST--DISTRIBUTION, FUNCTION, GENETICS AND EPIGENETICS OF L-GLUTAMATE TRANSPORT IN BRAIN--FOCUS ON GLAST/EAAT1. SYNAPTICALLY RELEASED L-GLUTAMATE, THE MOST IMPORTANT EXCITATORY NEUROTRANSMITTER IN THE CNS, IS REMOVED FROM EXTRACELLULAR SPACE BY FAST AND EFFICIENT TRANSPORT MEDIATED BY SEVERAL TRANSPORTERS; THE MOST ABUNDANT ONES ARE EAAT1/GLAST AND EAAT2/GLT1. THE REVIEW FIRST SUMMARIZES THEIR LOCATION, FUNCTIONS AND BASIC CHARACTERISTICS. WE THEN LOOK AT GENETICS AND EPIGENETICS OF EAAT1/GLAST AND EAAT2/GLT1 AND PERFORM IN SILICO ANALYSES OF THEIR PROMOTER REGIONS. THERE IS ONE CPG ISLAND IN SLC1A2 (EAAT2/GLT1) GENE AND NONE IN SLC1A3 (EAAT1/GLAST) SUGGESTING THAT DNA METHYLATION IS NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT EPIGENETIC MECHANISM REGULATING EAAT1/GLAST LEVELS IN BRAIN. THERE ARE TARGETS FOR SPECIFIC MIRNA IN SLC1A2 (EAAT2/GLT1) GENE. WE ALSO NOTE THAT WHILE DEFECTS IN EAAT2/GLT1 HAVE BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH VARIOUS PATHOLOGICAL STATES INCLUDING CHRONIC NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES, VERY LITTLE IS KNOWN ON POSSIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS OF DEFECTIVE OR DYSFUNCTIONAL EAAT1/GLAST TO ANY SPECIFIC BRAIN DISEASE. FINALLY, WE REVIEW EVIDENCE OF EAAT1/GLAST INVOLVEMENT IN MECHANISMS OF BRAIN RESPONSE TO ALCOHOLISM AND PRESENT SOME PRELIMINARY DATA SHOWING THAT ETHANOL, AT CONCENTRATIONS WHICH MAY BE REACHED FOLLOWING HEAVY DRINKING, CAN HAVE AN EFFECT ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF EAAT1/GLAST IN CULTURED ASTROCYTES; THE EFFECT IS BLOCKED BY BACLOFEN, A GABA-B RECEPTOR AGONIST AND A DRUG POTENTIALLY USEFUL IN THE TREATMENT OF ALCOHOLISM. WE ARGUE THAT MORE RESEARCH EFFORT SHOULD BE FOCUSED ON EAAT1/GLAST, PARTICULARLY IN RELATION TO ALCOHOLISM AND DRUG ADDICTION. 2015 13 2758 24 EXPRESSION OF HORMONAL CARCINOGENESIS GENES AND RELATED REGULATORY MICRORNAS IN UTERUS AND OVARIES OF DDT-TREATED FEMALE RATS. THE INSECTICIDE DICHLORODIPHENYLTRICHLOROETHANE (DDT) IS A NONMUTAGENIC XENOBIOTIC COMPOUND ABLE TO EXERT ESTROGEN-LIKE EFFECTS RESULTING IN ACTIVATION OF ESTROGEN RECEPTOR-ALPHA (ERALPHA) FOLLOWED BY CHANGED EXPRESSION OF ITS DOWNSTREAM TARGET GENES. IN ADDITION, STUDIES PERFORMED OVER RECENT YEARS SUGGEST THAT DDT MAY ALSO INFLUENCE EXPRESSION OF MICRORNAS. HOWEVER, AN IMPACT OF DDT ON EXPRESSION OF ER, MICRORNAS, AND RELATED TARGET GENES HAS NOT BEEN FULLY ELUCIDATED. HERE, USING REAL-TIME PCR, WE ASSESSED CHANGES IN EXPRESSION OF KEY GENES INVOLVED IN HORMONAL CARCINOGENESIS AS WELL AS POTENTIALLY RELATED REGULATORY ONCOGENIC/TUMOR SUPPRESSOR MICRORNAS AND THEIR TARGET GENES IN THE UTERUS AND OVARIES OF FEMALE WISTAR RATS DURING SINGLE AND CHRONIC MULTIPLE-DOSE DDT EXPOSURE. WE FOUND THAT APPLYING DDT RESULTS IN ALTERED EXPRESSION OF MICRORNAS-221, -222, -205, -126A, AND -429, THEIR TARGET GENES (PTEN, DICER1), AS WELL AS GENES INVOLVED IN HORMONAL CARCINOGENESIS (ESR1, PGR, CCND1, CYP19A1). NOTABLY, CYP19A1 EXPRESSION SEEMS TO BE ALSO REGULATED BY MICRORNAS-221, -222, AND -205. THE DATA SUGGEST THAT EPIGENETIC EFFECTS INDUCED BY DDT AS A POTENTIAL CARCINOGEN MAY BE BASED ON AT LEAST TWO MECHANISMS: (I) ACTIVATION OF ERALPHA FOLLOWED BY ALTERED EXPRESSION OF THE TARGET GENES ENCODING RECEPTOR PGR AND CCND1 AS WELL AS IMPAIRED EXPRESSION OF CYP19A1, AFFECTING, THEREBY, CELL HORMONE BALANCE; AND (II) CHANGED EXPRESSION OF MICRORNAS RESULTING IN IMPAIRED EXPRESSION OF RELATED TARGET GENES INCLUDING REDUCED LEVEL OF CYP19A1 MRNA. 2017 14 3074 24 GENOME-WIDE DNA METHYLOME AND TRANSCRIPTOME CHANGES INDUCED BY INORGANIC NANOPARTICLES IN HUMAN KIDNEY CELLS AFTER CHRONIC EXPOSURE. THE UNIQUE PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES MAKE INORGANIC NANOPARTICLES (INPS) AN EXCITING TOOL IN DIAGNOSIS AND DISEASE MANAGEMENT. HOWEVER, AS INPS ARE RELATIVELY DIFFICULT TO FULLY DEGRADE AND EXCRETE, THEIR UNINTENDED ACCUMULATION IN THE TISSUE MIGHT RESULT IN ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS. HEREIN, WE PROVIDE A METHYLOME-TRANSCRIPTOME FRAMEWORK FOR CHRONIC EFFECTS OF INPS, COMMONLY USED IN BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS, IN HUMAN KIDNEY TH-1 CELLS. RENAL CLEARANCE IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ROUTES OF NANOPARTICLE EXCRETION; THEREFORE, A DETAILED EVALUATION OF NANOPARTICLE-MEDIATED NEPHROTOXICITY IS AN IMPORTANT TASK. INTEGRATED ANALYSIS OF METHYLOME AND TRANSCRIPTOME CHANGES INDUCED BY INPS (PEG-AUNPS, FE(3)O(4)NPS, SIO(2)NPS, AND TIO(2)NPS) REVEALED SIGNIFICANTLY DEREGULATED GENES WITH FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION IN IMMUNE RESPONSE, DNA DAMAGE, AND CANCER-RELATED PATHWAYS. ALTHOUGH MOST DEREGULATED GENES WERE UNIQUE TO INDIVIDUAL INPS, A RELATIVELY HIGH PROPORTION OF THEM ENCODED THE TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS. INTERESTINGLY, FOS HYPERMETHYLATION INVERSELY CORRELATING WITH GENE EXPRESSION WAS ASSOCIATED WITH ALL INPS EXPOSURES. OUR STUDY EMPHASIZES THE NEED FOR A MORE COMPREHENSIVE INVESTIGATION OF INPS' BIOLOGICAL SAFETY, ESPECIALLY AFTER CHRONIC EXPOSURE. 2022 15 6636 34 UNRAVELING A NEW PLAYER IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS PATHOGENESIS: THE RNA-BINDING PROTEIN HUR. BACKGROUND: ELAV-LIKE PROTEINS ARE A SMALL FAMILY OF RNA-BINDING PROTEINS THAT ARE FUNDAMENTAL PLAYERS IN POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL MECHANISMS AND ARE INVOLVED IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF NEUROLOGIC AND PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS. HUR, THE UBIQUITOUSLY EXPRESSED MEMBER OF THE FAMILY, IS ALSO IMPLICATED IN SUSTAINING INFLAMMATION AND INFLAMMATORY DISEASES, SUPPORTING THE PRODUCTION OF PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES. INFLAMMATION PLAYS A CENTRAL ROLE IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS), WHICH REPRESENTS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE OF PERMANENT PHYSICAL DISABILITY IN YOUNG ADULTS. MS IS A CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE AFFECTING THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM, WITH A COMPLEX AETIOLOGY INVOLVING GENETIC, ENVIRONMENTAL AND EPIGENETIC FACTORS. NO DATA ARE AVAILABLE ON THE POTENTIAL ENTANGLEMENT OF HUR IN MS PATHOGENESIS IN PATIENTS. IN THE PRESENT WORK, WE AIMED AT EXPLORING HUR PROTEIN LEVELS IN PERIPHERAL BLOOD MONONUCLEAR CELLS (PBMCS) FROM MS PATIENTS, COMPARED TO HEALTHY CONTROLS. TO FURTHER ELUCIDATE THE POSSIBLE INVOLVEMENT OF HUR IN MS, WE ALSO INVESTIGATED THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THIS SPECIFIC RNA-BINDING PROTEIN AND HSP70-2 PROTEIN, ALSO CONSIDERING THE HSP70-2 RS1061581 POLYMORPHISM, GIVEN THAT HSP70-2 MRNA HAS BEEN REPORTED AS A HUR TARGET AND THIS SPECIFIC POLYMORPHISM TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH MS RISK. METHODS: ALLELES AND GENOTYPES FOR HSP70-2 RS1061581 POLYMORPHISM WERE ASSESSED, BY USING A POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION-RESTRICTION FRAGMENT LENGTH POLYMORPHISM, FOLLOWED BY DIGESTION WITH RESTRICTION ENZYME, IN MS PATIENTS AND HEALTHY CONTROLS. PBMCS FROM A SUBGROUP OF PATIENTS AND CONTROLS WERE USED TO EVALUATE HUR AND HSP70-2 PROTEIN CONTENT BY WESTERN BLOT. RESULTS: PBMCS FROM 52 MS PATIENTS HAD A LOWER HUR AND HIGHER HSP70-2 PROTEIN CONTENT COMPARED TO 43 HEALTHY CONTROLS. AN INCREASE OF 100 UNITS OF HUR SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED THE RISK OF DEVELOPING MS BY 9.8% (OR: 0.902, 95% CI: 0.83-0.98), CONTROLLING FOR HSP70-2 PROTEIN EXPRESSION, HSP70-2 RS1061581 GENOTYPE, AGE AND SEX. MOREOVER, HOLDING HUR LEVELS, AN INCREASE OF 100 UNITS OF HSP70-2 PROTEIN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED THE MS RISK BY 18.1% (OR: 1.181, 95% CI: 1.03-1.36) AND THE GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY OF DEVELOPING MS FOR HSP70-2 RS1061581 GG CARRIERS IS CONFIRMED. OF INTEREST, MS PATIENTS WITH A MODERATE TO SEVERE FORM OF MS (MSSS >/= 3) SHOWED A TREND TOWARDS A REDUCTION OF HUR PROTEIN LEVELS COMPARED TO PATIENTS WITH MILD DISEASE SEVERITY (MSSS < 3). CONCLUSIONS: HUR PROTEIN LEVELS ARE REDUCED IN MS PATIENTS COMPARED TO HEALTHY SUBJECTS, AND THE PROTEIN AMOUNT MAY CONTINUE TO DECLINE WITH DISEASE PROGRESSION, SUGGESTING A PUTATIVE ROLE OF THIS RNA-BINDING PROTEIN. MOREOVER, OUR RESULTS SUGGEST THAT MS PATHOLOGY MAY HAVE DISRUPTED THE LINK BETWEEN HUR AND ITS TARGET TRANSCRIPT HSP70-2. IT WILL BE IMPORTANT TO FURTHER EXPLORE THE EXACT ROLE OF HUR IN MS, CONSIDERING THE COMPLEX INTERPLAY WITH OTHER RNA-BINDING FACTORS AND TARGET MRNAS. 2020 16 4492 21 MONOZYGOTIC TWINS DISCORDANT FOR ROHHAD PHENOTYPE. RAPID-ONSET OBESITY WITH HYPOTHALAMIC DYSFUNCTION, HYPOVENTILATION, AND AUTONOMIC DYSREGULATION (ROHHAD) FALLS WITHIN A GROUP OF PEDIATRIC DISORDERS WITH BOTH RESPIRATORY CONTROL AND AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM DYSREGULATION. CHILDREN WITH ROHHAD TYPICALLY PRESENT AFTER 1.5 YEARS OF AGE WITH RAPID WEIGHT GAIN AS THE INITIAL SIGN. SUBSEQUENTLY, THEY DEVELOP ALVEOLAR HYPOVENTILATION, AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM DYSREGULATION, AND, IF UNTREATED, CARDIORESPIRATORY ARREST. TO OUR KNOWLEDGE, THIS IS THE FIRST REPORT OF DISCORDANT PRESENTATION OF ROHHAD IN MONOZYGOTIC TWINS. TWIN GIRLS, BORN AT TERM, HAD CONCORDANT GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT UNTIL 8 YEARS OF AGE. FROM 8 TO 12 YEARS OF AGE, THE AFFECTED TWIN DEVELOPED FEATURES CHARACTERISTIC OF ROHHAD INCLUDING OBESITY, ALVEOLAR HYPOVENTILATION, SCOLIOSIS, HYPOTHALAMIC DYSFUNCTION (CENTRAL DIABETES INSIPIDUS, HYPOTHYROIDISM, PREMATURE PUBARCHE, AND GROWTH HORMONE DEFICIENCY), RIGHT PARASPINAL/THORACIC GANGLIONEUROBLASTOMA, SEIZURES, AND AUTONOMIC DYSREGULATION INCLUDING ALTERED PAIN PERCEPTION, LARGE AND SLUGGISHLY REACTIVE PUPILS, HYPOTHERMIA, AND PROFOUND BRADYCARDIA THAT REQUIRED A CARDIAC PACEMAKER. RESULTS OF GENETIC TESTING FOR PHOX2B (CONGENITAL CENTRAL HYPOVENTILATION SYNDROME DISEASE-DEFINING GENE) MUTATIONS WERE NEGATIVE. WITH EARLY RECOGNITION AND CONSERVATIVE MANAGEMENT, THE AFFECTED TWIN HAD EXCELLENT NEUROCOGNITIVE OUTCOME THAT MATCHED THAT OF THE UNAFFECTED TWIN. THE UNAFFECTED TWIN DEMONSTRATED RAPID WEIGHT GAIN LATER IN AGE BUT NOT DEVELOPMENT OF SIGNS/SYMPTOMS CONSISTENT WITH ROHHAD. THIS DISCORDANT TWIN PAIR DEMONSTRATES KEY FEATURES OF ROHHAD INCLUDING THE IMPORTANCE OF EARLY RECOGNITION (ESPECIALLY HYPOVENTILATION), COMPLEXITY OF SIGNS/SYMPTOMS AND CLINICAL COURSE, AND IMPORTANCE OF INITIATING COMPREHENSIVE, MULTISPECIALTY CARE. THESE CASES CONFOUND THE HYPOTHESIS OF A MONOGENIC ETIOLOGY FOR ROHHAD AND INDICATE ALTERNATIVE ETIOLOGIES INCLUDING AUTOIMMUNE OR EPIGENETIC PHENOMENON OR A COMBINATION OF GENETIC PREDISPOSITION AND ACQUIRED PRECIPITANT. 2011 17 3237 31 HEPATIC COX-2 EXPRESSION PROTECTS MICE FROM AN ALCOHOL-HIGH FAT DIET-INDUCED METABOLIC DISORDER BY INVOLVING PROTEIN ACETYLATION RELATED ENERGY METABOLISM. PURPOSE: A DIET HIGH IN FAT AND ETHANOL OFTEN RESULTS IN CHRONIC METABOLIC DISORDER, HEPATIC STEATOSIS, AND LIVER INFLAMMATION. CONSTITUTIVE HEPATIC CYCLOOXYGENASE-2 (COX-2) EXPRESSION COULD PROTECT FROM HIGH FAT-INDUCED METABOLISM DISTURBANCE IN A MURINE MODEL. IN THIS STUDY, WE EXPLORED THE INFLUENCE OF HCOX-2 TRANSGENIC [TG] TO HIGH FAT WITH ETHANOL-INDUCED METABOLIC DISORDER AND LIVER INJURY USING A MOUSE ANIMAL MODEL. METHODS: 12-WEEK-OLD MALE HEPATIC HCOX-2 TRANSGENIC (TG) OR WILD TYPE MICE (WT) WERE FED EITHER A HIGH FAT AND ETHANOL LIQUID DIET (HF+ETH) OR A REGULAR CONTROL DIET (RCD) FOR 5 WEEKS (FOUR GROUPS: RCD/WT, RCD/TG; HF+ETH/TG, HF+ETH/WT). WE ASSESSED METABOLIC BIOMARKERS, CYTOKINE PROFILES, HISTOMORPHOLOGY, AND GENE EXPRESSION TO STUDY THE IMPACT OF PERSISTENT HEPATIC COX-2 EXPRESSION ON DIET-INDUCED LIVER INJURY. RESULTS: IN THE HF+ETH DIET, CONSTITUTIVELY HEPATIC HUMAN COX-2 EXPRESSION PROTECTS MICE FROM BODY WEIGHT GAIN AND WHITE ADIPOSE TISSUE ACCUMULATION, ACCOMPANIED BY IMPROVED IPGTT RESPONSE, SERUM TRIGLYCERIDE/CHOLESTEROL LEVELS, AND LOWER LEVELS OF SERUM AND LIVER INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES. HISTOLOGICALLY, HCOX-2 MICE SHOWED DECREASED HEPATIC LIPID DROPLETS ACCUMULATION, DECREASED HEPATOCYTE BALLOONING, AND IMPROVED STEATOSIS SCORES. HEPATIC HCOX-2 OVEREXPRESSION ENHANCED AKT INSULIN SIGNALING AND INCREASED FATTY ACID SYNTHESIS IN BOTH RCD AND HF+ETH DIET GROUPS. THE ANTI-LIPOGENIC EFFECT OF HCOX-2 TG IN THE HF+ETH DIET ANIMALS WAS MEDIATED BY INCREASING LIPID DISPOSAL THROUGH ENHANCED BETA-OXIDATION VIA ELEVATIONS IN THE EXPRESSION OF PPARALPHA AND PPARGAMMA, AND INCREASED HEPATIC AUTOPHAGY AS ASSESSED BY THE RATIO OF AUTOPHAGY MARKERS LC3 II/I IN HEPATIC TISSUE. VARIOUS PROTEIN ACETYLATION PATHWAY COMPONENTS, INCLUDING HAT, HDAC1, SIRT1, AND SNAIL1, WERE MODULATED IN HCOX-2 TG MICE IN EITHER RCD OR HF+ETH DIET. CONCLUSIONS: HEPATIC HUMAN COX-2 EXPRESSION PROTECTED MICE FROM THE METABOLIC DISORDER AND LIVER INJURY INDUCED BY A HIGH FAT AND ETHANOL DIET BY ENHANCING HEPATIC LIPID EXPENDITURE. EPIGENETIC REPROGRAMMING OF DIVERSE METABOLIC GENES MIGHT BE INVOLVED IN THE ANTI-LIPOGENIC EFFECT OF COX-2. 2021 18 4360 28 MIR-6769B-5P TARGETS CCND-1 TO REGULATE PROLIFERATION IN CADMIUM-TREATED PLACENTAL TROPHOBLASTS: ASSOCIATION WITH THE IMPAIRMENT OF FETAL GROWTH. ENVIRONMENTAL CADMIUM (CD) IS POSITIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH PLACENTAL IMPAIRMENT AND FETAL GROWTH RETARDATION. NEVERTHELESS, ITS POTENTIAL MECHANISMS REMAIN UNCLEAR. MICRORNAS (MIRNAS) ARE KNOWN TO INFLUENCE PLACENTAL DEVELOPMENT AND FETAL GROWTH. THIS WORK WAS AIMED TO DETERMINE WHICH MIRNAS ARE INVOLVED IN CD-IMPAIRED PLACENTAL AND FETAL DEVELOPMENT BASED ON THE MRNA AND MIRNA EXPRESSION PROFILES ANALYSIS. AS A RESULT, GESTATIONAL CD EXPOSURE DECEASED FETAL AND PLACENTAL WEIGHT, AND REDUCED THE PROTEIN LEVEL OF PCNA IN HUMAN AND MOUSE PLACENTAE. FURTHERMORE, THE RESULTS OF MRNA MICROARRAY SHOWED THAT CD-DOWNREGULATED MRNAS WERE PREDICTIVELY CORRELATED WITH SEVERAL BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, INCLUDING CELL PROLIFERATION, DIFFERENTIATION AND MOTILITY. IN ADDITION, THE RESULTS OF MIRNA MICROARRAY AND QPCR ASSAY DEMONSTRATED THAT CD SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED THE LEVEL OF MIR-6769B-5P, MIR-146B-5P AND MIR-452-5P. INTEGRATED ANALYSIS OF CD-UPREGULATED MIRNAS PREDICTED TARGET GENES AND CD-DOWNREGULATED MRNAS FOUND THAT OVERLAPPING MRNAS, SUCH AS CCND1, CDK13, RINT1 AND CDC26 WERE ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY ASSOCIATED WITH CELL PROLIFERATION. FURTHER EXPERIMENTS SHOWED THAT MIR-6769B-5P INHIBITOR, BUT NOT MIR-146B-5P AND MIR-452-5P, MARKEDLY REVERSED CD-DOWNREGULATED THE EXPRESSION OF PROLIFERATION-RELATED MRNAS, AND THEREBY RESTORED CD-DECREASED THE PROTEINS LEVEL OF CCND1 AND PCNA IN HUMAN PLACENTAL TROPHOBLASTS. DUAL LUCIFERASE REPORTER ASSAY FURTHER REVEALED THAT MIR-6769B-5P DIRECTLY TARGETS CCND1. FINALLY, THE CASE-CONTROL STUDY DEMONSTRATED THAT INCREASED MIR-6769B-5P LEVEL AND IMPAIRED CELL PROLIFERATION WERE OBSERVED IN SMALL-FOR-GESTATIONAL-AGE HUMAN PLACENTAE. IN CONCLUSION, MIR-6769B-5P TARGETS CCND-1 TO REGULATE PROLIFERATION IN CD-TREATED PLACENTAL TROPHOBLASTS, WHICH IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE IMPAIRMENT OF FETAL GROWTH. OUR FINDINGS IMPLY THAT PLACENTAL MIR-6769B-5P MAY BE USED AS AN EPIGENETIC MARKER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTANTS-CAUSED FETAL GROWTH RESTRICTION AND ITS LATE-ONSET CHRONIC DISEASES. 2021 19 6914 23 [VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY IN PREGNANCY AND ITS IMPACT ON THE FETUS, THE NEWBORN AND IN CHILDHOOD]. OBJECTIVE: VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY (VDD) IN PREGNANT WOMEN AND THEIR CHILDREN IS AN IMPORTANT HEALTH PROBLEM WITH SEVERE CONSEQUENCES FOR THE HEALTH OF BOTH. THUS, THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS REVIEW WERE TO REASSESS THE MAGNITUDE AND CONSEQUENCES OF VDD DURING PREGNANCY, LACTATION AND INFANCY, ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS, PREVENTION METHODS, AND TO EXPLORE EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS IN EARLY FETAL LIFE CAPABLE OF EXPLAINING MANY OF THE NON-SKELETAL BENEFITS OF VITAMIN D (VID). DATA SOURCE: ORIGINAL AND REVIEW ARTICLES, AND CONSENSUS DOCUMENTS WITH ELEVATED LEVEL OF EVIDENCE FOR VDD-RELATED CLINICAL DECISIONS ON THE HEALTH OF PREGNANT WOMEN AND THEIR CHILDREN, AS WELL AS ARTICLES ON THE INFLUENCE OF VID ON EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS OF FETAL PROGRAMMING OF CHRONIC DISEASES IN ADULTHOOD WERE SELECTED AMONG ARTICLES PUBLISHED ON PUBMED OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS, USING THE SEARCH TERM VITD STATUS, IN COMBINATION WITH PREGNANCY, OFFSPRING HEALTH, CHILD OUTCOMES, AND PROGRAMMING. DATA SYNTHESIS: THE FOLLOWING ITEMS WERE ANALYZED: VID PHYSIOLOGY AND METABOLISM, RISK FACTORS FOR VDD AND IMPLICATIONS IN PREGNANCY, LACTATION AND INFANCY, CONCENTRATION CUTOFF TO DEFINE VDD, THE VARIABILITY OF METHODS FOR VDD DETECTION, RECOMMENDATIONS ON VID REPLACEMENT IN PREGNANT WOMEN, THE NEWBORN AND THE CHILD, AND THE EPIGENETIC INFLUENCE OF VID. CONCLUSIONS: VDD IS A COMMON CONDITION AMONG HIGH-RISK PREGNANT WOMEN AND THEIR CHILDREN. THE ROUTINE MONITORING OF SERUM 25(OH)D3 LEVELS IN ANTENATAL PERIOD IS MANDATORY. EARLY PREVENTIVE MEASURES SHOULD BE TAKEN AT THE SLIGHTEST SUSPICION OF VDD IN PREGNANT WOMEN, TO REDUCE MORBIDITY DURING PREGNANCY AND LACTATION, AS WELL AS ITS SUBSEQUENT IMPACT ON THE FETUS, THE NEWBORN AND THE CHILD. 2015 20 227 23 ADAPTATION OF AN OUTBREAKING INSECT DEFOLIATOR TO CHRONIC NUTRITIONAL STRESS. DURING INSECT OUTBREAKS, THE HIGH NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS FEEDING ON ITS HOST PLANT CAUSES A DEPLETION OF THE FOOD SOURCE. REDUCED AVAILABILITY AND DECREASED QUALITY OF NUTRIENTS NEGATIVELY INFLUENCE LIFE-HISTORY TRAITS OF INSECTS DRIVING THEM TO DEVELOP ADAPTIVE STRATEGIES TO PERSIST IN THE ENVIRONMENT. IN A LABORATORY EXPERIMENT WITH THREE REPETITIONS, WE TESTED THE EFFECT OF CHRONIC NUTRITIONAL STRESS ON SPRUCE BUDWORM PERFORMANCE DURING THREE GENERATIONS TO DETERMINE THE ADAPTIVE STRATEGIES EMPLOYED BY THE INSECT TO DEAL WITH A SELECTION PRESSURE PRODUCED BY LOW-QUALITY DIET. OUR RESULTS SHOW THAT ALL TESTED LIFE-HISTORY TRAITS (MORTALITY, DEVELOPMENTAL TIME, PUPAL MASS, GROWTH RATE AND FEMALE FECUNDITY) BUT FEMALE FERTILITY WERE NEGATIVELY INFLUENCED BY THE LOW-QUALITY DIET SIMULATING FOOD DEPLETION DURING OUTBREAK CONDITIONS. HOWEVER, ESPECIALLY FEMALES IN THE THIRD GENERATION UNDER CHRONIC NUTRITIONAL STRESS SHOW AN ADAPTIVE RESPONSE IN LIFE-HISTORY TRAITS WHEN COMPARED TO THOSE REARED ONLY ONE GENERATION ON LOW-QUALITY DIET. LARVAL DEVELOPMENTAL TIME SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED AND PUPAL MASS, GROWTH RATE AND FECUNDITY SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED. THE STUDY DEMONSTRATES THE CAPACITY OF SPRUCE BUDWORM TO REACT TO CHRONIC NUTRITIONAL STRESS WITH ADAPTATIONS THAT MAY BE CAUSED BY EPIGENETIC PARENTAL EFFECTS. THIS INFORMATION CAN HELP TO UNDERSTAND THE COURSE OF AN OUTBREAK ESPECIALLY AT PEAK DENSITIES AND DURING THE COLLAPSE. 2015