1 5588 135 ROLE OF SENESCENCE IN THE CHRONIC HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF COVID-19. WHILE THE FULL IMPACT OF COVID-19 IS NOT YET CLEAR, EARLY STUDIES HAVE INDICATED THAT UPWARDS OF 10% OF PATIENTS EXPERIENCE COVID-19 SYMPTOMS LONGER THAN 3 WEEKS, KNOWN AS LONG-HAULER'S SYNDROME OR PACS (POSTACUTE SEQUELAE OF SARS-COV-2 INFECTION). THERE IS LITTLE KNOWN ABOUT RISK FACTORS OR PREDICTORS OF SUSCEPTIBILITY FOR LONG-HAULER'S SYNDROME, BUT OLDER ADULTS ARE AT GREATER RISK FOR SEVERE OUTCOMES AND MORTALITY FROM COVID-19. THE PILLARS OF AGING (INCLUDING CELLULAR SENESCENCE, TELOMERE DYSFUNCTION, IMPAIRED PROTEOSTASIS, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, DEREGULATED NUTRIENT SENSING, GENOMIC INSTABILITY, PROGENITOR CELL EXHAUSTION, ALTERED INTERCELLULAR COMMUNICATION, AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS) THAT CONTRIBUTE TO AGE-RELATED DYSFUNCTION AND CHRONIC DISEASES (THE "GEROSCIENCE HYPOTHESIS") MAY INTERFERE WITH DEFENSES AGAINST VIRAL INFECTION AND CONSEQUENCES OF THESE INFECTIONS. HEIGHTENING OF THE LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION THAT IS ASSOCIATED WITH AGING MAY GENERATE AN EXAGGERATED RESPONSE TO AN ACUTE COVID-19 INFECTION. INNATE IMMUNE SYSTEM DYSFUNCTION THAT LEADS TO DECREASED SENESCENT CELL REMOVAL AND/OR INCREASED SENESCENT CELL FORMATION COULD CONTRIBUTE TO ACCUMULATION OF SENESCENT CELLS WITH BOTH AGING AND VIRAL INFECTIONS. THESE PROCESSES MAY CONTRIBUTE TO INCREASED RISK FOR LONG-TERM COVID-19 SEQUELAE IN OLDER OR CHRONICALLY ILL PATIENTS. HENCE, SENOLYTICS AND OTHER GEROSCIENCE INTERVENTIONS THAT MAY PROLONG HEALTHSPAN AND ALLEVIATE CHRONIC DISEASES AND MULTIMORBIDITY LINKED TO FUNDAMENTAL AGING PROCESSES MIGHT BE AN OPTION FOR DELAYING, PREVENTING, OR ALLEVIATING LONG-HAULER'S SYNDROME. 2022 2 49 24 A CURRENT GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC VIEW ON HUMAN AGING MECHANISMS. THE PROCESS OF AGING IS ONE OF THE MOST COMPLEX AND INTRIGUING BIOLOGICAL PHENOMENONS. AGING IS A GENETICALLY REGULATED PROCESS IN WHICH THE ORGANISM'S MAXIMUM LIFESPAN POTENTIAL IS PRE-DETERMINED, WHILE THE RATE OF AGING IS INFLUENCED BY ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AND LIFESTYLE. CONSIDERING THE COMPLEXITY OF MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN THE REGULATION OF AGING PROCESS, UP TO THIS DATE THERE ISN'T A MAJOR, UNIFYING THEORY WHICH COULD EXPLAIN THEM. AS GENETIC/EPIGENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS BOTH INEVITABLY INFLUENCE THE AGING PROCESS, HERE WE PRESENT A REVIEW ON THE GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF THE MOST IMPORTANT MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS OF AGING. BASED ON THE STUDIES ON OXIDATIVE STRESS, METABOLISM, GENOME STABILITY, EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS AND CELLULAR SENESCENCE IN ANIMAL MODELS AND HUMANS, WE GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF KEY GENETIC AND MOLECULAR PATHWAYS RELATED TO AGING. AS MOST OF GENETIC MANIPULATIONS WHICH INFLUENCE THE AGING PROCESS ALSO AFFECT REPRODUCTION, WE DISCUSS AGING IN HUMANS AS A POST-REPRODUCTIVE GENETICALLY DETERMINED PROCESS. AFTER THE AGE OF REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS, AGING CONTINOUSLY PROGRESSES WHICH CLINICALLY COINCIDES WITH THE ONSET OF MOST CHRONIC DISEASES, CANCERS AND DEMENTIONS. AS EVOLUTION SHAPES THE GENOMES FOR REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS AND NOT FOR POST-REPRODUCTIVE SURVIVAL, AGING COULD BE DEFINED AS A PROTECTIVE MECHANISM WHICH ENSURES THE PRESERVATION AND PROGRESS OF SPECIES THROUGH THE MODIFICATION, TRASMISSION AND IMPROVEMENT OF GENETIC MATERIAL. 2009 3 6258 50 THE MOLECULAR MECHANISM OF POLYPHENOLS IN THE REGULATION OF AGEING HALLMARKS. AGEING IS A COMPLEX PROCESS CHARACTERIZED MAINLY BY A DECLINE IN THE FUNCTION OF CELLS, TISSUES, AND ORGANS, RESULTING IN AN INCREASED RISK OF MORTALITY. THIS PROCESS INVOLVES SEVERAL CHANGES, DESCRIBED AS HALLMARKS OF AGEING, WHICH INCLUDE GENOMIC INSTABILITY, TELOMERE ATTRITION, EPIGENETIC CHANGES, LOSS OF PROTEOSTASIS, DYSREGULATED NUTRIENT SENSING, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, STEM CELL DEPLETION, AND ALTERED INTRACELLULAR COMMUNICATION. THE DETERMINING ROLE THAT ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS SUCH AS DIET AND LIFESTYLE PLAY ON HEALTH, LIFE EXPECTANCY, AND SUSCEPTIBILITY TO DISEASES, INCLUDING CANCER AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES, IS WELLESTABLISHED. IN VIEW OF THE GROWING INTEREST IN THE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF PHYTOCHEMICALS IN THE PREVENTION OF CHRONIC DISEASES, SEVERAL STUDIES HAVE BEEN CONDUCTED, AND THEY STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT THE INTAKE OF DIETARY POLYPHENOLS MAY BRING NUMEROUS BENEFITS DUE TO THEIR ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PROPERTIES, AND THEIR INTAKE HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH IMPAIRED AGEING IN HUMANS. POLYPHENOL INTAKE HAS BEEN SHOWN TO BE EFFECTIVE IN AMELIORATING SEVERAL AGE-RELATED PHENOTYPES, INCLUDING OXIDATIVE STRESS, INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES, IMPAIRED PROTEOSTASIS, AND CELLULAR SENESCENCE, AMONG OTHER FEATURES, WHICH CONTRIBUTE TO AN INCREASED RISK OF AGEING-ASSOCIATED DISEASES. THIS REVIEW AIMS TO ADDRESS, IN A GENERAL WAY, THE MAIN FINDINGS DESCRIBED IN THE LITERATURE ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF POLYPHENOLS IN EACH OF THE HALLMARKS OF AGEING, AS WELL AS THE MAIN REGULATORY MECHANISMS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OBSERVED ANTIAGEING EFFECTS. 2023 4 627 34 BIOLOGICAL AGING PROCESSES UNDERLYING COGNITIVE DECLINE AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASE. ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AND RELATED DEMENTIAS (ADRD) ARE AMONG THE TOP CONTRIBUTORS TO DISABILITY AND MORTALITY IN LATER LIFE. AS WITH MANY CHRONIC CONDITIONS, AGING IS THE SINGLE MOST INFLUENTIAL FACTOR IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ADRD. EVEN AMONG OLDER ADULTS WHO REMAIN FREE OF DEMENTIA THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES, COGNITIVE DECLINE AND NEURODEGENERATIVE CHANGES ARE APPRECIABLE WITH ADVANCING AGE, SUGGESTING SHARED PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS. IN THIS REVIEW, WE PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF CHANGES IN COGNITION, BRAIN MORPHOLOGY, AND NEUROPATHOLOGICAL PROTEIN ACCUMULATION ACROSS THE LIFESPAN IN HUMANS, WITH COMPLEMENTARY AND MECHANISTIC EVIDENCE FROM ANIMAL MODELS. NEXT, WE HIGHLIGHT SELECTED AGING PROCESSES THAT ARE DIFFERENTIALLY REGULATED IN NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASE, INCLUDING ABERRANT AUTOPHAGY, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, EPIGENETIC CHANGES, CEREBROVASCULAR DYSFUNCTION, INFLAMMATION, AND LIPID DYSREGULATION. WE SUMMARIZE RESEARCH ACROSS CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL STUDIES TO LINK BIOLOGICAL AGING PROCESSES TO UNDERLYING ADRD PATHOGENESIS. TARGETING FUNDAMENTAL PROCESSES UNDERLYING BIOLOGICAL AGING MAY REPRESENT A YET RELATIVELY UNEXPLORED AVENUE TO ATTENUATE BOTH AGE-RELATED COGNITIVE DECLINE AND ADRD. COLLABORATION ACROSS THE FIELDS OF GEROSCIENCE AND NEUROSCIENCE, COUPLED WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TRANSLATIONAL ANIMAL MODELS THAT MORE CLOSELY ALIGN WITH HUMAN DISEASE PROCESSES, IS NECESSARY TO ADVANCE NOVEL THERAPEUTIC DISCOVERY IN THIS REALM. 2022 5 3102 42 GENOMIC INSTABILITIES, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, AND AGING: IN VITRO, IN VIVO AND AGING-LIKE HUMAN SYNDROMES. AS AVERAGE LIFE SPAN AND ELDERLY PEOPLE PREVALENCE IN THE WESTERN WORLD POPULATION IS GRADUALLY INCREASING, THE INCIDENCE OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES SUCH AS CANCER, HEART DISEASES, DIABETES, AND DEMENTIA IS INCREASING, BEARING SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES WORLDWIDE. UNDERSTANDING THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF AGING-RELATED PROCESSES CAN HELP EXTEND THE ORGANISM'S HEALTH SPAN, I.E., THE LIFE PERIOD IN WHICH THE ORGANISM IS FREE OF CHRONIC DISEASES OR DECREASE IN BASIC BODY FUNCTIONS. DURING THE LAST FEW DECADES, IMMENSE PROGRESS WAS MADE IN THE UNDERSTANDING OF MAJOR COMPONENTS OF AGING AND HEALTHY AGING BIOLOGY, INCLUDING GENOMIC INSTABILITY, TELOMERE ATTRITION, EPIGENETIC CHANGES, PROTEOSTASIS, NUTRIENT SENSING, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, STEM CELL EXHAUSTION, AND INTRACELLULAR COMMUNICATIONS. THIS PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE BY THREE SPEAR-HEADED STRATEGIES: IN VITRO (CELL AND TISSUE CULTURE FROM VARIOUS SOURCES), IN VIVO (INCLUDES DIVERSE MODEL AND NON-MODEL ORGANISMS), BOTH CAN BE MANIPULATED AND TRANSLATED TO HUMAN BIOLOGY, AND THE STUDY OF AGING-LIKE HUMAN SYNDROMES AND HUMAN POPULATIONS. HEREIN, WE WILL FOCUS ON CURRENT REPOSITORY OF GENOMIC "SENESCENCE" STAGE OF AGING, WHICH INCLUDES HEALTH DECLINE, STRUCTURAL CHANGES OF THE GENOME, FAULTY DNA DAMAGE RESPONSE AND DNA DAMAGE, TELOMERE SHORTENING, AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS. ALTHOUGH AGING IS A COMPLEX PROCESS, MANY OF THE "HALLMARKS" OF AGING ARE DIRECTLY RELATED TO DNA STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION. THIS REVIEW WILL ILLUSTRATE THE VARIETY OF THESE STUDIES, DONE IN IN VITRO, IN VIVO AND HUMAN LEVELS, AND HIGHLIGHT THE UNIQUE POTENTIAL AND CONTRIBUTION OF EACH RESEARCH LEVEL AND EVENTUALLY THE LINK BETWEEN THEM. 2018 6 4183 34 META-HALLMARKS OF AGING AND CANCER. BOTH AGING AND CANCER ARE CHARACTERIZED BY A SERIES OF PARTIALLY OVERLAPPING "HALLMARKS" THAT WE SUBJECT HERE TO A META-ANALYSIS. SEVERAL HALLMARKS OF AGING (I.E., GENOMIC INSTABILITY, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, CHRONIC INFLAMMATION, AND DYSBIOSIS) ARE VERY SIMILAR TO SPECIFIC CANCER HALLMARKS AND HENCE CONSTITUTE COMMON "META-HALLMARKS," WHILE OTHER FEATURES OF AGING (I.E., TELOMERE ATTRITION AND STEM CELL EXHAUSTION) ACT LIKELY TO SUPPRESS ONCOGENESIS AND HENCE CAN BE VIEWED AS PREPONDERANTLY "ANTAGONISTIC HALLMARKS." DISABLED MACROAUTOPHAGY AND CELLULAR SENESCENCE ARE TWO HALLMARKS OF AGING THAT EXERT CONTEXT-DEPENDENT ONCOSUPPRESSIVE AND PRO-TUMORIGENIC EFFECTS. SIMILARLY, THE EQUIVALENCE OR ANTAGONISM BETWEEN AGING-ASSOCIATED DEREGULATED NUTRIENT-SENSING AND CANCER-RELEVANT ALTERATIONS OF CELLULAR METABOLISM IS COMPLEX. THE AGONISTIC AND ANTAGONISTIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PROCESSES THAT DRIVE AGING AND CANCER HAS BEARINGS FOR THE AGE-RELATED INCREASE AND OLDEST AGE-RELATED DECREASE OF CANCER MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY, AS WELL AS FOR THE THERAPEUTIC MANAGEMENT OF MALIGNANT DISEASE IN THE ELDERLY. 2023 7 3801 40 INTERPLAY OF VITAMIN D AND SIRT1 IN TISSUE-SPECIFIC METABOLISM-POTENTIAL ROLES IN PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES INCLUDING CANCER. THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES, INCLUDING OBESITY, METABOLIC SYNDROME, TYPE 2 DIABETES, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, AND CANCER, IS INCREASING AS A REQUIREMENT OF THE AGING POPULATION IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES AND THE SUSTAINABILITY OF HEALTHCARE. SIMILARLY, THE 2013-2030 ACTION PLAN OF THE WHO FOR THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES SEEKS THESE ACHIEVEMENTS. ADEQUATE LIFESTYLE CHANGES, ALONE OR WITH THE NECESSARY TREATMENTS, COULD REDUCE THE RISK OF MORTALITY OR THE DETERIORATION OF QUALITY OF LIFE. IN OUR RECENT WORK, WE SUMMARIZED THE ROLE OF TWO CENTRAL FACTORS, I.E., APPROPRIATE LEVELS OF VITAMIN D AND SIRT1, WHICH ARE CONNECTED TO ADEQUATE LIFESTYLES WITH BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES. BOTH OF THESE FACTORS HAVE RECEIVED INCREASED ATTENTION IN RELATION TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AS THEY BOTH TAKE PART IN REGULATION OF THE MAIN METABOLIC PROCESSES, I.E., LIPID/GLUCOSE/ENERGY HOMEOSTASIS, OXIDATIVE STRESS, REDOX BALANCE, AND CELL FATE, AS WELL AS IN THE HEALTHY REGULATION OF THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. VITAMIN D AND SIRT1 HAVE DIRECT AND INDIRECT INFLUENCE OF THE REGULATION OF TRANSCRIPTION AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES AND ARE RELATED TO CYTOPLASMIC SIGNALING PATHWAYS SUCH AS PLC/DAG/IP3/PKC/MAPK, MEK/ERK, INSULIN/MTOR/CELL GROWTH, PROLIFERATION; LEPTIN/PI3K-AKT-MTORC1, AKT/NFKB/COX-2, NFKB/TNFALPHA, IL-6, IL-8, IL-1BETA, AND AMPK/PGC-1ALPHA/GLUT4, AMONG OTHERS. THROUGH THEIR PROPER REGULATION, THEY MAINTAIN NORMAL BODY WEIGHT, LIPID PROFILE, INSULIN SECRETION AND SENSITIVITY, BALANCE BETWEEN THE PRO- AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES UNDER NORMAL CONDITIONS AND INFECTIONS, MAINTAIN ENDOTHELIAL HEALTH; BALANCE CELL DIFFERENTIATION, PROLIFERATION, AND FATE; AND BALANCE THE CIRCADIAN RHYTHM OF THE CELLULAR METABOLISM. THE ROLE OF THESE TWO MOLECULES IS INTERCONNECTED IN THE MOLECULAR NETWORK, AND THEY REGULATE EACH OTHER IN SEVERAL LAYERS OF THE HOMEOSTASIS OF ENERGY AND THE CELLULAR METABOLISM. BOTH HAVE A CENTRAL ROLE IN THE MAINTENANCE OF HEALTHY AND BALANCED IMMUNE REGULATION AND REDOX REACTIONS; THEREFORE, THEY COULD CONSTITUTE PROMISING TARGETS EITHER FOR PREVENTION OR AS COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES TO ACHIEVE A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE, AT ANY AGE, FOR HEALTHY PEOPLE AND PATIENTS UNDER CHRONIC CONDITIONS. 2023 8 289 21 AGING AND INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASES: UNRAVELING AN OLD FORGOTTEN PLAYER IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF LUNG FIBROSIS. AGING IS A NATURAL PROCESS CHARACTERIZED BY A PROGRESSIVE FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENT AND REDUCED CAPACITY TO RESPOND ADAPTIVELY TO ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULI. AGING IS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO A VARIETY OF CHRONIC DISEASES, INCLUDING TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS, CANCER, AND NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES. LUNG PATHOLOGIES ARE NOT THE EXCEPTION, AND THE PREVALENCE OF SEVERAL INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASES (ILDS), PRIMARILY IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS, HAS BEEN FOUND TO INCREASE CONSIDERABLY WITH AGE. ALTHOUGH OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE BIOLOGY OF AGING HAS ADVANCED REMARKABLY IN THE LAST 2 DECADES, THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS LINKING AGING TO ILD REMAIN UNCLEAR. IMMUNOSENESCENCE, OXIDATIVE STRESS, ABNORMAL SHORTENING OF TELOMERES, APOPTOSIS, AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES AFFECTING GENE EXPRESSION HAVE BEEN PROPOSED TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE AGING PROCESS, AND AGING-ASSOCIATED DISEASES. HERE, WE REVIEW THE EMERGING CONCEPTS HIGHLIGHTING THE PUTATIVE AGING-ASSOCIATED ABNORMALITIES INVOLVED IN SOME HUMAN ILDS. 2010 9 1027 25 CIRCULATING MIRNAS IN SUCCESSFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL AGING. A MINI-REVIEW. AGING IS A MULTIFACTORIAL PROCESS THAT AFFECTS THE ORGANISMS AT GENETIC, MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR LEVELS. THIS PROCESS MODIFIES SEVERAL TISSUES WITH A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON CELLS PHYSIOLOGY, TISSUES AND ORGANS FUNCTIONALITY, ALTERING THEIR REGENERATION CAPACITY. THE CHRONIC LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION TYPICAL OF AGING, DEFINED AS INFLAMMAGING, IS A COMMON BIOLOGICAL FACTOR RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DECLINE AND BEGINNING OF THE DISEASE IN AGE. A MURINE PARABIOSIS MODEL THAT COMBINES THE VASCULAR SYSTEM OF OLD AND YOUNG ANIMALS, SUGGESTS THAT SOLUBLE FACTORS RELEASED BY YOUNG INDIVIDUALS MAY IMPROVE THE REGENERATIVE POTENTIAL OF OLD TISSUE. THEREFORE, CIRCULATING FACTORS HAVE A KEY ROLE IN THE INDUCTION OF AGING PHENOTYPE. MOREOVER, LIFESTYLE CAN INFLUENCE THE PHYSIOLOGICAL STATUS OF MULTIPLE ORGANS, VIA EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS. RECENTLY, MICRORNAS ARE CONSIDERED POTENTIAL SENSORS OF AGING. 2019 10 1207 49 COVID-19 AND CROSSTALK WITH THE HALLMARKS OF AGING. WITHIN THE PAST SEVERAL DECADES, THE EMERGENCE OF NEW VIRAL DISEASES WITH SEVERE HEALTH COMPLICATIONS AND MORTALITY IS EVIDENCE OF AN AGE-DEPENDENT, COMPROMISED BODILY RESPONSE TO ABRUPT STRESS WITH CONCOMITANTLY REDUCED IMMUNITY. THE NEW SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME CORONAVIRUS 2, SARS-COV-2, CAUSES CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019 (COVID-19). IT HAS INCREASED MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY IN PERSONS WITH UNDERLYING CHRONIC DISEASES AND THOSE WITH A COMPROMISED IMMUNE SYSTEM REGARDLESS OF AGE AND IN OLDER ADULTS WHO ARE MORE LIKELY TO HAVE THESE CONDITIONS. WHILE SARS-COV-2 IS HIGHLY VIRULENT, THERE IS VARIABILITY IN THE SEVERITY OF THE DISEASE AND ITS COMPLICATIONS IN HUMANS. SEVERE PNEUMONIA, ACUTE RESPIRATORY DISTRESS SYNDROME, LUNG FIBROSIS, CARDIOVASCULAR EVENTS, ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY, STROKE, HOSPITALIZATION, AND MORTALITY HAVE BEEN REPORTED THAT RESULT FROM PATHOGEN-HOST INTERACTIONS. HALLMARKS OF AGING, INTERACTING WITH ONE ANOTHER, HAVE BEEN PROPOSED TO INFLUENCE HEALTH SPAN IN OLDER ADULTS, POSSIBLY VIA MECHANISMS REGULATING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. HERE, WE REVIEW THE POTENTIAL ROLES OF THE HALLMARKS OF AGING, COUPLED WITH HOST-CORONAVIRUS INTERACTIONS. OF THESE HALLMARKS, WE FOCUSED ON THOSE THAT DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY INTERACT WITH VIRAL INFECTIONS, INCLUDING IMMUNOSENESCENCE, INFLAMMATION AND INFLAMMASOMES, ADAPTIVE IMMUNOSENESCENCE, GENOMIC INSTABILITY, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, TELOMERE ATTRITION, AND IMPAIRED AUTOPHAGY. THESE HALLMARKS LIKELY CONTRIBUTE TO THE INCREASED PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES TO SARS-COV-2 AMONG OLDER ADULTS AND MAY PLAY ROLES AS AN ADDITIVE RISK OF ACCELERATED BIOLOGICAL AGING EVEN AFTER RECOVERY. WE ALSO BRIEFLY DISCUSS THE ROLE OF ANTIAGING DRUG CANDIDATES THAT REQUIRE PARAMOUNT ATTENTION IN COVID-19 RESEARCH. 2020 11 269 45 AGE AND PERIODONTAL HEALTH - IMMUNOLOGICAL VIEW. PURPOSE OF THE REVIEW: AGING CLEARLY IMPACTS A WIDE ARRAY OF SYSTEMS, IN PARTICULAR THE BREADTH OF THE IMMUNE SYSTEM LEADING TO IMMUNOSENESCENCE, ALTERED IMMUNOACTIVATION, AND COINCIDENT INFLAMMAGING PROCESSES. THE NET RESULT OF THESE CHANGES LEADS TO INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO INFECTIONS, INCREASED NEOPLASTIC OCCURRENCES, AND ELEVATED FREQUENCY OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES WITH AGING. HOWEVER, AS THE BACTERIA IN THE ORAL MICROBIOME THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE CHRONIC INFECTION OF PERIODONTITIS IS ACQUIRED EARLIER IN LIFE, THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE INNATE AND ADAPTIVE IMMUNE SYSTEMS TO REGULATE THESE MEMBERS OF THE AUTOCHTHONOUS MICROBIOTA ACROSS THE LIFESPAN REMAINS ILL DEFINED. RECENT FINDINGS: CLEAR DATA DEMONSTRATE THAT BOTH CELLS AND MOLECULES OF THE INNATE AND ADAPTIVE IMMUNE RESPONSE ARE ADVERSELY IMPACTED BY AGING, INCLUDING IN THE ORAL CAVITY, YIELDING A REASONABLE TENET THAT THE INCREASED PERIODONTITIS NOTED IN AGING POPULATIONS IS REFLECTIVE OF THE AGE-ASSOCIATED IMMUNE DYSREGULATION. ADDITIONALLY, THIS FACET OF HOST-MICROBE INTERACTIONS AND DISEASE NEEDS TO ACCOMMODATE THE POPULATION VARIATION IN DISEASE ONSET AND PROGRESSION, WHICH MAY ALSO REFLECT AN ACCUMULATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL STRESSORS AND/OR DECREASED PROTECTIVE NUTRIENTS THAT COULD FUNCTION AT THE GENE LEVEL (IE. EPIGENETIC) OR TRANSLATIONAL LEVEL FOR PRODUCTION AND SECRETION OF IMMUNE SYSTEM MOLECULES. SUMMARY: FINALLY, THE MAJORITY OF STUDIES OF AGING AND PERIODONTITIS HAVE EMPHASIZED THE INCREASED PREVALENCE/SEVERITY OF DISEASE WITH AGING, ALL BASED UPON CHRONOLOGICAL AGE. HOWEVER, EVOLVING AREAS OF STUDY FOCUSING ON "BIOLOGICAL AGING" TO HELP ACCOUNT FOR POPULATION VARIATION IN DISEASE EXPRESSION, MAY SUGGEST THAT CHRONIC PERIODONTITIS REPRESENTS A CO-MORBIDITY THAT CONTRIBUTES TO "GEROVULNERABILITY" WITHIN THE POPULATION. 2018 12 4145 42 MECHANISMS OF VASCULAR AGING. AGING OF THE VASCULATURE PLAYS A CENTRAL ROLE IN MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY OF OLDER PEOPLE. TO DEVELOP NOVEL TREATMENTS FOR AMELIORATION OF UNSUCCESSFUL VASCULAR AGING AND PREVENTION OF AGE-RELATED VASCULAR PATHOLOGIES, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTAND THE CELLULAR AND FUNCTIONAL CHANGES THAT OCCUR IN THE VASCULATURE DURING AGING. IN THIS REVIEW, THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL ROLES OF FUNDAMENTAL CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF AGING, INCLUDING OXIDATIVE STRESS, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, IMPAIRED RESISTANCE TO MOLECULAR STRESSORS, CHRONIC LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION, GENOMIC INSTABILITY, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, LOSS OF PROTEIN HOMEOSTASIS, DEREGULATED NUTRIENT SENSING, AND STEM CELL DYSFUNCTION IN THE VASCULAR SYSTEM ARE CONSIDERED IN TERMS OF THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO THE PATHOGENESIS OF BOTH MICROVASCULAR AND MACROVASCULAR DISEASES ASSOCIATED WITH OLD AGE. THE IMPORTANCE OF PROGERONIC AND ANTIGERONIC CIRCULATING FACTORS IN RELATION TO DEVELOPMENT OF VASCULAR AGING PHENOTYPES ARE DISCUSSED. FINALLY, FUTURE DIRECTIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES TO DEVELOP NOVEL INTERVENTIONS TO PREVENT/DELAY AGE-RELATED VASCULAR PATHOLOGIES BY TARGETING FUNDAMENTAL CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR AGING PROCESSES ARE PRESENTED. 2018 13 5630 43 SENESCENCE IN PULMONARY FIBROSIS: BETWEEN AGING AND EXPOSURE. TO DATE, CHRONIC PULMONARY PATHOLOGIES REPRESENT THE THIRD LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH IN THE ELDERLY POPULATION. EVIDENCE-BASED PROJECTIONS SUGGEST THAT >65 (YEARS OLD) INDIVIDUALS WILL ACCOUNT FOR APPROXIMATELY A QUARTER OF THE WORLD POPULATION BEFORE THE TURN OF THE CENTURY. GENOMIC INSTABILITY, TELOMERE ATTRITION, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, LOSS OF PROTEOSTASIS, DEREGULATED NUTRIENT SENSING, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, STEM CELL EXHAUSTION, AND ALTERED INTERCELLULAR COMMUNICATION, ARE DESCRIBED AS THE NINE "HALLMARKS" THAT GOVERN CELLULAR FITNESS. ANY DEVIATION FROM THE NORMAL PATTERN INITIATES A COMPLEX CASCADE OF EVENTS CULMINATING TO A DISEASE STATE. THIS BLUEPRINT, ORIGINALLY EMPLOYED TO DESCRIBE ABERRANT CHANGES IN CANCER CELLS, CAN BE ALSO USED TO DESCRIBE AGING AND FIBROSIS. PULMONARY FIBROSIS (PF) IS THE RESULT OF A PROGRESSIVE DECLINE IN INJURY RESOLUTION PROCESSES STEMMING FROM ENDOGENOUS (PHYSIOLOGICAL DECLINE OR SOMATIC MUTATIONS) OR EXOGENOUS STRESS. ENVIRONMENTAL, DIETARY OR OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE ACCELERATES THE PATHOGENESIS OF A SENESCENT PHENOTYPE BASED ON (1) WINDOW OF EXPOSURE; (2) DOSE, DURATION, RECURRENCE; AND (3) CELLS TYPE BEING TARGETED. AS THE LUNG AGES, THE THRESHOLD TO GENERATE AN IRREVERSIBLY SENESCENT PHENOTYPE IS LOWERED. HOWEVER, WE DO NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT KNOWLEDGE TO MAKE ACCURATE PREDICTIONS. IN THIS REVIEW, WE PROVIDE AN ASSESSMENT OF THE LITERATURE THAT INTERROGATES LUNG EPITHELIAL, MESENCHYMAL, AND IMMUNE SENESCENCE AT THE INTERSECTION OF AGING, ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE AND PULMONARY FIBROSIS. 2020 14 705 27 BUILDING RISK-ON-A-CHIP MODELS TO IMPROVE BREAST CANCER RISK ASSESSMENT AND PREVENTION. PREVENTIVE ACTIONS FOR CHRONIC DISEASES HOLD THE PROMISE OF IMPROVING LIVES AND REDUCING HEALTHCARE COSTS. FOR SEVERAL DISEASES, INCLUDING BREAST CANCER, MULTIPLE RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED BY EPIDEMIOLOGISTS. THE IMPACT OF MOST OF THESE FACTORS HAS YET TO BE FULLY UNDERSTOOD AT THE ORGANISM, TISSUE, CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LEVELS. IMPORTANTLY, COMBINATIONS OF EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS INVOLVE COOPERATIVITY THUS, SYNERGIZING OR ANTAGONIZING DISEASE ONSET. MODELS ARE NEEDED TO MECHANISTICALLY DECIPHER CANCER RISKS UNDER DEFINED CELLULAR AND MICROENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS. HERE, WE BRIEFLY REVIEW BREAST CANCER RISK MODELS BASED ON 3D CELL CULTURE AND PROPOSE TO IMPROVE RISK MODELING WITH LAB-ON-A-CHIP APPROACHES. WE SUGGEST EPITHELIAL TISSUE POLARITY, DNA REPAIR AND EPIGENETIC PROFILES AS ENDPOINTS IN RISK ASSESSMENT MODELS AND DISCUSS THE DEVELOPMENT OF 'RISKS-ON-CHIPS' INTEGRATING BIOSENSORS OF THESE ENDPOINTS AND OF GENERAL TISSUE HOMEOSTASIS. RISKS-ON-CHIPS WILL HELP IDENTIFY BIOMARKERS OF RISK, SERVE AS SCREENING PLATFORMS FOR CANCER PREVENTIVE AGENTS, AND PROVIDE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF RISK MECHANISMS, HENCE RESULTING IN NOVEL DEVELOPMENTS IN DISEASE PREVENTION. 2013 15 278 25 AGE-RELATED INFLAMMATION: THE CONTRIBUTION OF DIFFERENT ORGANS, TISSUES AND SYSTEMS. HOW TO FACE IT FOR THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES. A TYPICAL FEATURE OF AGEING IS A CHRONIC, LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION CHARACTERIZED BY A GENERAL INCREASE IN THE PRODUCTION OF PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES AND INFLAMMATORY MARKERS ("INFLAMM-AGEING"). THIS STATUS MAY SLOWLY DAMAGE ONE OR SEVERAL ORGANS, ESPECIALLY WHEN UNFAVORABLE GENETIC POLYMORPHISMS AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS ARE CONCOMITANT, LEADING TO AN INCREASED RISK OF FRAILTY TOGETHER WITH THE ONSET OF AGE-RELATED CHRONIC DISEASES. THE CONTRIBUTION OF DIFFERENT TISSUES (ADIPOSE TISSUE, MUSCLE), ORGANS (BRAIN, LIVER), IMMUNE SYSTEM AND ECOSYSTEMS (GUT MICROBIOTA) TO AGE-RELATED INFLAMMATION ("INFLAMM-AGEING") WILL BE DISCUSSED IN THIS REVIEW IN THE CONTEXT OF ITS ONSET/PROGRESSION LEADING TO SITE-RESTRICTED AND SYSTEMIC EFFECTS. MOREOVER, SOME OF THE POSSIBLE STRATEGIES AND THERAPIES TO COUNTERACT THE DIFFERENT SOURCES OF MOLECULAR MEDIATORS WHICH LEAD TO THE AGE-RELATED INFLAMMATORY PHENOTYPE WILL BE PRESENTED. 2010 16 2528 28 EPIGENETICS AS A KEY LINK BETWEEN PSYCHOSOCIAL STRESS AND AGING: CONCEPTS, EVIDENCE, MECHANISMS . PSYCHOSOCIAL STRESS-ESPECIALLY WHEN CHRONIC, EXCESSIVE, OR OCCURRING EARLY IN LIFE-HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH ACCELERATED AGING AND INCREASED DISEASE RISK. WITH RAPID AGING OF THE WORLD POPULATION, THE NEED TO ELUCIDATE THE UNDERLYING MECHANISMS IS PRESSING, NOW MORE SO THAN EVER. AMONG MOLECULAR MECHANISMS LINKING STRESS AND AGING, THE PRESENT ARTICLE REVIEWS EVIDENCE ON THE ROLE OF EPIGENETICS, BIOCHEMICAL PROCESSES THAT CAN BE SET INTO MOTION BY STRESSORS AND IN TURN INFLUENCE GENOMIC FUNCTION AND COMPLEX PHENOTYPES, INCLUDING AGING-RELATED OUTCOMES. THE ARTICLE FURTHER PROVIDES A CONCEPTUAL MECHANISTIC FRAMEWORK ON HOW STRESS MAY DRIVE EPIGENETIC CHANGES AT SUSCEPTIBLE GENOMIC SITES, THEREBY EXERTING SYSTEMS-LEVEL EFFECTS ON THE AGING EPIGENOME WHILE ALSO REGULATING THE EXPRESSION OF MOLECULES IMPLICATED IN AGING-RELATED PROCESSES. THIS EMERGING EVIDENCE, TOGETHER WITH WORK EXAMINING RELATED BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, BEGINS TO SHED LIGHT ON THE EPIGENETIC AND, MORE BROADLY, MOLECULAR UNDERPINNINGS OF THE LONG-HYPOTHESIZED CONNECTION BETWEEN STRESS AND AGING. . 2019 17 285 42 AGING AND AGING-RELATED DISEASES: FROM MOLECULAR MECHANISMS TO INTERVENTIONS AND TREATMENTS. AGING IS A GRADUAL AND IRREVERSIBLE PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESS. IT PRESENTS WITH DECLINES IN TISSUE AND CELL FUNCTIONS AND SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN THE RISKS OF VARIOUS AGING-RELATED DISEASES, INCLUDING NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, METABOLIC DISEASES, MUSCULOSKELETAL DISEASES, AND IMMUNE SYSTEM DISEASES. ALTHOUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN MEDICINE HAS PROMOTED HUMAN HEALTH AND GREATLY EXTENDED LIFE EXPECTANCY, WITH THE AGING OF SOCIETY, A VARIETY OF CHRONIC DISEASES HAVE GRADUALLY BECOME THE MOST IMPORTANT CAUSES OF DISABILITY AND DEATH IN ELDERLY INDIVIDUALS. CURRENT RESEARCH ON AGING FOCUSES ON ELUCIDATING HOW VARIOUS ENDOGENOUS AND EXOGENOUS STRESSES (SUCH AS GENOMIC INSTABILITY, TELOMERE DYSFUNCTION, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, LOSS OF PROTEOSTASIS, COMPROMISE OF AUTOPHAGY, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, CELLULAR SENESCENCE, STEM CELL EXHAUSTION, ALTERED INTERCELLULAR COMMUNICATION, DEREGULATED NUTRIENT SENSING) PARTICIPATE IN THE REGULATION OF AGING. FURTHERMORE, THOROUGH RESEARCH ON THE PATHOGENESIS OF AGING TO IDENTIFY INTERVENTIONS THAT PROMOTE HEALTH AND LONGEVITY (SUCH AS CALORIC RESTRICTION, MICROBIOTA TRANSPLANTATION, AND NUTRITIONAL INTERVENTION) AND CLINICAL TREATMENT METHODS FOR AGING-RELATED DISEASES (DEPLETION OF SENESCENT CELLS, STEM CELL THERAPY, ANTIOXIDATIVE AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY TREATMENTS, AND HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY) COULD DECREASE THE INCIDENCE AND DEVELOPMENT OF AGING-RELATED DISEASES AND IN TURN PROMOTE HEALTHY AGING AND LONGEVITY. 2022 18 28 37 A BIOMIMETIC NATURAL SCIENCES APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING THE MECHANISMS OF AGEING IN BURDEN OF LIFESTYLE DISEASES. THE WORLDWIDE LANDSCAPE OF AN AGEING POPULATION AND AGE-RELATED DISEASE BRINGS WITH IT HUGE SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND PUBLIC HEALTHCARE CONCERNS ACROSS NATIONS. CORRESPONDINGLY, MONUMENTAL HUMAN AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES HAVE BEEN INVESTED IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH, WITH A MISSION TO DECODE THE MECHANISMS OF AGEING AND HOW THESE CONTRIBUTE TO AGE-RELATED DISEASE. MULTIPLE HALLMARKS OF AGEING HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED THAT ARE COMMON ACROSS TAXA, HIGHLIGHTING THEIR FUNDAMENTAL IMPORTANCE. THESE INCLUDE DYSREGULATED MITOCHONDRIAL METABOLISM AND TELOMERES BIOLOGY, EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS, CELL-MATRIX INTERACTIONS, PROTEOSTASIS, DYSREGULATED NUTRIENT SENSING, STEM CELL EXHAUSTION, INFLAMMAGEING AND IMMUNO-SENESCENCE. WHILE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF AGEING IS IMPROVING, IT REMAINS A COMPLEX AND MULTIFACTORIAL PROCESS THAT REMAINS TO BE FULLY UNDERSTOOD. A KEY ASPECT OF THE SHORTFALL IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE AGEING PROCESS LIES IN TRANSLATING DATA FROM STANDARD ANIMAL MODELS TO HUMANS. CONSEQUENTLY, WE SUGGEST THAT A 'BIOMIMETIC' AND COMPARATIVE APPROACH, INTEGRATING KNOWLEDGE FROM SPECIES IN THE WILD, AS OPPOSED TO INBRED GENETICALLY HOMOGENOUS LABORATORY ANIMALS, CAN PROVIDE POWERFUL INSIGHTS INTO HUMAN AGEING PROCESSES. HERE WE DISCUSS SOME PARTICULARITIES AND COMPARATIVE PATTERNS AMONG SEVERAL SPECIES FROM THE ANIMAL KINGDOM, ENDOWED WITH LONGEVITY OR SHORT LIFESPANS AND UNIQUE METABOLIC PROFILES THAT COULD BE POTENTIALLY EXPLOITED TO THE UNDERSTANDING OF AGEING AND AGE-RELATED DISEASES. BASED UPON LESSONS FROM NATURE, WE ALSO HIGHLIGHT SEVERAL AVENUES FOR RENEWED FOCUS IN THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF AGEING AND AGE-RELATED DISEASE (I.E. DIET-MICROBIOME-HEALTH AXIS, OXIDATIVE PROTEIN DAMAGE, ADAPTIVE HOMOEOSTASIS AND PLANETARY HEALTH). WE PROPOSE THAT A BIOMIMETIC ALLIANCE WITH COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH FROM DIFFERENT DISCIPLINES CAN IMPROVE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF AGEING AND AGE-RELATED DISEASES WITH LONG-TERM SUSTAINABLE UTILITY. 2021 19 2644 42 EPIGENOMIC DRIVERS OF IMMUNE DYSFUNCTION IN AGING. AGING INEVITABLY LEADS TO REDUCED IMMUNE FUNCTION, LEAVING THE ELDERLY MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO INFECTIONS, LESS ABLE TO RESPOND TO PATHOGEN CHALLENGES, AND LESS RESPONSIVE TO PREVENTATIVE VACCINATIONS. NO CELL TYPE IS EXEMPT FROM THE RAVAGES OF AGE, AND EXTENSIVE STUDIES HAVE FOUND AGE-RELATED ALTERATIONS IN THE FREQUENCIES AND FUNCTIONS OF BOTH STEM AND PROGENITOR CELLS, AS WELL AS EFFECTOR CELLS OF BOTH THE INNATE AND ADAPTIVE IMMUNE SYSTEMS. THE INTRINSIC FUNCTIONAL REDUCTION IN IMMUNE COMPETENCE IS ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH LOW-GRADE CHRONIC INFLAMMATION, TERMED "INFLAMM-AGING," WHICH FURTHER PERPETUATES IMMUNE DYSFUNCTION. WHILE MANY OF THESE AGE-RELATED CELLULAR CHANGES ARE WELL CHARACTERIZED, UNDERSTANDING THE MOLECULAR CHANGES THAT UNDERPIN THE FUNCTIONAL DECLINE HAS PROVEN MORE DIFFICULT. CHANGES IN CHROMATIN ARE INCREASINGLY APPRECIATED AS A CAUSATIVE MECHANISM OF CELLULAR AND ORGANISMAL AGING ACROSS SPECIES. THESE CHANGES INCLUDE INCREASED GENOMIC INSTABILITY THROUGH LOSS OF HETEROCHROMATIN AND INCREASED DNA DAMAGE, TELOMERE ATTRITION, AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS. IN THIS REVIEW, WE DISCUSS THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN CHROMATIN, IMMUNOCOMPETENCE, AND THE LOSS OF FUNCTION ASSOCIATED WITH MAMMALIAN IMMUNE AGING. THROUGH UNDERSTANDING THE MOLECULAR EVENTS WHICH UNDERPIN THE PHENOTYPIC CHANGES OBSERVED IN THE AGED IMMUNE SYSTEM, IT IS HOPED THAT THE AGED IMMUNE SYSTEM CAN BE RESTORED TO PROVIDE YOUTHFUL IMMUNITY ONCE MORE. 2019 20 4399 32 MODULATION OF GENOMIC AND POSTGENOMIC ALTERATIONS IN NONCANCER DISEASES AND CRITICAL PERIODS OF LIFE. GENOMIC AND POSTGENOMIC CHANGES ARE EXTENSIVELY INVESTIGATED IN CANCER RESEARCH. SIMILAR ALTERATIONS, AFFECTING GENOME, TRANSCRIPTOME, MIRNOME AND/OR PROTEOME END-POINTS, HAVE BEEN DETECTED IN A VARIETY OF OTHER CHRONIC DEGENERATIVE DISEASES, SUCH AS ATHEROSCLEROSIS, DEGENERATIVE HEART DISEASES, CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASES, NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS, EYE DISEASES, DIABETES, METABOLIC SYNDROME, SKIN AGEING AND ALOPECIA. NO GENERALIZATION CAN BE MADE DUE TO THE MYRIAD OF DIVERSE CLINICAL ENTITIES CLASSIFIED AS CHRONIC DEGENERATIVE DISEASES. MOREOVER, THE DETECTION OF MOLECULAR CHANGES DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY IMPLY THEIR CAUSAL ROLE. NEVERTHELESS, COMMON MECHANISMS, SUCH AS DNA DAMAGE, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, OXIDATIVE STRESS, AND CHRONIC INFLAMMATION, IN ADDITION TO GENETIC PREDISPOSITION, ARE OFTEN INVOLVED IN NONCANCER DISEASES. WE DEBATE HERE IN MORE DETAIL THE SUBJECTS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES AND OF SKIN DISEASES. MOREOVER, WE DISCUSS OUR EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES SUGGESTING THAT GENOMIC AND POSTGENOMIC CHANGES DO ALSO OCCUR DURING CRITICAL PERIODS OF LIFE, INCLUDING THE PRENATAL LIFE, THE PERINATAL PERIOD, AND AGEING. IN ADDITION, WE COMMENT ON THE FINDING THAT STEM-DERIVED CELLS ARE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO MOLECULAR DAMAGE THAN MORE DIFFERENTIATED CELLS. ALL THESE DATA ARE VIEWED IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE. IN FACT, THERE IS EVIDENCE THAT THE GENOMIC AND POSTGENOMIC ALTERATIONS OCCURRING NOT ONLY IN SEVERAL PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS BUT ALSO IN PARAPHYSIOLOGICAL SITUATIONS THAT AFFECT CRITICAL PERIODS OF LIFE CAN BE MODULATED BY MEANS OF DIETARY AND PHARMACOLOGICAL AGENTS. THE DISCOVERY THAT CHEMOPREVENTIVE AGENTS ARE ALSO ABLE TO ATTENUATE NUCLEOTIDE DAMAGE IN STEM-DERIVED CELLS WARRANTS FURTHER STUDIES IN VIEW OF POSSIBLE CLINICAL APPLICATIONS. 2009