1 6436 120 THERAPEUTIC ACTIONS OF TEA PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS AGAINST OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION AS CENTRAL MEDIATORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESSION OF HEALTH PROBLEMS: A REVIEW FOCUSING ON MICRORNA REGULATION. MANY HEALTH PROBLEMS INCLUDING CHRONIC DISEASES ARE CLOSELY ASSOCIATED WITH OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION. TEA HAS ABUNDANT PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS WITH VARIOUS HEALTH BENEFITS INCLUDING ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PROPERTIES. THIS REVIEW FOCUSES ON THE PRESENT UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMPACT OF TEA PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS ON THE EXPRESSION OF MIRNAS, AND ELUCIDATES THE BIOCHEMICAL AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE TRANSCRIPTIONAL AND POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL PROTECTIVE ACTIONS OF TEA PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS AGAINST OXIDATIVE STRESS- AND/OR INFLAMMATION-MEDIATED DISEASES. CLINICAL STUDIES SHOWED THAT DRINKING TEA OR TAKING CATECHIN SUPPLEMENT ON A DAILY BASIS PROMOTED THE ENDOGENOUS ANTIOXIDANT DEFENSE SYSTEM OF THE BODY WHILE INHIBITING INFLAMMATORY FACTORS. THE REGULATION OF CHRONIC DISEASES BASED ON EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, AND THE EPIGENETIC-BASED THERAPIES INVOLVING DIFFERENT TEA PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS, HAVE BEEN INSUFFICIENTLY STUDIED. THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS AND APPLICATION STRATEGIES OF MIR-27 AND MIR-34 INVOLVED IN OXIDATIVE STRESS RESPONSE AND MIR-126 AND MIR-146 INVOLVED IN INFLAMMATION PROCESS WERE PRELIMINARILY INVESTIGATED. SOME EMERGING EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT TEA PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS MAY PROMOTE EPIGENETIC CHANGES, INVOLVING NON-CODING RNA REGULATION, DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATION, UBIQUITIN AND SUMO MODIFICATIONS. HOWEVER, EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS AND EPIGENETIC-BASED DISEASE THERAPIES INVOLVING PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS FROM DIFFERENT TEAS, AND THE POTENTIAL CROSS-TALKS AMONG THE EPIGENETIC EVENTS, REMAIN UNDERSTUDIED. 2023 2 6333 45 THE ROLE OF DIETARY PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS IN EPIGENETIC MODULATION INVOLVED IN INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES. A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN DIETARY PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS AND THE EPIGENETICS OF INFLAMMATION MAY IMPACT PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS AND THEIR TREATMENT. PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS ARE WELL-KNOWN FOR THEIR ANTIOXIDANT, ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, ANTI-ANGIOGENIC, AND ANTI-CANCER PROPERTIES, WITH POTENTIAL BENEFITS IN THE TREATMENT OF VARIOUS HUMAN DISEASES. EMERGING STUDIES BRING EVIDENCE THAT NUTRITION MAY PLAY AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN IMMUNE SYSTEM MODULATION ALSO BY ALTERING GENE EXPRESSION. THIS REVIEW DISCUSSES EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS SUCH AS DNA METHYLATION, POST-TRANSLATIONAL HISTONE MODIFICATION, AND NON-CODING MICRORNA ACTIVITY THAT REGULATE THE GENE EXPRESSION OF MOLECULES INVOLVED IN INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES. SPECIAL ATTENTION IS PAID TO THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF NF-KAPPAB MODULATION BY DIETARY PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS. THE REGULATION OF HISTONE ACETYLTRANSFERASE AND HISTONE DEACETYLASE ACTIVITY, WHICH ALL INFLUENCE NF-KAPPAB SIGNALING, SEEMS TO BE A CRUCIAL MECHANISM OF THE EPIGENETIC CONTROL OF INFLAMMATION BY PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS. MOREOVER, CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES ARE REPORTED TO BE CLOSELY CONNECTED TO THE MAJOR STAGES OF CARCINOGENESIS AND OTHER NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES. THEREFORE, DIETARY PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS-TARGETED EPIGENETICS IS BECOMING AN ATTRACTIVE APPROACH FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND INTERVENTION. 2020 3 4652 28 NEUROPROTECTION WITH NATURAL ANTIOXIDANTS AND NUTRACEUTICALS IN THE CONTEXT OF BRAIN CELL DEGENERATION: THE EPIGENETIC CONNECTION. BIOACTIVE ANTIOXIDANT AGENTS PRESENT IN SELECTED PLANTS ARE KNOWN TO PROVIDE THE FIRST LINE OF BIOLOGICAL DEFENSE AGAINST OXIDATIVE STRESS. IN PARTICULAR, SOLUBLE VITAMIN C, E, CAROTENOIDS AND PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS HAVE DEMONSTRATED CRUCIAL BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS IN CELLS AGAINST OXIDATIVE DAMAGE, PREVENTING PREVALENT CHRONIC DISEASES, SUCH AS DIABETES, CANCER AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE. THE REPORTED WIDE RANGE OF EFFECTS THAT INCLUDED ANTI-AGING, ANTI-ATHEROSCLEROSIS, ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND ANTICANCER ACTIVITY WERE STUDIED AGAINST DEGENERATIVE PATHOLOGIES OF THE BRAIN. VITAMINS AND DIFFERENT PHYTOCHEMICALS ARE IMPORTANT EPIGENETIC MODIFIERS THAT PREVENT NEURODEGENERATION. IN ORDER TO EXPLORE THE POTENTIAL ANTIOXIDANT SOURCES IN FUNCTIONAL FOODS AND NUTRACEUTICALS AGAINST NEURODEGENERATION, THE PRESENT PAPER AIMS TO SHOW A COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT OF ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY AT CHEMICAL AND CELLULAR LEVELS. THE EFFECTS OF THE DIFFERENT BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS AVAILABLE AND THEIR ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY THROUGH AN EPIGENETIC POINT OF VIEW ARE ALSO DISCUSSED. 2019 4 2100 25 EPIGENETIC EFFECTS OF NATURAL POLYPHENOLS: A FOCUS ON SIRT1-MEDIATED MECHANISMS. POLYPHENOLS ARE A CLASS OF NATURAL COMPOUNDS WIDELY DISTRIBUTED IN FRUITS, VEGETABLES, AND PLANTS. THEY HAVE BEEN REPORTED TO POSSESS A WIDE RANGE OF ACTIVITIES IN PREVENTION AND ALLEVIATION OF VARIOUS DISEASES LIKE CANCER, NEUROINFLAMMATION, DIABETES, AND AGING. POLYPHENOLS ARE EFFECTIVE AGAINST CHRONIC DISEASES AND RECENT REPORTS INDICATED STRONG EPIGENETIC EFFECTS OF POLYPHENOLS. MOST OF THE STUDIES INVESTIGATING EPIGENETIC EFFECTS OF NATURAL POLYPHENOLS HAVE FOCUSED ON THEIR BENEFICIAL EFFECTS IN CANCER TREATMENT. HOWEVER, EPIGENETIC DEFECTS HAVE BEEN DEMONSTRATED IN MANY OTHER DISEASES AS WELL, AND APPLICATION OF POLYPHENOLS TO MODULATE THE EPIGENOME IS BECOMING AN INTERESTING FIELD OF RESEARCH. THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES THE EFFECTS OF NATURAL POLYPHENOLS IN MODULATING EPIGENETIC-RELATED ENZYMES AS WELL AS THEIR EFFECT IN PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASES WITH A FOCUS ON SIRT1 MODULATION. WE HAVE ALSO DISCUSSED THE RELATION BETWEEN THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF EPIGENETIC-MODIFYING POLYPHENOLS. 2014 5 4453 39 MOLECULAR MECHANISMS AND PATHWAYS AS TARGETS FOR CANCER PREVENTION AND PROGRESSION WITH DIETARY COMPOUNDS. A UNIQUE FEATURE OF BIOACTIVE FOOD INGREDIENTS IS THEIR BROAD ANTIOXIDANT FUNCTION. ANTIOXIDANTS HAVING A WIDE SPECTRUM OF CHEMICAL STRUCTURE AND ACTIVITY BEYOND BASIC NUTRITION; DISPLAY DIFFERENT HEALTH BENEFITS BY THE PREVENTION AND PROGRESSION OF CHRONIC DISEASES. FUNCTIONAL FOOD COMPONENTS ARE CAPABLE OF ENHANCING THE NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT DEFENSE SYSTEM BY SCAVENGING REACTIVE OXYGEN AND NITROGEN SPECIES, PROTECTING AND REPAIRING DNA DAMAGE, AS WELL AS MODULATING THE SIGNAL TRANSDUCTION PATHWAYS AND GENE EXPRESSION. MAJOR PATHWAYS AFFECTED BY BIOACTIVE FOOD INGREDIENTS INCLUDE THE PRO-INFLAMMATORY PATHWAYS REGULATED BY NUCLEAR FACTOR KAPPA B (NF-KAPPAB), AS WELL AS THOSE ASSOCIATED WITH CYTOKINES AND CHEMOKINES. THE PRESENT REVIEW SUMMARIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF PLANT BIOACTIVES AND THEIR ROLES IN THE REGULATION OF INFLAMMATORY PATHWAYS. BIOACTIVES INFLUENCE SEVERAL PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESSES SUCH AS GENE EXPRESSION, CELL CYCLE REGULATION, CELL PROLIFERATION, CELL MIGRATION, ETC., RESULTING IN CANCER PREVENTION. CANCER INITIATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH CHANGES IN METABOLIC PATHWAYS SUCH AS GLUCOSE METABOLISM, AND THE EFFECT OF BIOACTIVES IN NORMALIZING THIS PROCESS HAS BEEN PROVIDED. INITIATION AND PROGRESSION OF INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASES (IBD) WHICH INCREASE THE CHANCES OF DEVELOPING OF COLORECTAL CANCERS CAN BE DOWNREGULATED BY PLANT BIOACTIVES. SEVERAL ASPECTS OF THE POTENTIAL ROLES OF MICRORNAS AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CANCERS HAVE ALSO BEEN PRESENTED. 2017 6 4783 35 NUTRIGENOMICS IN PARKINSON'S DISEASE: DIVERSITY OF MODULATORY ACTIONS OF POLYPHENOLS ON EPIGENETIC EFFECTS INDUCED BY TOXINS. ALTHOUGH THE PATHOGENESIS OF PARKINSON'S DISEASE (PD) IS NOT COMPLETELY UNDERSTOOD, THERE IS A CONSENSUS THAT IT CAN BE CAUSED BY MULTIFACTORIAL MECHANISMS INVOLVING GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY, EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS INDUCED BY TOXINS AND MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION. IN THE PAST 20 YEARS, GREAT EFFORTS HAVE BEEN MADE IN ORDER TO CLARIFY MOLECULAR MECHANISMS THAT ARE RISK FACTORS FOR THIS DISEASE, AS WELL AS TO IDENTIFY BIOACTIVE AGENTS FOR PREVENTION AND SLOWING DOWN OF ITS PROGRESSION. NUTRACEUTICAL PRODUCTS HAVE RECEIVED SUBSTANTIAL INTEREST DUE TO THEIR NUTRITIONAL, SAFE AND THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS ON SEVERAL CHRONIC DISEASES. THE AIM OF THIS REVIEW WAS TO GATHER THE MAIN EVIDENCE OF THE EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN THE NEUROPROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS CURRENTLY UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR THE TREATMENT OF TOXIN-INDUCED PD. THESE STUDIES CONFIRM THAT THE NEUROPROTECTIVE ACTIONS OF POLYPHENOLS INVOLVE COMPLEX EPIGENETIC MODULATIONS, DEMONSTRATING THAT THE INTAKE OF THESE NATURAL COMPOUNDS CAN BE A PROMISING, LOW-COST, PHARMACOGENOMIC STRATEGY AGAINST THE DEVELOPMENT OF PD. 2023 7 1254 30 CURRENT PROGRESS ON THE MECHANISMS OF HYPERHOMOCYSTEINEMIA-INDUCED VASCULAR INJURY AND USE OF NATURAL POLYPHENOL COMPOUNDS. CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE IS ONE OF THE MOST COMMON DISEASES IN THE ELDERLY POPULATION, AND ITS INCIDENCE HAS RAPIDLY INCREASED WITH THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE EXPECTANCY. HYPERHOMOCYSTEINEMIA IS AN INDEPENDENT RISK FACTOR FOR VARIOUS CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, INCLUDING ATHEROSCLEROSIS, AND DAMAGE TO VASCULAR FUNCTION PLAYS AN INITIAL ROLE IN ITS PATHOGENESIS. THIS REVIEW PRESENTS THE LATEST KNOWLEDGE ON THE MECHANISMS OF VASCULAR INJURY CAUSED BY HYPERHOMOCYSTEINEMIA, INCLUDING OXIDATIVE STRESS, ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS, PROTEIN N-HOMOCYSTEINIZATION, AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION, AND DISCUSSES THE THERAPEUTIC TARGETS OF NATURAL POLYPHENOLS. STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT NATURAL POLYPHENOLS IN PLANTS CAN REDUCE HOMOCYSTEINE LEVELS AND REGULATE DNA METHYLATION BY ACTING ON OXIDATIVE STRESS AND ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS-RELATED SIGNALING PATHWAYS, THUS IMPROVING HYPERHOMOCYSTEINEMIA-INDUCED VASCULAR INJURY. NATURAL POLYPHENOLS OBTAINED VIA DAILY DIET ARE SAFER AND HAVE MORE PRACTICAL SIGNIFICANCE IN THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASES THAN TRADITIONAL DRUGS. 2021 8 4784 34 NUTRIMIROMICS: ROLE OF MICRORNAS AND NUTRITION IN MODULATING INFLAMMATION AND CHRONIC DISEASES. NUTRIMIROMICS STUDIES THE INFLUENCE OF THE DIET ON THE MODIFICATION OF GENE EXPRESSION DUE TO EPIGENETIC PROCESSES RELATED TO MICRORNAS (MIRNAS), WHICH MAY AFFECT THE RISK FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASES. MIRNAS ARE A CLASS OF NON-CODING ENDOGENOUS RNA MOLECULES THAT ARE USUALLY INVOLVED IN POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL GENE SILENCING BY INDUCING MRNA DEGRADATION OR TRANSLATIONAL REPRESSION BY BINDING TO A TARGET MESSENGER RNA. THEY CAN BE CONTROLLED BY ENVIRONMENTAL AND DIETARY FACTORS, PARTICULARLY BY ISOLATED NUTRIENTS OR BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS, INDICATING THAT DIET MANIPULATION MAY HOLD PROMISE AS A THERAPEUTIC APPROACH IN MODULATING THE RISK OF CHRONIC DISEASES. THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES THE EVIDENCE REGARDING THE INFLUENCE OF NUTRIENTS AND BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS ON THE EXPRESSION OF MIRNAS RELATED TO INFLAMMATION AND CHRONIC DISEASE IN SEVERAL MODELS (CELL CULTURE, ANIMAL MODELS, AND HUMAN TRIALS). 2017 9 3547 39 IMMUNOMODULATORY ROLE OF NUTRIENTS: HOW CAN PULMONARY DYSFUNCTIONS IMPROVE? NUTRITION IS AN IMPORTANT TOOL THAT CAN BE USED TO MODULATE THE IMMUNE RESPONSE DURING INFECTIOUS DISEASES. IN ADDITION, THROUGH DIET, IMPORTANT SUBSTRATES ARE ACQUIRED FOR THE BIOSYNTHESIS OF REGULATORY MOLECULES IN THE IMMUNE RESPONSE, INFLUENCING THE PROGRESSION AND TREATMENT OF CHRONIC LUNG DISEASES, SUCH AS ASTHMA AND CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE (COPD). IN THIS WAY, NUTRITION CAN PROMOTE LUNG HEALTH STATUS. A RANGE OF NUTRIENTS, SUCH AS VITAMINS (A, C, D, AND E), MINERALS (ZINC, SELENIUM, IRON, AND MAGNESIUM), FLAVONOIDS AND FATTY ACIDS, PLAY IMPORTANT ROLES IN REDUCING THE RISK OF PULMONARY CHRONIC DISEASES AND VIRAL INFECTIONS. THROUGH THEIR ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY EFFECTS, NUTRIENTS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH BETTER LUNG FUNCTION AND A LOWER RISK OF COMPLICATIONS SINCE THEY CAN DECREASE THE HARMFUL EFFECTS FROM THE IMMUNE SYSTEM DURING THE INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE. IN ADDITION, BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS CAN EVEN CONTRIBUTE TO EPIGENETIC CHANGES, INCLUDING HISTONE DEACETYLASE (HDAC) MODIFICATIONS THAT INHIBIT THE TRANSCRIPTION OF PROINFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES, WHICH CAN CONTRIBUTE TO THE MAINTENANCE OF HOMEOSTASIS IN THE CONTEXT OF INFECTIONS AND CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES. THESE NUTRIENTS ALSO PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN ACTIVATING IMMUNE RESPONSES AGAINST PATHOGENS, WHICH CAN HELP THE IMMUNE SYSTEM DURING INFECTIONS. HERE, WE PROVIDE AN UPDATED OVERVIEW OF THE ROLES PLAYED BY DIETARY FACTORS AND HOW THEY CAN AFFECT RESPIRATORY HEALTH. THEREFORE, WE WILL SHOW THE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ROLE OF FLAVONOIDS, FATTY ACIDS, VITAMINS AND MICROBIOTA, IMPORTANT FOR THE CONTROL OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES AND ALLERGIES, IN ADDITION TO THE ANTIVIRAL ROLE OF VITAMINS, FLAVONOIDS, AND MINERALS DURING PULMONARY VIRAL INFECTIONS, ADDRESSING THE MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN EACH FUNCTION. THESE MECHANISMS ARE INTERESTING IN THE DISCUSSION OF PERSPECTIVES ASSOCIATED WITH SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME CORONAVIRUS 2 (SARS-COV-2) INFECTION AND ITS PULMONARY COMPLICATIONS SINCE PATIENTS WITH SEVERE DISEASE HAVE VITAMINS DEFICIENCY, ESPECIALLY VITAMIN D. IN ADDITION, RESEARCHES WITH THE USE OF FLAVONOIDS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO DECREASE VIRAL REPLICATION IN VITRO. THIS WAY, A FULL UNDERSTANDING OF DIETARY INFLUENCES CAN IMPROVE THE LUNG HEALTH OF PATIENTS. 2021 10 4315 26 MICRORNAS AS NEW TARGETS OF DIETARY POLYPHENOLS. IN THE LASTS YEARS IT HAS BECOME EVIDENT THAT POLYPHENOLS MODIFY CELL FUNCTIONALITY THROUGH EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, SUCH AS MODULATING MICRORNA (MIRNA) LEVELS. MIRNAS ARE SMALL NON-CODING RNAS OF ABOUT 22 NUCLEOTIDES IN LENGTH, THAT MODULATE GENE EXPRESSION AT THE POST-TRANSCRIPTIONAL LEVEL. MIRNAS ARE INVOLVED IN ALMOST ALL BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, AFFECT MOST METABOLIC PATHWAYS AND RECENT EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THEIR DYSREGULATION IN A NUMBER OF METABOLIC DISORDERS AND DISEASES. IN THIS SENSE, MIRNAS ARE EMERGING AS POTENTIAL BIOMARKERS OF NUMEROUS PATHOLOGIES AND THEREFORE AS NEW THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. POLYPHENOLIC MODULATION OF MIRNAS IS VERY ATTRACTIVE AS A STRATEGY TO TARGET NUMEROUS CELL PROCESSES AND POTENTIALLY REDUCE THE RISK OF CHRONIC DISEASES. 2014 11 1414 39 DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS IN NEUROIMMUNOAGING: A NEW THERAPEUTIC POSSIBILITY FOR HUMANS? ALTHOUGH SEVERAL EFFORTS HAVE BEEN MADE IN THE SEARCH FOR GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC PATTERNS LINKED TO DISEASES, A COMPREHENSIVE EXPLANATION OF THE MECHANISMS UNDERLYING PATHOLOGICAL PHENOTYPIC PLASTICITY IS STILL FAR FROM BEING CLARIFIED. OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION ARE TWO OF THE MAJOR TRIGGERS OF THE EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS OCCURRING IN CHRONIC PATHOLOGIES, SUCH AS NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES. IN FACT, OVER THE LAST DECADE, REMARKABLE PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE TO REALIZE THAT CHRONIC, LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION IS ONE OF THE MAJOR RISK FACTOR UNDERLYING BRAIN AGING. ACCUMULATED DATA STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT PHYTOCHEMICALS FROM FRUITS, VEGETABLES, HERBS, AND SPICES MAY EXERT RELEVANT IMMUNOMODULATORY AND/OR ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITIES IN THE CONTEXT OF BRAIN AGING. STARTING BY THE EVIDENCE THAT A COMMON DENOMINATOR OF AGING AND CHRONIC DEGENERATIVE DISEASES IS REPRESENTED BY INFLAMMATION, AND THAT SEVERAL DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS ARE ABLE TO POTENTIALLY INTERFERE WITH AND REGULATE THE NORMAL FUNCTION OF CELLS, IN PARTICULAR NEURONAL COMPONENTS, AIM OF THIS REVIEW IS TO SUMMARIZE RECENT STUDIES ON NEUROINFLAMMAGING PROCESSES AND PROOFS INDICATING THAT SPECIFIC PHYTOCHEMICALS MAY ACT AS POSITIVE MODULATORS OF NEUROINFLAMMATORY EVENTS. IN ADDITION, CRITICAL PATHWAYS INVOLVED IN MEDIATING PHYTOCHEMICALS EFFECTS ON NEUROINFLAMMAGING WERE DISCUSSED, EXPLORING THE REAL IMPACT OF THESE COMPOUNDS IN PRESERVING BRAIN HEALTH BEFORE THE ONSET OF SYMPTOMS LEADING TO INFLAMMATORY NEURODEGENERATION AND COGNITIVE DECLINE. 2016 12 1413 36 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 13 5390 32 REDOX-FIBROSIS: IMPACT OF TGFBETA1 ON ROS GENERATORS, MEDIATORS AND FUNCTIONAL CONSEQUENCES. FIBROSIS IS ONE OF THE MOST PREVALENT FEATURES OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES LIKE OBESITY, DIABETES, NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE, CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE, OR CARDIOMYOPATHY AND AFFECTS MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN ALL COUNTRIES. ALTHOUGH THE UNDERSTANDING ABOUT THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF FIBROSIS HAS IMPROVED A LOT DURING THE RECENT YEARS, A NUMBER OF MECHANISMS STILL REMAIN UNKNOWN. ALTHOUGH TGF-BETA1 SIGNALING, LOSS OF METABOLIC HOMEOSTASIS AND CHRONIC LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION APPEAR TO PLAY IMPORTANT ROLES IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF FIBROSIS, RECENT EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT OXIDATIVE STRESS AND THE ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEM MAY ALSO BE CRUCIAL FOR FIBROSIS DEVELOPMENT AND PERSISTENCE. THESE FINDINGS POINT TO A CONCEPT OF A REDOX-FIBROSIS WHERE THE CELLULAR OXIDANT AND ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEM COULD BE POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS. THE CURRENT REVIEW AIMS TO SUMMARIZE THE EXISTING LINKS BETWEEN TGF-BETA1 SIGNALING, GENERATION AND ACTION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES, EXPRESSION OF ANTIOXIDATIVE ENZYMES, AND FUNCTIONAL CONSEQUENCES INCLUDING EPIGENETIC REDOX-MEDIATED RESPONSES DURING FIBROSIS. 2015 14 1405 39 DIETARY FACTORS AND EPIGENETIC REGULATION FOR PROSTATE CANCER PREVENTION. THE ROLE OF EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS IN VARIOUS HUMAN CHRONIC DISEASES HAS GAINED INCREASING ATTENTION AND HAS RESULTED IN A PARADIGM SHIFT IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY. IN THE FIELD OF CANCER RESEARCH, E.G., GENETIC ABNORMALITIES/MUTATIONS HISTORICALLY WERE VIEWED AS PRIMARY UNDERLYING CAUSES; HOWEVER, EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS THAT ALTER GENE EXPRESSION WITHOUT AFFECTING DNA SEQUENCE ARE NOW RECOGNIZED AS BEING OF EQUAL OR GREATER IMPORTANCE FOR ONCOGENESIS. METHYLATION OF DNA, MODIFICATION OF HISTONES, AND INTERFERING MICRORNA (MIRNA) COLLECTIVELY REPRESENT A CADRE OF EPIGENETIC ELEMENTS DYSREGULATED IN CANCER. TARGETING THE EPIGENOME WITH COMPOUNDS THAT MODULATE DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MARKS, AND MIRNA PROFILES REPRESENTS AN EVOLVING STRATEGY FOR CANCER CHEMOPREVENTION, AND THESE APPROACHES ARE STARTING TO SHOW PROMISE IN HUMAN CLINICAL TRIALS. ESSENTIAL MICRONUTRIENTS SUCH AS FOLATE, VITAMIN B-12, SELENIUM, AND ZINC AS WELL AS THE DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS SULFORAPHANE, TEA POLYPHENOLS, CURCUMIN, AND ALLYL SULFUR COMPOUNDS ARE AMONG A GROWING LIST OF AGENTS THAT AFFECT EPIGENETIC EVENTS AS NOVEL MECHANISMS OF CHEMOPREVENTION. TO ILLUSTRATE THESE CONCEPTS, THE CURRENT REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS THE INTERACTIONS AMONG NUTRIENTS, EPIGENETICS, AND PROSTATE CANCER SUSCEPTIBILITY. IN PARTICULAR, WE FOCUS ON EPIGENETIC DYSREGULATION AND THE IMPACT OF SPECIFIC NUTRIENTS AND FOOD COMPONENTS ON DNA METHYLATION AND HISTONE MODIFICATIONS THAT CAN ALTER GENE EXPRESSION AND INFLUENCE PROSTATE CANCER PROGRESSION. 2011 15 4898 36 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 16 1415 31 DIETARY POLYPHENOLS AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO THE MODULATION OF NON-COMMUNICABLE CHRONIC DISEASES AND EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS: A MINI-REVIEW. CHRONIC NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES (NCDS) HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED A GLOBAL HEALTH PROBLEM, CHARACTERIZED AS DISEASES OF MULTIPLE FACTORS, WHICH ARE DEVELOPED THROUGHOUT LIFE, AND REGARDLESS OF GENETICS AS A RISK FACTOR OF IMPORTANT RELEVANCE, THE INCREASE IN MORTALITY ATTRIBUTED TO THE DISEASE TO ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AND THE LIFESTYLE ONE LEADS. ALTHOUGH THE REACTIVE SPECIES (ROS/RNS) ARE NECESSARY FOR SEVERAL PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, THEIR OVERPRODUCTION IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE PATHOGENESIS AND AGGRAVATION OF NCDS. IN CONTRAST, DIETARY POLYPHENOLS HAVE BEEN WIDELY ASSOCIATED WITH MINIMIZING OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION. IN ADDITION TO THEIR ANTIOXIDANT POWER, POLYPHENOLS HAVE ALSO DRAWN ATTENTION FOR BEING ABLE TO MODULATE BOTH GENE EXPRESSION AND MODIFY EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, SUGGESTING AN ESSENTIAL INVOLVEMENT IN THE PREVENTION AND/OR DEVELOPMENT OF SOME PATHOLOGIES. THEREFORE, THIS REVIEW BRIEFLY EXPLAINED THE MECHANISMS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOME NCDS, FOLLOWED BY A SUMMARY OF SOME EVIDENCE RELATED TO THE INTERACTION OF POLYPHENOLS IN OXIDATIVE STRESS, AS WELL AS THE MODULATION OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN THE MANAGEMENT OF NCDS. 2023 17 3593 40 IMPLICATION OF THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET ON THE HUMAN EPIGENOME. EPIGENETICS, DEFINED AS "HEREDITARY CHANGES IN GENE EXPRESSION THAT OCCUR WITHOUT ANY CHANGE IN THE DNA SEQUENCE", CONSISTS OF VARIOUS EPIGENETIC MARKS, INCLUDING DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, AND NON-CODING RNAS. THE EPIGENOME, WHICH HAS A DYNAMIC STRUCTURE IN RESPONSE TO INTRACELLULAR AND EXTRACELLULAR STIMULI, HAS A KEY ROLE IN THE CONTROL OF GENE ACTIVITY, SINCE IT IS LOCATED AT THE INTERSECTION OF CELLULAR INFORMATION ENCODED IN THE GENOME AND MOLECULAR/CHEMICAL INFORMATION OF EXTRACELLULAR ORIGIN. THE FOCUS SHIFT OF STUDIES TO EPIGENETIC REPROGRAMMING HAS LED TO THE FORMATION AND PROGRESSIVE IMPORTANCE OF A CONCEPT CALLED "NUTRIEPIGENETICS", WHOSE AIM IS TO PREVENT DISEASES BY INTERVENING ON NUTRITION STYLE. AMONG THE DIET TYPES ADOPTED IN THE WORLD, THE RENOWNED MEDITERRANEAN DIET (MD), BEING RICH IN UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS AND CONTAINING HIGH LEVELS OF WHOLE GRAIN FOODS AND LARGE QUANTITIES OF FRUITS, VEGETABLES, AND LEGUMES, HAS SHOWN NUMEROUS ADVANTAGES IN EXCLUDING CHRONIC DISEASES. ADDITIONALLY, THE FACT THAT THIS DIET IS RICH IN POLYPHENOLS WITH HIGH ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PROPERTIES HAS AN UNDENIABLE EFFECT IN TURNING SOME CELLULAR PATHWAYS AGAINST THE DISEASE. IT IS ALSO APPARENT THAT THE EFFECTS OF POLYPHENOLS ON THE EPIGENOME CAUSE CHANGES IN MECHANISMS SUCH AS DNA METHYLATION AND HISTONE ACETYLATION/DEACETYLATION, WHICH HAVE A REGULATORY EFFECT ON GENE REGULATION. THIS REVIEW PRESENTS THE EFFECTS OF LONG-TERM CONSUMPTION OF NUTRIENTS FROM THE MD ON THE EPIGENOME AND DISCUSSES THE BENEFITS OF THIS DIET IN THE TREATMENT AND EVEN PREVENTION OF CHRONIC DISEASES. 2022 18 5943 30 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 19 2577 30 EPIGENETICS OF INFLAMMATION, MATERNAL INFECTION, AND NUTRITION. STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT EPIGENETIC CHANGES SUCH AS DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATION, AND CHROMATIN REMODELING ARE LINKED TO AN INCREASED INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE AS WELL AS INCREASED RISK OF CHRONIC DISEASE DEVELOPMENT. A FEW STUDIES HAVE BEGUN TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER DIETARY NUTRIENTS PLAY A BENEFICIAL ROLE BY MODIFYING OR REVERSING EPIGENETICALLY INDUCED INFLAMMATION. RESULTS OF THESE STUDIES SHOW THAT NUTRIENTS MODIFY EPIGENETIC PATHWAYS. HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT HOW NUTRIENTS MODULATE INFLAMMATION BY REGULATING IMMUNE CELL FUNCTION AND/OR IMMUNE CELL DIFFERENTIATION VIA EPIGENETIC PATHWAYS. THIS OVERVIEW WILL PROVIDE INFORMATION ABOUT THE CURRENT UNDERSTANDING OF THE ROLE OF NUTRIENTS IN THE EPIGENETIC CONTROL MECHANISMS OF IMMUNE FUNCTION. 2015 20 554 34 AUTOPHAGY IN HUMAN HEALTH AND DISEASE: NOVEL THERAPEUTIC OPPORTUNITIES. SIGNIFICANCE: IN EUKARYOTES, AUTOPHAGY REPRESENTS A HIGHLY EVOLUTIONARY CONSERVED PROCESS, THROUGH WHICH MACROMOLECULES AND CYTOPLASMIC MATERIAL ARE DEGRADED INTO LYSOSOMES AND RECYCLED FOR BIOSYNTHETIC OR ENERGETIC PURPOSES. DYSFUNCTION OF THE AUTOPHAGIC PROCESS HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH THE ONSET AND DEVELOPMENT OF MANY HUMAN CHRONIC PATHOLOGIES, SUCH AS CARDIOVASCULAR, METABOLIC, AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES AS WELL AS CANCER. RECENT ADVANCES: CURRENTLY, COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH IS BEING CARRIED OUT TO DISCOVER NEW THERAPEUTIC AGENTS THAT ARE ABLE TO MODULATE THE AUTOPHAGIC PROCESS IN VIVO. RECENT EVIDENCE HAS SHOWN THAT A LARGE NUMBER OF NATURAL BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS ARE INVOLVED IN THE REGULATION OF AUTOPHAGY BY MODULATING SEVERAL TRANSCRIPTIONAL FACTORS AND SIGNALING PATHWAYS. CRITICAL ISSUES: CRITICAL ISSUES THAT DESERVE PARTICULAR ATTENTION ARE THE INADEQUATE UNDERSTANDING OF THE COMPLEX ROLE OF AUTOPHAGY IN DISEASE PATHOGENESIS, THE LIMITED AVAILABILITY OF THERAPEUTIC DRUGS, AND THE LACK OF CLINICAL TRIALS. IN THIS CONTEXT, THE EFFECTS THAT NATURAL BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS EXERT ON AUTOPHAGIC MODULATION SHOULD BE CLEARLY HIGHLIGHTED, SINCE THEY DEPEND ON THE TYPE AND STAGE OF THE PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS OF DISEASES. FUTURE DIRECTIONS: RESEARCH EFFORTS SHOULD NOW FOCUS ON UNDERSTANDING THE SURVIVAL-SUPPORTING AND DEATH-PROMOTING ROLES OF AUTOPHAGY, HOW NATURAL COMPOUNDS INTERACT EXACTLY WITH THE AUTOPHAGIC TARGETS SO AS TO INDUCE OR INHIBIT AUTOPHAGY AND ON THE EVALUATION OF THEIR PHARMACOLOGICAL EFFECTS IN A MORE IN-DEPTH AND MECHANISTIC WAY. IN ADDITION, CLINICAL STUDIES ON AUTOPHAGY-INDUCING NATURAL PRODUCTS ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED, ALSO TO HIGHLIGHT SOME FUNDAMENTAL ASPECTS, SUCH AS THE DOSE, THE DURATION, AND THE POSSIBLE SYNERGISTIC ACTION OF THESE COMPOUNDS WITH CONVENTIONAL THERAPY. 2019