1 2339 122 EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF KEAP1-NRF2 SIGNALING. THE KELCH-LIKE ECH-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 1 (KEAP1)-NUCLEAR FACTOR ERYTHROID 2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2) SIGNALING AXIS SERVES AS A "MASTER REGULATOR" IN RESPONSE TO OXIDATIVE/ELECTROPHILIC STRESSES AND CHEMICAL INSULTS THROUGH THE COORDINATED INDUCTION OF A WIDE ARRAY OF CYTOPROTECTIVE GENES. THEREFORE, ACTIVATION OF NRF2 IS CONSIDERED TO BE AN IMPORTANT APPROACH FOR PREVENTING CHRONIC DISEASES TRIGGERED BY STRESSES AND TOXINS, INCLUDING CANCER. DESPITE EXTENSIVE STUDIES SUGGESTED THAT THE KEAP1-NRF2 SIGNALING PATHWAY IS SUBJECT TO MULTIPLE LAYERS OF REGULATION AT THE TRANSCRIPTIONAL, TRANSLATIONAL, AND POST-TRANSLATIONAL LEVELS, THE POTENTIAL EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF NRF2 AND KEAP1 HAS BEGUN TO BE RECOGNIZED ONLY IN RECENT YEARS. EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS, HERITABLE ALTERATIONS IN GENE EXPRESSION THAT OCCUR WITHOUT CHANGES IN THE PRIMARY DNA SEQUENCE, HAVE BEEN REPORTED TO BE PROFOUNDLY INVOLVED IN OXIDATIVE STRESS RESPONSES. IN THIS REVIEW, WE DISCUSS THE LATEST FINDINGS REGARDING THE EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF KEAP1-NRF2 SIGNALING BY DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATION, AND MICRORNAS. THE CROSSTALK AMONG THESE EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS IN THE REGULATION OF KEAP1-NRF2 SIGNALING PATHWAYS IS ALSO DISCUSSED. STUDIES OF THE EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION OF NRF2 AND KEAP1 HAVE NOT ONLY ENHANCED OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THIS COMPLEX CELLULAR DEFENSE SYSTEM BUT HAVE ALSO PROVIDED POTENTIAL NEW THERAPEUTIC TARGETS FOR THE PREVENTION OF CERTAIN DISEASES. 2015 2 4836 42 ONCOGENIC FUNCTIONS OF THE TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR NRF2. NUCLEAR FACTOR E2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2) IS A TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR THAT CONTROLS THE EXPRESSION OF A LARGE POOL OF ANTIOXIDANT AND CYTOPROTECTIVE GENES REGULATING THE CELLULAR RESPONSE TO OXIDATIVE AND ELECTROPHILIC STRESS. NRF2 IS NEGATIVELY REGULATED BY KELCH-LIKE ECH-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 1 (KEAP1) AND, UPON STIMULATION BY AN OXIDATIVE OR ELECTROPHILIC INSULT, IS RAPIDLY ACTIVATED BY PROTEIN STABILIZATION. OWING TO ITS CYTOPROTECTIVE FUNCTIONS, NRF2 HAS BEEN TRADITIONALLY STUDIED IN THE FIELD OF CHEMOPREVENTION; HOWEVER, THERE IS ACCUMULATED EVIDENCE THAT KEAP1/NRF2 MUTATIONS OR UNBALANCED REGULATION THAT LEADS TO OVEREXPRESSION OR HYPERACTIVATION OF NRF2 MAY PARTICIPATE IN TUMORIGENESIS AND BE INVOLVED IN CHEMORESISTANCE OF A WIDE NUMBER OF SOLID CANCERS AND LEUKEMIAS. IN ADDITION TO PROTECTING CELLS FROM REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES, NRF2 SEEMS TO PLAY A DIRECT ROLE IN CELL GROWTH CONTROL AND IS RELATED TO APOPTOSIS-REGULATING PATHWAYS. MOREOVER, NRF2 ACTIVITY IS CONNECTED WITH ONCOGENIC KINASE PATHWAYS, STRUCTURAL PROTEINS, HORMONAL REGULATION, OTHER TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS, AND EPIGENETIC ENZYMES INVOLVED IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF VARIOUS TYPES OF TUMORS. THE AIM OF THIS REVIEW IS TO COMPILE AND SUMMARIZE EXISTING KNOWLEDGE OF THE ONCOGENIC FUNCTIONS OF NRF2 TO PROVIDE A SOLID BASIS FOR ITS POTENTIAL USE AS A MOLECULAR MARKER AND PHARMACOLOGICAL TARGET IN CANCER. 2013 3 4764 44 NRF2: FRIEND OR FOE FOR CHEMOPREVENTION? HEALTH REFLECTS THE ABILITY OF AN ORGANISM TO ADAPT TO STRESS. STRESSES--METABOLIC, PROTEOTOXIC, MITOTIC, OXIDATIVE AND DNA-DAMAGE STRESSES--NOT ONLY CONTRIBUTE TO THE ETIOLOGY OF CANCER AND OTHER CHRONIC DEGENERATIVE DISEASES BUT ARE ALSO HALLMARKS OF THE CANCER PHENOTYPE. ACTIVATION OF THE KELCH-LIKE ECH-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 1 (KEAP1)-NF-E2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2)-SIGNALING PATHWAY IS AN ADAPTIVE RESPONSE TO ENVIRONMENTAL AND ENDOGENOUS STRESSES AND SERVES TO RENDER ANIMALS RESISTANT TO CHEMICAL CARCINOGENESIS AND OTHER FORMS OF TOXICITY, WHILST DISRUPTION OF THE PATHWAY EXACERBATES THESE OUTCOMES. THIS PATHWAY CAN BE INDUCED BY THIOL-REACTIVE SMALL MOLECULES THAT DEMONSTRATE PROTECTIVE EFFICACY IN PRECLINICAL CHEMOPREVENTION MODELS AND IN CLINICAL TRIALS. HOWEVER, MUTATIONS AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS AFFECTING THE REGULATION AND FATE OF NRF2 CAN LEAD TO CONSTITUTIVE DOMINANT HYPERACTIVATION OF SIGNALING THAT PRESERVES RATHER THAN ATTENUATES CANCER PHENOTYPES BY PROVIDING SELECTIVE RESISTANCE TO STRESSES. THIS REVIEW PROVIDES A SYNOPSIS OF KEAP1-NRF2 SIGNALING, COMPARES THE IMPACT OF GENETIC VERSUS PHARMACOLOGIC ACTIVATION AND CONSIDERS BOTH THE ATTRIBUTES AND CONCERNS OF TARGETING THE PATHWAY IN CHEMOPREVENTION. 2010 4 6045 43 THE COMPLEXITY OF THE NRF2 PATHWAY: BEYOND THE ANTIOXIDANT RESPONSE. THE NF-E2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2)-MEDIATED SIGNALLING PATHWAY PROVIDES LIVING ORGANISMS AN EFFICIENT AND PIVOTAL LINE OF DEFENSIVE TO COUNTERACT ENVIRONMENTAL INSULTS AND ENDOGENOUS STRESSORS. NRF2 COORDINATES THE BASAL AND INDUCIBLE EXPRESSION OF ANTIOXIDANT AND PHASE II DETOXIFICATION ENZYMES TO ADAPT TO DIFFERENT STRESS CONDITIONS. THE STABILITY AND CELLULAR DISTRIBUTION OF NRF2 IS TIGHTLY CONTROLLED BY ITS INHIBITORY BINDING PROTEIN KELCH-LIKE ECH-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 1. NRF2 SIGNALLING IS ALSO REGULATED BY POSTTRANSLATIONAL, TRANSCRIPTIONAL, TRANSLATIONAL AND EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, AS WELL AS BY OTHER PROTEIN PARTNERS, INCLUDING P62, P21 AND IQ MOTIF-CONTAINING GTPASE ACTIVATING PROTEIN 1. MANY STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT NRF2 IS A PROMISING TARGET FOR PREVENTING CARCINOGENESIS AND OTHER CHRONIC DISEASES, INCLUDING CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES AND PULMONARY INJURY. HOWEVER, CONSTITUTIVE ACTIVATION OF NRF2 IN ADVANCED CANCER CELLS MAY CONFER DRUG RESISTANCE. HERE, WE REVIEW THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF NRF2 SIGNALLING, THE DIVERSE CLASSES OF NRF2 ACTIVATORS, INCLUDING BIOACTIVE NUTRIENTS AND OTHER CHEMICALS, AND THE CELLULAR FUNCTIONS AND DISEASE RELEVANCE OF NRF2 AND DISCUSS THE DUAL ROLE OF NRF2 IN DIFFERENT CONTEXTS. 2015 5 4534 39 MULTIPLE REGULATIONS OF KEAP1/NRF2 SYSTEM BY DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS. KEAP1/NRF2 SYSTEM PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE ON CELLULAR PROTECTION BY REGULATING MANY ANTIOXIDANT AND DETOXIFICATION ENZYME GENES THROUGH THE ANTIOXIDANT RESPONSE ELEMENT (ARE). THUS, IT MUST WORK CONSTANTLY TO PREVENT THE ACCUMULATION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS) BECAUSE EXCESS ROS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH MANY DISEASES SUCH AS CANCER, CARDIOVASCULAR COMPLICATIONS, INFLAMMATION, AND NEURODEGENERATION. DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS WIDELY DISTRIBUTING IN FRUITS AND VEGETABLES HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED TO POSSESS CANCER CHEMOPREVENTIVE POTENTIAL THROUGH THE INDUCTION OF KEAP1/NRF2 SYSTEM-MEDIATED ANTIOXIDANT AND DETOXIFICATION ENZYMES IN A VARIETY OF MANNERS. THE DATA ARE EXTENSIVE AND ARE NOT WELL CLASSIFIED ON THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS. IN THIS REVIEW, WE FIRST BRIEFLY INTRODUCE THE CURRENT KNOWLEDGE ON KEAP1/NRF2 SYSTEM REGULATION INCLUDING KEAP1-DEPENDENT AND KEAP1-INDEPENDENT CASCADES, AND EPIGENETIC PATHWAY. THEN, WE SUMMARIZE THE MOLECULAR TARGETS OF KEAP1/NRF2 SYSTEM BY DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS, AND FINALLY REVIEW THE CROSSTALK BETWEEN KEAP1/NRF2 SYSTEM AND OTHER CELLULAR SIGNALING PATHWAYS TO REGULATE DIVERSE CHRONIC DISEASES BY DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS. THESE COMPREHENSIVE DATA WILL HELP US TO UNDERSTAND THE POTENTIAL EFFECTS OF DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS ON THE PREVENTION OF CHRONIC DISEASES AND MAINTENANCE OF HUMAN HEALTH. 2016 6 1413 43 DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS AND CANCER CHEMOPREVENTION: A PERSPECTIVE ON OXIDATIVE STRESS, INFLAMMATION, AND EPIGENETICS. OXIDATIVE STRESS OCCURS WHEN CELLULAR REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES LEVELS EXCEED THE SELF-ANTIOXIDANT CAPACITY OF THE BODY. OXIDATIVE STRESS INDUCES MANY PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES, INCLUDING INFLAMMATION AND CANCER. CHRONIC INFLAMMATION IS BELIEVED TO BE STRONGLY ASSOCIATED WITH THE MAJOR STAGES OF CARCINOGENESIS. THE NUCLEAR FACTOR ERYTHROID 2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2) PATHWAY PLAYS A CRUCIAL ROLE IN REGULATING OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION BY MANIPULATING KEY ANTIOXIDANT AND DETOXIFICATION ENZYME GENES VIA THE ANTIOXIDANT RESPONSE ELEMENT. MANY DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS WITH CANCER CHEMOPREVENTIVE PROPERTIES, SUCH AS POLYPHENOLS, ISOTHIOCYANATES, AND TRITERPENOIDS, EXERT ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY FUNCTIONS BY ACTIVATING THE NRF2 PATHWAY. FURTHERMORE, EPIGENETIC CHANGES, INCLUDING DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE POST-TRANSLATIONAL MODIFICATIONS, AND MIRNA-MEDIATED POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL ALTERATIONS, ALSO LEAD TO VARIOUS CARCINOGENESIS PROCESSES BY SUPPRESSING CANCER REPRESSOR GENE TRANSCRIPTION. USING EPIGENETIC RESEARCH TOOLS, INCLUDING NEXT-GENERATION SEQUENCING TECHNOLOGIES, MANY DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS ARE SHOWN TO MODIFY AND REVERSE ABERRANT EPIGENETIC/EPIGENOME CHANGES, POTENTIALLY LEADING TO CANCER PREVENTION/TREATMENT. THUS, THE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS ON CANCER DEVELOPMENT WARRANT FURTHER INVESTIGATION TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL IMPETUS FOR CLINICAL TRANSLATIONAL STUDIES. 2016 7 4427 49 MOLECULAR BASIS OF ELECTROPHILIC AND OXIDATIVE DEFENSE: PROMISES AND PERILS OF NRF2. INDUCTION OF DRUG-METABOLIZING ENZYMES THROUGH THE ANTIOXIDANT RESPONSE ELEMENT (ARE)-DEPENDENT TRANSCRIPTION WAS INITIALLY IMPLICATED IN CHEMOPREVENTION AGAINST CANCER BY ANTIOXIDANTS. RECENT PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE BIOLOGY AND MECHANISM OF INDUCTION REVEALED A CRITICAL ROLE OF INDUCTION IN CELLULAR DEFENSE AGAINST ELECTROPHILIC AND OXIDATIVE STRESS. INDUCTION IS MEDIATED THROUGH A NOVEL SIGNALING PATHWAY VIA TWO REGULATORY PROTEINS, THE NUCLEAR FACTOR ERYTHROID 2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2) AND THE KELCH-LIKE ERYTHROID CELL-DERIVED PROTEIN WITH CNC HOMOLOGY-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 1 (KEAP1). NRF2 BINDS TO KEAP1 AT A TWO SITE-BINDING INTERFACE AND IS UBIQUITINATED BY THE KEAP1/CULLIN 3/RING BOX PROTEIN-1-UBIQUITIN LIGASE, RESULTING IN A RAPID TURNOVER OF NRF2 PROTEIN. ELECTROPHILES AND OXIDANTS MODIFY CRITICAL CYSTEINE THIOLS OF KEAP1 AND NRF2 TO INHIBIT NRF2 UBIQUITINATION, LEADING TO NRF2 ACTIVATION AND INDUCTION. INDUCTION INCREASES STRESS RESISTANCE CRITICAL FOR CELL SURVIVAL, BECAUSE KNOCKOUT OF NRF2 IN MICE INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO A VARIETY OF TOXICITY AND DISEASE PROCESSES. COLLATERAL TO DIVERSE FUNCTIONS OF NRF2, GENOME-WIDE SEARCH HAS LED TO THE IDENTIFICATION OF A PLETHORA OF ARE-DEPENDENT GENES REGULATED BY NRF2 IN AN INDUCER-, TISSUE-, AND DISEASE-DEPENDENT MANNER TO CONTROL DRUG METABOLISM, ANTIOXIDANT DEFENSE, STRESS RESPONSE, PROTEASOMAL DEGRADATION, AND CELL PROLIFERATION. THE PROTECTIVE NATURE OF NRF2 COULD ALSO BE HIJACKED IN A NUMBER OF PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS BY MEANS OF SOMATIC MUTATION, EPIGENETIC ALTERATION, AND ACCUMULATION OF DISRUPTOR PROTEINS, PROMOTING DRUG RESISTANCE IN CANCER AND PATHOLOGIC LIVER FEATURES IN AUTOPHAGY DEFICIENCY. THE REPERTOIRE OF ARE INDUCERS HAS EXPANDED ENORMOUSLY; THE THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL OF THE INDUCERS HAS BEEN EXAMINED BEYOND CANCER PREVENTION. DEVELOPING POTENT AND SPECIFIC ARE INDUCERS AND NRF2 INHIBITORS HOLDS CERTAIN NEW PROMISE FOR THE PREVENTION AND THERAPY AGAINST CANCER, CHRONIC DISEASE, AND TOXICITY. 2012 8 1416 47 DIETARY POLYPHENOLS REMODEL DNA METHYLATION PATTERNS OF NRF2 IN CHRONIC DISEASE. THE NUCLEAR FACTOR ERYTHROID 2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2) IS A TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR CRUCIAL IN REGULATING CELLULAR HOMEOSTASIS AND APOPTOSIS. THE NRF2 GENE HAS BEEN IMPLICATED IN VARIOUS BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING ANTIOXIDANT, ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, AND ANTICANCER PROPERTIES. NRF2 CAN BE REGULATED GENETICALLY AND EPIGENETICALLY AT THE TRANSCRIPTIONAL, POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL, AND TRANSLATIONAL LEVELS. ALTHOUGH DNA METHYLATION IS ONE OF THE CRITICAL BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES VITAL FOR GENE EXPRESSION, SOMETIMES, ANOMALOUS METHYLATION PATTERNS RESULT IN THE DYSREGULATION OF GENES AND CONSEQUENT DISEASES AND DISORDERS. SEVERAL STUDIES HAVE REPORTED PROMOTER HYPERMETHYLATION DOWNREGULATED NRF2 EXPRESSION AND ITS DOWNSTREAM TARGETS. IN CONTRAST TO THE UNALTERABLE NATURE OF GENETIC PATTERNS, EPIGENETIC CHANGES CAN BE REVERSED, OPENING UP NEW POSSIBILITIES IN DEVELOPING THERAPIES FOR VARIOUS METABOLIC DISORDERS AND DISEASES. THIS REVIEW DISCUSSES THE CURRENT STATE OF THE NRF2-MEDIATED ANTIOXIDATIVE AND CHEMOPREVENTIVE ACTIVITIES OF SEVERAL NATURAL PHYTOCHEMICALS, INCLUDING SULFORAPHANE, RESVERATROL, CURCUMIN, LUTEOLIN, COROSOLIC ACID, APIGENIN, AND MOST OTHER COMPOUNDS THAT HAVE BEEN FOUND TO ACTIVATE NRF2. THIS EPIGENETIC REVERSAL OF HYPERMETHYLATED NRF2 STATES PROVIDES NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESEARCH INTO DIETARY PHYTOCHEMISTRY THAT AFFECTS THE HUMAN EPIGENOME AND THE POSSIBILITY FOR CUTTING-EDGE APPROACHES TO TARGET NRF2-MEDIATED SIGNALING TO PREVENT CHRONIC DISORDERS. 2023 9 4898 40 OXIDATIVE STRESS INDUCED LUNG CANCER AND COPD: OPPORTUNITIES FOR EPIGENETIC THERAPY. REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS) FORM AS A NATURAL BY-PRODUCT OF THE NORMAL METABOLISM OF OXYGEN AND PLAY IMPORTANT ROLES WITHIN THE CELL. UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES THE CELL IS ABLE TO MAINTAIN AN ADEQUATE HOMEOSTASIS BETWEEN THE FORMATION OF ROS AND ITS REMOVAL THROUGH PARTICULAR ENZYMATIC PATHWAYS OR VIA ANTIOXIDANTS. IF HOWEVER, THIS BALANCE IS DISTURBED A SITUATION CALLED OXIDATIVE STRESS OCCURS. CRITICALLY, OXIDATIVE STRESS PLAYS IMPORTANT ROLES IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF MANY DISEASES, INCLUDING CANCER. EPIGENETICS IS A PROCESS WHERE GENE EXPRESSION IS REGULATED BY HERITABLE MECHANISMS THAT DO NOT CAUSE ANY DIRECT CHANGES TO THE DNA SEQUENCE ITSELF, AND DISRUPTION OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS HAS IMPORTANT IMPLICATIONS IN DISEASE. EVIDENCE IS EMERGING THAT HISTONE DEACETYLASES (HDACS) PLAY DECISIVE ROLES IN REGULATING IMPORTANT CELLULAR OXIDATIVE STRESS PATHWAYS INCLUDING THOSE INVOLVED WITH SENSING OXIDATIVE STRESS AND THOSE INVOLVED WITH REGULATING THE CELLULAR RESPONSE TO OXIDATIVE STRESS. IN PARTICULAR ABERRANT REGULATION OF THESE PATHWAYS BY HDACS MAY PLAY CRITICAL ROLES IN CANCER PROGRESSION. IN THIS REVIEW WE DISCUSS THE CURRENT EVIDENCE LINKING EPIGENETICS AND OXIDATIVE STRESS AND CANCER, USING CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE AND NON-SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER TO ILLUSTRATE THE IMPORTANCE OF EPIGENETICS ON THESE PATHWAYS WITHIN THESE DISEASE SETTINGS. 2009 10 4372 38 MIRNAS, OXIDATIVE STRESS, AND CANCER: A COMPREHENSIVE AND UPDATED REVIEW. OXIDATIVE STRESS REFERS TO ELEVATED LEVELS OF INTRACELLULAR REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS). ROS HOMEOSTASIS FUNCTIONS AS A SIGNALING PATHWAY FOR NORMAL CELL SURVIVAL AND APPROPRIATE CELL SIGNALING. CHRONIC INFLAMMATION INDUCED BY IMBALANCED LEVELS OF ROS CONTRIBUTES TO MANY DISEASES AND DIFFERENT TYPES OF CANCER. ROS CAN ALTER THE EXPRESSION OF ONCOGENES AND TUMOR SUPPRESSOR GENES THROUGH EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS, TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS, AND NON-CODING RNAS. MICRORNAS (MIRNAS) ARE SMALL NON-CODING RNAS THAT PLAY A KEY ROLE IN MOST BIOLOGICAL PATHWAYS. EACH MIRNA REGULATES HUNDREDS OF TARGET GENES BY INHIBITING PROTEIN TRANSLATION AND/OR PROMOTING MESSENGER RNA DEGRADATION. IN NORMAL CONDITIONS, MIRNAS PLAY A PHYSIOLOGICAL ROLE IN CELL PROLIFERATION, DIFFERENTIATION, AND APOPTOSIS. HOWEVER, DIFFERENT FACTORS THAT CAN DYSREGULATE CELL SIGNALING AND CELLULAR HOMEOSTASIS CAN ALSO AFFECT MIRNA EXPRESSION. THE ALTERATION OF MIRNA EXPRESSION CAN WORK AGAINST DISTURBING FACTORS OR MEDIATE THEIR EFFECTS. OXIDATIVE STRESS IS ONE OF THESE FACTORS. CONSIDERING THE COMPLEX INTERPLAY BETWEEN ROS LEVEL AND MIRNA REGULATION AND BOTH OF THESE WITH CANCER DEVELOPMENT, WE REVIEW THE ROLE OF MIRNAS IN CANCER, FOCUSING ON THEIR FUNCTION IN OXIDATIVE STRESS. 2020 11 1864 39 EMERGING AVENUES LINKING INFLAMMATION AND CANCER. THE ROLE OF INFLAMMATION IN CARCINOGENESIS HAS BEEN EXTENSIVELY INVESTIGATED AND WELL DOCUMENTED. MANY BIOCHEMICAL PROCESSES THAT ARE ALTERED DURING CHRONIC INFLAMMATION HAVE BEEN IMPLICATED IN TUMORIGENESIS. THESE INCLUDE SHIFTING CELLULAR REDOX BALANCE TOWARD OXIDATIVE STRESS; INDUCTION OF GENOMIC INSTABILITY; INCREASED DNA DAMAGE; STIMULATION OF CELL PROLIFERATION, METASTASIS, AND ANGIOGENESIS; DEREGULATION OF CELLULAR EPIGENETIC CONTROL OF GENE EXPRESSION; AND INAPPROPRIATE EPITHELIAL-TO-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION. A WIDE ARRAY OF PROINFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES, PROSTAGLANDINS, NITRIC OXIDE, AND MATRICELLULAR PROTEINS ARE CLOSELY INVOLVED IN PREMALIGNANT AND MALIGNANT CONVERSION OF CELLS IN A BACKGROUND OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION. INAPPROPRIATE TRANSCRIPTION OF GENES ENCODING INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS, SURVIVAL FACTORS, AND ANGIOGENIC AND METASTATIC PROTEINS IS THE KEY MOLECULAR EVENT IN LINKING INFLAMMATION AND CANCER. ABERRANT CELL SIGNALING PATHWAYS COMPRISING VARIOUS KINASES AND THEIR DOWNSTREAM TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS THE MAJOR CONTRIBUTORS IN ABNORMAL GENE EXPRESSION ASSOCIATED WITH INFLAMMATION-DRIVEN CARCINOGENESIS. THE POSTTRANSCRIPTIONAL REGULATION OF GENE EXPRESSION BY MICRORNAS ALSO PROVIDES THE MOLECULAR BASIS FOR LINKING INFLAMMATION TO CANCER. THIS REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS THE MULTIFACETED ROLE OF INFLAMMATION IN CARCINOGENESIS IN THE CONTEXT OF ALTERED CELLULAR REDOX SIGNALING. 2012 12 3703 30 INFLAMMATORY SIGNALLING AS MEDIATOR OF EPIGENETIC MODULATION IN TISSUE-SPECIFIC CHRONIC INFLAMMATION. RECENT SUCCESSES OF THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION IN CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES USING EPIGENETIC MODIFIERS SUCH AS HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITORS AND INHIBITORS OF DNA METHYLATION SUGGEST THAT EPIGENETIC REPROGRAMMING PLAYS A ROLE IN THE AETIOLOGY OF THESE DISEASES. THE EPIGENETIC SIGNATURE OF A GIVEN IMMUNE CELL IS REFLECTED IN THE HISTORY OF MODIFICATIONS FROM DIFFERENT SIGNALS THE CELL HAS BEEN SUBJECTED TO DURING DIFFERENTIATION. LIKE OTHER CELLS, DIFFERENTIATING IMMUNE CELLS ARE DEPENDENT ON A COMPLEX COMBINATION OF INTER- AND INTRACELL SIGNALLING AS WELL AS TRANSCRIPTION MACHINERIES TO MODULATE THEIR EPIGENOMES IN ORDER TO MEDIATE DIFFERENTIATION. DESPITE EXTENSIVE RESEARCH INTO THESE PROCESSES, THE LINK BETWEEN CELLULAR SIGNALLING AND EPIGENETIC MODULATION REMAINS POORLY UNDERSTOOD. HERE, WE REVIEW RECENT PROGRESS AND DISCUSS KEY FACTORS DRIVING EPIGENETIC MODULATION IN CHRONIC INFLAMMATION. 2009 13 4987 36 PATTERNS OF CALCIUM SIGNALING: A LINK BETWEEN CHRONIC EMOTIONS AND CANCER. INTRA AND INTER-CELLULAR CALCIUM SIGNALING IS PRESENT IN ALL TYPES OF CELLS AND BODY TISSUES. IN THE HUMAN BRAIN, CALCIUM CURRENTS AND WAVES ARE RELATED TO MENTAL ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING EMOTIONS. WE PRESENT A THEORETICAL INTERPRETATION OF THESE PHENOMENA SUGGESTING THEIR INVOLVEMENT IN CHRONIC EMOTIONAL PATTERNS AND IN THE PATHOLOGY OF CANCER. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON BIOPHYSICS, TRANSLATIONAL BIOLOGY AND PSYCHONEUROENDOCRINOIMMUNOLOGY (PNEI) CAN SUPPORT EXPLANATORY HYPOTHESES ABOUT THE LINK BETWEEN EMOTIONAL STRESSES AND THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF TUMOR CELLS. CHRONIC STRESSES MAY CAUSE PERTURBATIONS OF RHYTHMS OF THE PNEI SYSTEM, EXCESSIVE ACTIVATION OF HPA AXIS AND ABNORMAL ACTIVATION OF CALCIUM SIGNALS IN SOMATIC TISSUES, WITH DELETERIOUS EFFECTS ON DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE BODY. THE INCREASING OF CALCIUM SIGNALING INSIDE CELLS MAY LEAD TO A DEREGULATION OF DIFFERENT PATHWAYS AND EPIGENETIC SYSTEMS THAT PROMOTE THE PRODUCTION OF GENOMIC MUTATIONS IN A SECOND PHASE. IN PARTICULAR, THE HYPERACTIVATION OF THE TRANSCRIPTION NUCLEAR FACTOR KAPPAB (NF-KAPPAB), IF IS NOT COUNTERBALANCED BY THE FOLLOWING ACTIVATION OF THE NUCLEAR FACTOR (ERYTHROID-DERIVED 2)-LIKE 2 (NFE2L2 OR NRF2), INCREASES THE PRODUCTION OF OXIDATIVE CATABOLITES, AS THE ADVANCED GLYCATION END PRODUCTS (AGE), WHICH PLAY A KEY ROLE IN THE PROGRESSION OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF CANCER AND OTHER DEGENERATIVE DISEASES. CORTISOL BINDING TO GLUCOCORTICOID RECEPTOR (GR) REDUCES THE ACTIVITY OF BOTH NF-KAPPAB AND NRF2 INSIDE THE CELLS BUT INHIBITS THE CELLULAR IMMUNITY AND THE ANABOLIC PROCESSES OF TISSUE REGENERATION. THE TISSUE ATROPHY AND THE DEFECTIVE ANTI-AGEING MECHANISMS PROMOTES THE TUMORAL CELLS GROWTH AND THEIR ESCAPE FROM THE IMMUNE-SURVEILLANCE. 2017 14 5410 36 REGULATION OF ADAPTIVE IMMUNE CELLS BY SIRTUINS. IT IS NOW WELL-ESTABLISHED THAT THE PATHWAYS THAT CONTROL LYMPHOCYTE METABOLISM AND FUNCTION ARE INTIMATELY LINKED, AND CHANGES IN LYMPHOCYTE METABOLISM CAN INFLUENCE AND DIRECT CELLULAR FUNCTION. INTERESTINGLY, A NUMBER OF RECENT ADVANCES INDICATE THAT LYMPHOCYTE IDENTITY AND METABOLISM IS PARTIALLY CONTROLLED VIA EPIGENETIC REGULATION. EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, SUCH AS CHANGES IN DNA METHYLATION OR HISTONE ACETYLATION, HAVE BEEN FOUND TO ALTER IMMUNE FUNCTION AND PLAY A ROLE IN NUMEROUS CHRONIC DISEASE STATES. THERE ARE SEVERAL ENZYMES THAT CAN MEDIATE EPIGENETIC CHANGES; OF PARTICULAR INTEREST ARE SIRTUINS, PROTEIN DEACETYLASES THAT MEDIATE ADAPTIVE RESPONSES TO A VARIETY OF STRESSES (INCLUDING CALORIE RESTRICTION AND METABOLIC STRESS) AND ARE NOW UNDERSTOOD TO PLAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN IMMUNITY. THIS REVIEW WILL FOCUS ON RECENT ADVANCES IN THE UNDERSTANDING OF HOW SIRTUINS AFFECT THE ADAPTIVE IMMUNE SYSTEM. THESE PATHWAYS ARE OF SIGNIFICANT INTEREST AS THERAPEUTIC TARGETS FOR THE TREATMENT OF AUTOIMMUNITY, CANCER, AND TRANSPLANT TOLERANCE. 2019 15 5943 38 TARGETING OXIDATIVE STRESS IN CANCER. IMPORTANCE OF THE FIELD: REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS) OCCUR AS NATURAL BY-PRODUCTS OF OXYGEN METABOLISM AND HAVE IMPORTANT CELLULAR FUNCTIONS. NORMALLY, THE CELL IS ABLE TO MAINTAIN AN ADEQUATE BALANCE BETWEEN THE FORMATION AND REMOVAL OF ROS EITHER VIA ANTI-OXIDANTS OR THROUGH THE USE SPECIFIC ENZYMATIC PATHWAYS. HOWEVER, IF THIS BALANCE IS DISTURBED, OXIDATIVE STRESS MAY OCCUR IN THE CELL, A SITUATION LINKED TO THE PATHOGENESIS OF MANY DISEASES, INCLUDING CANCER. AREAS COVERED IN THIS REVIEW: HDACS ARE IMPORTANT REGULATORS OF MANY OXIDATIVE STRESS PATHWAYS INCLUDING THOSE INVOLVED WITH BOTH SENSING AND COORDINATING THE CELLULAR RESPONSE TO OXIDATIVE STRESS. IN PARTICULAR ABERRANT REGULATION OF THESE PATHWAYS BY HISTONE DEACETYLASES MAY PLAY CRITICAL ROLES IN CANCER PROGRESSION. WHAT THE READER WILL GAIN: IN THIS REVIEW WE DISCUSS THE NOTION THAT TARGETING HDACS MAY BE A USEFUL THERAPEUTIC AVENUE IN THE TREATMENT OF OXIDATIVE STRESS IN CANCER, USING CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE (COPD), NSCLC AND HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA (HCC) AS EXAMPLES TO ILLUSTRATE THIS POSSIBILITY. TAKE HOME MESSAGE: EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS MAY BE AN IMPORTANT NEW THERAPEUTIC AVENUE FOR TARGETING OXIDATIVE STRESS IN CANCER. 2010 16 5550 40 ROLE OF EPIGENETICS IN INFLAMMATION-ASSOCIATED DISEASES. THERE IS CONSIDERABLE EVIDENCE SUGGESTING THAT EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS MAY MEDIATE DEVELOPMENT OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION BY MODULATING THE EXPRESSION OF PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINE TNF-ALPHA, INTERLEUKINS, TUMOR SUPPRESSOR GENES, ONCOGENES AND AUTOCRINE AND PARACRINE ACTIVATION OF THE TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR NF-KAPPAB. THESE MOLECULES ARE CONSTITUTIVELY PRODUCED BY A VARIETY OF CELLS UNDER CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY CONDITIONS, WHICH IN TURN LEADS TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF MAJOR DISEASES SUCH AS AUTOIMMUNE DISORDERS, CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASES, NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES AND CANCER. DISTINCT OR GLOBAL CHANGES IN THE EPIGENETIC LANDSCAPE ARE HALLMARKS OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION DRIVEN DISEASES. EPIGENETICS INCLUDE CHANGES TO DISTINCT MARKERS ON THE GENOME AND ASSOCIATED CELLULAR TRANSCRIPTIONAL MACHINERY THAT ARE COPIED DURING CELL DIVISION (MITOSIS AND MEIOSIS). THESE CHANGES APPEAR FOR A SHORT SPAN OF TIME AND THEY NECESSARILY DO NOT MAKE PERMANENT CHANGES TO THE PRIMARY DNA SEQUENCE ITSELF. HOWEVER, THE MOST FREQUENTLY OBSERVED EPIGENETIC CHANGES INCLUDE ABERRANT DNA METHYLATION, AND HISTONE ACETYLATION AND DEACETYLATION. IN THIS CHAPTER, WE FOCUS ON PRO-INFLAMMATORY MOLECULES THAT ARE REGULATED BY ENZYMES INVOLVED IN EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS SUCH AS ARGININE AND LYSINE METHYL TRANSFERASES, DNA METHYLTRANSFERASE, HISTONE ACETYLTRANSFERASES AND HISTONE DEACETYLASES AND THEIR ROLE IN INFLAMMATION DRIVEN DISEASES. AGENTS THAT MODULATE OR INHIBIT THESE EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS, SUCH AS HAT OR HDAC INHIBITORS HAVE SHOWN GREAT POTENTIAL IN INHIBITING THE PROGRESSION OF THESE DISEASES. GIVEN THE PLASTICITY OF THESE EPIGENETIC CHANGES AND THEIR READINESS TO RESPOND TO INTERVENTION BY SMALL MOLECULE INHIBITORS, THERE IS A TREMENDOUS POTENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL THERAPEUTICS THAT WILL SERVE AS DIRECT OR ADJUVANT THERAPEUTIC COMPOUNDS IN THE TREATMENT OF THESE DISEASES. 2013 17 2532 35 EPIGENETICS IN ATHEROSCLEROSIS AND INFLAMMATION. ATHEROSCLEROSIS IS A MULTIFACTORIAL DISEASE WITH A SEVERE BURDEN ON WESTERN SOCIETY. RECENT INSIGHTS INTO THE PATHOGENESIS OF ATHEROSCLEROSIS UNDERSCORE THE IMPORTANCE OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION IN BOTH THE INITIATION AND PROGRESSION OF VASCULAR REMODELLING. EXPRESSION OF IMMUNOREGULATORY MOLECULES BY VASCULAR WALL COMPONENTS WITHIN THE ATHEROSCLEROTIC LESIONS IS ACCORDINGLY THOUGHT TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE ONGOING INFLAMMATORY PROCESS. BESIDES GENE REGULATORY PROTEINS (TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS), EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS ALSO PLAY AN ESSENTIAL AND FUNDAMENTAL ROLE IN THE TRANSCRIPTIONAL CONTROL OF GENE EXPRESSION. THESE EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS CHANGE THE ACCESSIBILITY OF CHROMATIN BY DNA METHYLATION AND HISTONE MODIFICATIONS. EPIGENETIC MODULATORS ARE THUS CRITICALLY INVOLVED IN THE REGULATION OF VASCULAR, IMMUNE AND TISSUE-SPECIFIC GENE EXPRESSION WITHIN THE ATHEROSCLEROTIC LESION. IMPORTANTLY, EPIGENETIC PROCESSES ARE REVERSIBLE AND MAY PROVIDE AN EXCELLENT THERAPEUTIC TARGET. THE CONCEPT OF EPIGENETIC REGULATION IS GRADUALLY BEING RECOGNIZED AS AN IMPORTANT FACTOR IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF ATHEROSCLEROSIS. RECENT RESEARCH PROVIDES AN ESSENTIAL LINK BETWEEN INFLAMMATION AND REPROGRAMMING OF THE EPIGENOME. IN THIS REVIEW WE THEREFORE DISCUSS THE BASIS OF EPIGENETIC REGULATION - AND THE CONTRIBUTION THEREOF IN THE REGULATION OF INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES IN GENERAL AND DURING ATHEROSCLEROSIS IN PARTICULAR. MOREOVER WE HIGHLIGHT POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS BASED ON EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS. 2010 18 2070 27 EPIGENETIC CONTROL OF SKIN IMMUNITY. EPIGENETICS HAS BEEN WELL UNDERSTOOD FOR ITS ROLE IN CELL DEVELOPMENT; HOWEVER, IT IS NOW KNOWN TO REGULATE MANY PROCESSES INVOLVED IN IMMUNE CELL ACTIVATION IN A VARIETY OF CELLS. THE SKIN MAINTAINS HOMEOSTASIS VIA CROSSTALK BETWEEN IMMUNE AND NON-IMMUNE CELLS. DISRUPTION OF NORMAL EPIGENETIC REGULATION IN THESE CELLS MAY ALTER THE TRANSCRIPTION OF IMMUNE-REGULATORY FACTORS AND AFFECT THE IMMUNOLOGICAL BALANCE IN THE SKIN. THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES RECENT EVIDENCE FOR THE EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF SKIN IMMUNITY. MUCH OF WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT EPIGENETIC INVOLVEMENT IN SKIN IMMUNITY IS ASSOCIATED WITH DNA METHYLATION. THIS REVIEW FOCUSES ON EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF HISTONE MODIFICATION AND CHROMATIN REMODELING AND DESCRIBES THEIR ROLE IN THE TRANSCRIPTIONAL REGULATION OF IMMUNE-REGULATORY FACTORS. WHILE MUCH IS STILL UNKNOWN REGARDING THE REGULATION OF SKIN IMMUNITY VIA HISTONE MODIFICATION OR CHROMATIN REMODELING, THESE PROCESSES MAY UNDERLIE THE PATHOGENESIS OF CHRONIC CUTANEOUS IMMUNE DISORDERS. 2023 19 5932 37 TARGETING EPIGENETIC REGULATORS FOR INFLAMMATION: MECHANISMS AND INTERVENTION THERAPY. EMERGING EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT RESOLUTION OF INFLAMMATION IS A CRITICAL AND DYNAMIC ENDOGENOUS PROCESS FOR HOST TISSUES DEFENDING AGAINST EXTERNAL INVASIVE PATHOGENS OR INTERNAL TISSUE INJURY. IT HAS LONG BEEN KNOWN THAT AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES AND CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISORDERS ARE CHARACTERIZED BY DYSREGULATED IMMUNE RESPONSES, LEADING TO EXCESSIVE AND UNCONTROL TISSUE INFLAMMATION. THE DYSREGULATION OF EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS INCLUDING DNA METHYLATION, POSTTRANSLATIONAL MODIFICATIONS TO HISTONE PROTEINS, AND NONCODING RNA EXPRESSION HAS BEEN IMPLICATED IN A HOST OF INFLAMMATORY DISORDERS AND THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. THE INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE IS CONSIDERED AS A CRITICAL TRIGGER OF EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS THAT IN TURN INTERCEDE INFLAMMATORY ACTIONS. THUS, UNDERSTANDING THE MOLECULAR MECHANISM THAT DICTATES THE OUTCOME OF TARGETING EPIGENETIC REGULATORS FOR INFLAMMATORY DISEASE IS REQUIRED FOR INFLAMMATION RESOLUTION. IN THIS ARTICLE, WE ELUCIDATE THE CRITICAL ROLE OF THE NUCLEAR FACTOR-KAPPAB SIGNALING PATHWAY, JAK/STAT SIGNALING PATHWAY, AND THE NLRP3 INFLAMMASOME IN CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES. AND WE FORMULATE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INFLAMMATION, CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019, AND HUMAN CANCERS. ADDITIONALLY, WE REVIEW THE MECHANISM OF EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS INVOLVED IN INFLAMMATION AND INNATE IMMUNE CELLS. ALL THAT MATTERS IS THAT WE PROPOSE AND DISCUSS THE REJUVENATION POTENTIAL OF INTERVENTIONS THAT TARGET EPIGENETIC REGULATORS AND REGULATORY MECHANISMS FOR CHRONIC INFLAMMATION-ASSOCIATED DISEASES TO IMPROVE THERAPEUTIC OUTCOMES. 2022 20 607 40 BEYOND GENETICS: EPIGENETIC CODE IN CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE. EPIGENETICS REFERS TO A HERITABLE CHANGE IN THE PATTERN OF GENE EXPRESSION THAT IS MEDIATED BY A MECHANISM SPECIFICALLY NOT DUE TO ALTERATIONS IN THE PRIMARY NUCLEOTIDE SEQUENCE. WELL-KNOWN EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS ENCOMPASS DNA METHYLATION, CHROMATIN REMODELING (HISTONE MODIFICATIONS), AND RNA INTERFERENCE. FUNCTIONALLY, EPIGENETICS PROVIDES AN EXTRA LAYER OF TRANSCRIPTIONAL CONTROL AND PLAYS A CRUCIAL ROLE IN NORMAL PHYSIOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT, AS WELL AS IN PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS. ABERRANT DNA METHYLATION IS IMPLICATED IN IMMUNE DYSFUNCTION, INFLAMMATION, AND INSULIN RESISTANCE. EPIGENETIC CHANGES MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR 'METABOLIC MEMORY' AND DEVELOPMENT OF MICRO- AND MACROVASCULAR COMPLICATIONS OF DIABETES. MICRORNAS ARE CRITICAL IN THE MAINTENANCE OF GLOMERULAR HOMEOSTASIS AND HENCE RNA INTERFERENCE MAY BE IMPORTANT IN THE PROGRESSION OF RENAL DISEASE. RECENT STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS ORCHESTRATE THE EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION AND EVENTUALLY FIBROSIS OF THE RENAL TISSUE. OXIDATIVE STRESS, INFLAMMATION, HYPERHOMOCYSTEINEMIA, AND UREMIC TOXINS COULD INDUCE EPIMUTATIONS IN CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE. EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH INFLAMMATION AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE. REVERSIBLE NATURE OF THE EPIGENETIC CHANGES GIVES A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO HALT OR EVEN REVERSE THE DISEASE PROCESS THROUGH TARGETED THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES. 2011