1 6668 162 URGENT NEEDS OF CAREGIVING IN AGEING POPULATIONS WITH ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AND OTHER CHRONIC CONDITIONS: SUPPORT OUR LOVED ONES. THE AGEING PROCESS BEGINS AT BIRTH. IT IS A LIFE-LONG PROCESS, AND ITS EXACT ORIGINS ARE STILL UNKNOWN. SEVERAL HYPOTHESES ATTEMPT TO DESCRIBE THE NORMAL AGEING PROCESS, INCLUDING HORMONAL IMBALANCE, FORMATION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES, DNA METHYLATION & DNA DAMAGE ACCUMULATION, LOSS OF PROTEOSTASIS, EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, SENESCENCE, INFLAMMATION, AND STEM CELL DEPLETION. WITH INCREASED LIFESPAN IN ELDERLY INDIVIDUALS, THE PREVALENCE OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES INCLUDING, CANCER, DIABETES, OBESITY, HYPERTENSION, ALZHEIMER'S, ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AND RELATED DEMENTIAS, PARKINSON'S, AND OTHER MENTAL ILLNESSES ARE INCREASED. THESE INCREASED AGE-RELATED ILLNESSES, PUT TREMENDOUS PRESSURE & BURDEN ON CAREGIVERS, FAMILY MEMBERS, AND FRIENDS WHO ARE LIVING WITH PATIENTS WITH AGE-RELATED DISEASES. AS MEDICAL NEEDS EVOLVE, THE CAREGIVER IS EXPECTED TO EXPERIENCE AN INCREASE IN DUTIES AND CHALLENGES, WHICH MAY RESULT IN STRESS ON THEMSELVES, AND IMPACT THEIR OWN FAMILY LIFE. IN THE CURRENT ARTICLE, WE ASSESS THE BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS OF AGEING AND ITS EFFECT ON BODY SYSTEMS, EXPLORING LIFESTYLE AND AGEING, WITH A SPECIFIC FOCUS ON AGE-RELATED DISORDERS. WE ALSO DISCUSSED THE HISTORY OF CAREGIVING AND SPECIFIC CHALLENGES FACED BY CAREGIVERS IN THE PRESENCE OF MULTIPLE COMORBIDITIES. WE ALSO ASSESSED INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO FUNDING CAREGIVING, AND EFFORTS TO IMPROVE THE MEDICAL SYSTEM TO BETTER ORGANIZE CHRONIC CARE EFFORTS, WHILE IMPROVING THE SKILL AND EFFICIENCY OF BOTH INFORMAL AND FORMAL CAREGIVERS. WE ALSO DISCUSSED THE ROLE OF CAREGIVING IN END-OF-LIFE CARE. OUR CRITICAL ANALYSIS STRONGLY SUGGESTS THAT THERE IS AN URGENT NEED FOR CAREGIVING IN AGED POPULATIONS AND SUPPORT FROM LOCAL, STATE, AND FEDERAL AGENCIES. 2023 2 1360 35 DEVELOPMENTAL ASPECTS OF A LIFE COURSE APPROACH TO HEALTHY AGEING. WE EXAMINE THE MECHANISTIC BASIS AND WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF ADOPTING A DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVE ON HUMAN AGEING. PREVIOUS MODELS OF AGEING HAVE CONCENTRATED ON ITS GENETIC BASIS, OR THE DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS OF ACCUMULATED DAMAGE, BUT ALSO HAVE RAISED ISSUES ABOUT WHETHER AGEING CAN BE VIEWED AS ADAPTIVE ITSELF, OR IS A CONSEQUENCE OF OTHER ADAPTIVE PROCESSES, FOR EXAMPLE IF MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR PROCESSES IN THE PERIOD UP TO REPRODUCTION ARE TRADED OFF AGAINST LATER DECLINE IN FUNCTION. A LIFE COURSE MODEL PLACES AGEING IN THE CONTEXT OF THE ATTAINMENT OF PEAK CAPACITY FOR A BODY SYSTEM, STARTING IN EARLY DEVELOPMENT WHEN PLASTICITY PERMITS CHANGES IN STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION INDUCED BY A RANGE OF ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULI, FOLLOWED BY A PERIOD OF DECLINE, THE RATE OF WHICH DEPENDS ON THE PEAK ATTAINED AS WELL AS THE LATER LIFE CONDITIONS. SUCH PATH DEPENDENCY IN THE RATE OF AGEING MAY OFFER NEW INSIGHTS INTO ITS MODIFICATION. FOCUSING ON MUSCULOSKELETAL AND CARDIOVASCULAR FUNCTION, WE DISCUSS THIS MODEL AND THE POSSIBLE UNDERLYING MECHANISMS, INCLUDING ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION, OXIDATIVE STRESS, STEM CELLS AND NUTRITIONAL FACTORS SUCH AS VITAMIN D STATUS. EPIGENETIC CHANGES INDUCED DURING DEVELOPMENTAL PLASTICITY, AND IMMUNE FUNCTION MAY PROVIDE A COMMON MECHANISTIC PROCESS UNDERLYING A LIFE COURSE MODEL OF AGEING. THE LIFE COURSE TRAJECTORY DIFFERS IN HIGH AND LOW RESOURCE SETTINGS. NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE DEVELOPMENTAL COMPONENTS OF THE LIFE COURSE MODEL OF AGEING MAY LEAD TO THE DESIGN OF BIOMARKERS OF LATER CHRONIC DISEASE RISK AND TO NEW INTERVENTIONS TO PROMOTE HEALTHY AGEING, WITH IMPORTANT IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH. 2016 3 6109 37 THE EPIGENETIC AGING, OBESITY, AND LIFESTYLE. THE PREVALENCE OF OBESITY HAS DRAMATICALLY INCREASED WORLDWIDE OVER THE PAST DECADES. AGING-RELATED CHRONIC CONDITIONS, SUCH AS TYPE 2 DIABETES AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE, ARE MORE PREVALENT IN INDIVIDUALS WITH OBESITY, THUS REDUCING THEIR LIFESPAN. EPIGENETIC CLOCKS, THE NEW METRICS OF BIOLOGICAL AGE BASED ON DNA METHYLATION PATTERNS, COULD BE CONSIDERED A REFLECTION OF THE STATE OF ONE'S HEALTH. SEVERAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURES AND LIFESTYLE FACTORS CAN INDUCE EPIGENETIC AGING ACCELERATIONS, INCLUDING OBESITY, THUS LEADING TO AN INCREASED RISK OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES. THE INSIGHT INTO THE COMPLEX LINK BETWEEN OBESITY AND AGING MIGHT HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROMOTION OF HEALTH AND THE MITIGATION OF FUTURE DISEASE RISK. THE PRESENT NARRATIVE REVIEW TAKES INTO ACCOUNT THE INTERACTION BETWEEN EPIGENETIC AGING AND OBESITY, SUGGESTING THAT EPIGENOME MAY BE AN INTRIGUING TARGET FOR AGE-RELATED PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES AND THAT ITS MODIFICATION COULD INFLUENCE AGING AND PROLONG A HEALTHY LIFESPAN. THEREFORE, WE HAVE FOCUSED ON DNA METHYLATION AGE AS A CLINICAL BIOMARKER, AS WELL AS ON THE POTENTIAL REVERSAL OF EPIGENETIC AGE USING A PERSONALIZED DIET- AND LIFESTYLE-BASED INTERVENTION. 2022 4 2528 30 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 5 625 37 BIOLOGICAL AGE AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS FOR DEMENTIA AND STROKE: MOLECULAR MECHANISMS. SINCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF ANTIBIOTICS AND VACCINATION, AS WELL AS MAJOR IMPROVEMENTS IN PUBLIC HYGIENE, THE MAIN RISK FACTORS FOR MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY ARE AGE AND CHRONIC EXPOSURE TO ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS, BOTH OF WHICH CAN INTERACT WITH GENETIC PREDISPOSITIONS. AS THE AVERAGE AGE OF THE POPULATION INCREASES, THE PREVALENCE AND COSTS OF CHRONIC DISEASES, ESPECIALLY NEUROLOGICAL CONDITIONS, ARE RAPIDLY INCREASING. THE DELETERIOUS EFFECTS OF AGE AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS, DEVELOP CHRONICALLY OVER RELATIVELY LONG PERIODS OF TIME, IN CONTRAST TO THE RELATIVELY RAPID DELETERIOUS EFFECTS OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES OR ACCIDENTS. OF PARTICULAR INTEREST IS THE HYPOTHESIS THAT THE DELETERIOUS EFFECTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS MAY BE MEDIATED BY ACCELERATION OF BIOLOGICAL AGE. THIS HYPOTHESIS IS SUPPORTED BY EVIDENCE THAT DIETARY RESTRICTION, WHICH UNIVERSALLY DELAYS AGE-RELATED DISEASES, ALSO AMELIORATES DELETERIOUS EFFECTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS. CONVERSELY, BOTH AGE AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACCUMULATION OF SOMATIC MUTATIONS IN MITOTIC CELLS AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS THAT ARE A MEASURE OF "BIOLOGICAL AGE", A BETTER PREDICTOR OF AGE-RELATED MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY THAN CHRONOLOGICAL AGE. HERE WE REVIEW EVIDENCE THAT ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS SUCH AS SMOKING AND AIR POLLUTION MAY ALSO DRIVE NEUROLOGICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE, BY THE ACCELERATION OF BIOLOGICAL AGE, MEDIATED BY CUMULATIVE AND PERSISTENT EPIGENETIC EFFECTS AS WELL AS SOMATIC MUTATIONS. ELUCIDATION OF SUCH MECHANISMS COULD PLAUSIBLY ALLOW THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTERVENTIONS WHICH DELAY DELETERIOUS EFFECTS OF BOTH AGING AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS. 2022 6 6189 40 THE IMPACT OF LIFE STRESS ON HALLMARKS OF AGING AND ACCELERATED SENESCENCE: CONNECTIONS IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH. CHRONIC STRESS IS A RISK FACTOR FOR NUMEROUS AGING-RELATED DISEASES AND HAS BEEN SHOWN TO SHORTEN LIFESPAN IN HUMANS AND OTHER SOCIAL MAMMALS. YET HOW LIFE STRESS CAUSES SUCH A VAST RANGE OF DISEASES IS STILL LARGELY UNCLEAR. IN RECENT YEARS, THE IMPACT OF STRESS ON HEALTH AND AGING HAS BEEN INCREASINGLY ASSOCIATED WITH THE DYSREGULATION OF THE SO-CALLED HALLMARKS OF AGING. THESE ARE BASIC BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS THAT INFLUENCE INTRINSIC CELLULAR FUNCTIONS AND WHOSE ALTERATION CAN LEAD TO ACCELERATED AGING. HERE, WE REVIEW CORRELATIONAL AND EXPERIMENTAL LITERATURE (PRIMARILY FOCUSING ON EVIDENCE FROM HUMANS AND MURINE MODELS) ON THE CONTRIBUTION OF LIFE STRESS - PARTICULARLY STRESS DERIVED FROM ADVERSE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS - TO TRIGGER HALLMARKS OF AGING, INCLUDING CELLULAR SENESCENCE, STERILE INFLAMMATION, TELOMERE SHORTENING, PRODUCTION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES, DNA DAMAGE, AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES. WE ALSO EVALUATE THE VALIDITY OF STRESS-INDUCED SENESCENCE AND ACCELERATED AGING AS AN ETIOPATHOLOGICAL PROPOSITION. FINALLY, WE HIGHLIGHT CURRENT GAPS OF KNOWLEDGE AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS FOR THE FIELD, AND DISCUSS PERSPECTIVES FOR TRANSLATIONAL GEROSCIENCE. 2023 7 3102 43 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 8 6034 49 THE CHALLENGE BY MULTIPLE ENVIRONMENTAL AND BIOLOGICAL FACTORS INDUCE INFLAMMATION IN AGING: THEIR ROLE IN THE PROMOTION OF CHRONIC DISEASE. THE AGING PROCESS IS DRIVEN BY MULTIPLE MECHANISMS THAT LEAD TO CHANGES IN ENERGY PRODUCTION, OXIDATIVE STRESS, HOMEOSTATIC DYSREGULATION AND EVENTUALLY TO LOSS OF FUNCTIONALITY AND INCREASED DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY. MOST AGED INDIVIDUALS DEVELOP CHRONIC LOW-GRADE INFLAMMATION, WHICH IS AN IMPORTANT RISK FACTOR FOR MORBIDITY, PHYSICAL AND COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT, FRAILTY, AND DEATH. AT ANY AGE, CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES ARE MAJOR CAUSES OF MORBIMORTALITY, AFFECTING UP TO 5-8% OF THE POPULATION OF INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES. SEVERAL ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS CAN PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE FOR MODIFYING THE INFLAMMATORY STATE. GENETICS ACCOUNTS FOR ONLY A SMALL FRACTION OF CHRONIC-INFLAMMATORY DISEASES, WHEREAS ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS APPEAR TO PARTICIPATE, EITHER WITH A CAUSATIVE OR A PROMOTIONAL ROLE IN 50% TO 75% OF PATIENTS. SEVERAL OF THOSE CHANGES DEPEND ON EPIGENETIC CHANGES THAT WILL FURTHER MODIFY THE INDIVIDUAL RESPONSE TO ADDITIONAL STIMULI. THE INTERACTION BETWEEN INFLAMMATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT OFFERS IMPORTANT INSIGHTS ON AGING AND HEALTH. THESE CONDITIONS, OFTEN DEPENDING ON THE INDIVIDUAL'S SEX, APPEAR TO LEAD TO DECREASED LONGEVITY AND PHYSICAL AND COGNITIVE DECLINE. IN ADDITION TO BIOLOGICAL FACTORS, THE ENVIRONMENT IS ALSO INVOLVED IN THE GENERATION OF PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT LEADING TO STRESS. POOR PSYCHOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENTS AND OTHER SOURCES OF STRESS ALSO RESULT IN INCREASED INFLAMMATION. HOWEVER, THE MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE ROLE OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS AND NUTRITION ON THE REGULATION OF INFLAMMATION, AND HOW THE RESPONSE ELICITED FOR THOSE FACTORS INTERACT AMONG THEM, ARE POORLY UNDERSTOOD. WHEREAS CERTAIN DELETERIOUS ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS RESULT IN THE GENERATION OF OXIDATIVE STRESS DRIVEN BY AN INCREASED PRODUCTION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN AND NITROGEN SPECIES, ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS, AND INFLAMMATION, OTHER FACTORS, INCLUDING NUTRITION (POLYUNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS) AND BEHAVIORAL FACTORS (EXERCISE) CONFER PROTECTION AGAINST INFLAMMATION, OXIDATIVE AND ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS, AND THUS AMELIORATE THEIR DELETERIOUS EFFECT. HERE, WE DISCUSS PROCESSES AND MECHANISMS OF INFLAMMATION ASSOCIATED WITH ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AND BEHAVIOR, THEIR LINKS TO SEX AND GENDER, AND THEIR OVERALL IMPACT ON AGING. 2020 9 3676 39 INFLAMMATION AND NEUTROPHIL IMMUNOSENESCENCE IN HEALTH AND DISEASE: TARGETED TREATMENTS TO IMPROVE CLINICAL OUTCOMES IN THE ELDERLY. DESPITE INCREASING LONGEVITY, MANY OLD PEOPLE ARE NOT IN GOOD HEALTH. THERE HAS BEEN AN INCREASE IN THE PREVALENCE OF AGE-ASSOCIATED MULTI-MORBIDITY (TWO OR MORE CHRONIC CONDITIONS IN THE SAME PERSON). ALSO, SEVERE INFECTIONS, SUCH AS PNEUMONIA, REMAIN SIGNIFICANT CAUSES OF MORTALITY AND MORBIDITY IN THIS AGING GROUP. MANY CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS SHARE RISK FACTORS SUCH AS INCREASING AGE, SMOKING, A SEDENTARY LIFE STYLE AND BEING PART OF A LOWER SOCIOECONOMIC GROUP. HOWEVER, DESPITE THIS, MULTI-MORBIDITIES OFTEN CO-OCCUR MORE COMMONLY THAN WOULD BE PREDICTED. THIS HAS LED TO THE HYPOTHESIS THAT THEY SHARE COMMON UNDERLYING MECHANISMS. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT CONCEPT, FOR IF IT WERE TRUE, TREATMENTS COULD BE DEVISED WHICH TARGET THESE COMMON PATHWAYS AND IMPROVE A NUMBER OF AGE-ASSOCIATED HEALTH CONDITIONS. MANY CHRONIC ILLNESSES ASSOCIATED WITH MULTI-MORBIDITY AND SEVERE INFECTIONS ARE CHARACTERIZED BY AN ABNORMAL AND SUSTAINED INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE, WITH NEUTROPHILS BEING KEY EFFECTOR CELLS IN THE PATHOLOGICAL PROCESS. STUDIES HAVE DESCRIBED ABERRANT NEUTROPHIL FUNCTIONS ACROSS THESE CONDITIONS, AND SOME HAVE HIGHLIGHTED POTENTIAL MECHANISMS FOR ALTERED CELL BEHAVIOURS WHICH APPEAR SHARED ACROSS DISEASE STATES. IT HAS BEEN SUGGESTED THAT ALTERED FUNCTIONS MAY REPRESENT NEUTROPHIL "SENESCENCE". THIS REVIEW CONSIDERS HOW AND WHY NEUTROPHIL FUNCTIONS CHANGE AS THE CELL AGES, AND HOW AND WHY NEUTROPHIL FUNCTIONS CHANGE AS THE HOST AGES IN HEALTH AND DISEASE AND DISCUSSES WHETHER NEUTROPHIL FUNCTIONS COULD BE TARGETED TO IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES IN OLDER ADULTS. 2018 10 6346 31 THE ROLE OF EPIGENETICS IN CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH AND AGEING: A FOCUS ON PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND NUTRITION. THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM IS RESPONSIBLE FOR TRANSPORT OF BLOOD AND NUTRIENTS TO TISSUES, AND IS PIVOTAL TO THE PHYSIOLOGICAL HEALTH AND LONGEVITY. EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION IS A NATURAL, AGE-ASSOCIATED PROCESS RESULTING IN HIGHLY CONTEXTUALISED GENE EXPRESSION WITH CLEAR IMPLICATIONS FOR CELL DIFFERENTIATION AND DISEASE ONSET. BIOLOGICAL/EPIGENETIC AGE IS INDEPENDENT OF CHRONOLOGICAL AGE, CONSTITUTING A HIGHLY REFLECTIVE SNAPSHOT OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S OVERALL HEALTH. ACCELERATED VASCULAR AGEING IS OF MAJOR CONCERN, EFFECTIVELY LOWERING DISEASE THRESHOLD. AGE-RELATED CHRONIC ILLNESS INVOLVES A COMPLEX INTERPLAY BETWEEN MANY BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES AND IS MODULATED BY NON-MODIFIABLE AND MODIFIABLE RISK FACTORS. THESE ALTER THE STATIC GENOME BY A NUMBER OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, WHICH CHANGE GENE EXPRESSION IN AN AGE AND LIFESTYLE DEPENDENT MANNER. THIS 'EPIGENETIC DRIFT' IMPACTS HEALTH AND CONTRIBUTES TO THE ETIOLOGY OF CHRONIC ILLNESS. LIFESTYLE FACTORS MAY CAUSE ACCELERATION OF THIS EPIGENETIC "CLOCK", PRE-DISPOSING INDIVIDUALS TO CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE. NUTRITION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ARE MODIFIABLE LIFESTYLE CHOICES, SYNERGISTICALLY CONTRIBUTING TO CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH. THEY REPRESENT A POWERFUL POTENTIAL EPIGENETIC INTERVENTION POINT FOR EFFECTIVE CARDIOVASCULAR PROTECTIVE AND MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES. THUS, TOGETHER WITH TRADITIONAL RISK FACTORS, MONITORING THE EPIGENETIC SIGNATURE OF AGEING MAY PROVE BENEFICIAL FOR TAILORING LIFESTYLE TO FIT BIOLOGY - SUPPORTING THE INCREASINGLY POPULAR CONCEPT OF "AGEING WELL". 2018 11 456 46 APPLYING A LIFE COURSE BIOLOGICAL AGE FRAMEWORK TO IMPROVING THE CARE OF INDIVIDUALS WITH ADULT CANCERS: REVIEW AND RESEARCH RECOMMENDATIONS. IMPORTANCE: THE PRACTICE OF ONCOLOGY WILL INCREASINGLY INVOLVE THE CARE OF A GROWING POPULATION OF INDIVIDUALS WITH MIDLIFE AND LATE-LIFE CANCERS. MANAGING CANCER IN THESE INDIVIDUALS IS COMPLEX, BASED ON DIFFERENCES IN BIOLOGICAL AGE AT DIAGNOSIS. BIOLOGICAL AGE IS A MEASURE OF ACCUMULATED LIFE COURSE DAMAGE TO BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS, LOSS OF RESERVE, AND VULNERABILITY TO FUNCTIONAL DETERIORATION AND DEATH. BIOLOGICAL AGE IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT AFFECTS THE ABILITY TO MANAGE THE RIGORS OF CANCER THERAPY, SURVIVORS' FUNCTION, AND CANCER PROGRESSION. HOWEVER, BIOLOGICAL AGE IS NOT ALWAYS CLINICALLY APPARENT. THIS REVIEW PRESENTS A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF LIFE COURSE BIOLOGICAL AGING, SUMMARIZES CANDIDATE MEASURES, AND DESCRIBES A RESEARCH AGENDA TO FACILITATE CLINICAL TRANSLATION TO ONCOLOGY PRACTICE. OBSERVATIONS: MIDLIFE AND LATE-LIFE CANCERS ARE CHRONIC DISEASES THAT MAY ARISE FROM CUMULATIVE PATTERNS OF BIOLOGICAL AGING OCCURRING OVER THE LIFE COURSE. BEFORE DIAGNOSIS, EACH NEW PATIENT WAS ON A DISTINCT COURSE OF BIOLOGICAL AGING RELATED TO PAST EXPOSURES, LIFE EXPERIENCES, GENETICS, AND NONCANCER CHRONIC DISEASE. CANCER AND ITS TREATMENTS MAY ALSO BE ASSOCIATED WITH BIOLOGICAL AGING. SEVERAL MEASURES OF BIOLOGICAL AGE, INCLUDING P16INK4A, EPIGENETIC AGE, TELOMERE LENGTH, AND INFLAMMATORY AND BODY COMPOSITION MARKERS, HAVE BEEN USED IN ONCOLOGY RESEARCH. ONE OR MORE OF THESE MEASURES MAY BE USEFUL IN CANCER CARE, EITHER ALONE OR IN COMBINATION WITH CLINICAL HISTORY AND GERIATRIC ASSESSMENTS. HOWEVER, FURTHER RESEARCH WILL BE NEEDED BEFORE BIOLOGICAL AGE ASSESSMENT CAN BE RECOMMENDED IN ROUTINE PRACTICE, INCLUDING DETERMINATION OF SITUATIONS IN WHICH KNOWLEDGE ABOUT BIOLOGICAL AGE WOULD CHANGE TREATMENT, ASCERTAINING WHETHER TREATMENT EFFECTS ON BIOLOGICAL AGING ARE SHORT-LIVED OR PERSISTENT, AND TESTING INTERVENTIONS TO MODIFY BIOLOGICAL AGE, DECREASE TREATMENT TOXIC EFFECTS, AND MAINTAIN FUNCTIONAL ABILITIES. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: UNDERSTANDING DIFFERENCES IN BIOLOGICAL AGING COULD ULTIMATELY ALLOW CLINICIANS TO BETTER PERSONALIZE TREATMENT AND SUPPORTIVE CARE, DEVELOP TAILORED SURVIVORSHIP CARE PLANS, AND PRESCRIBE PREVENTIVE OR AMELIORATIVE THERAPIES AND BEHAVIORS INFORMED BY AGING MECHANISMS. 2021 12 6258 45 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 13 627 37 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 14 4985 41 PATHWAYS TO AGING: THE MITOCHONDRION AT THE INTERSECTION OF BIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL SCIENCES. COMPELLING EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT BOTH BIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS IMPACT THE PROCESS OF AGING. HOWEVER, OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE DYNAMIC INTERPLAY AMONG BIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS ACROSS THE LIFE COURSE IS STILL FRAGMENTARY. FOR EXAMPLE, IT NEEDS TO BE ESTABLISHED HOW THE INTERACTION OF INDIVIDUAL FACTORS (E.G., GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ENDOWMENT AND PERSONALITY), BEHAVIORAL FACTORS (E.G., PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, DIET, AND STRESS MANAGEMENT), AND PSYCHOSOCIAL EXPERIENCES (E.G., SOCIAL SUPPORT, WELL-BEING, SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, AND MARRIAGE) IN PERINATAL, CHILDHOOD, AND ADULTHOOD INFLUENCE HEALTH ACROSS THE AGING CONTINUUM. THIS PAPER AIMS TO OUTLINE POTENTIAL INTERSECTION POINTS SERVING AS AN INTERFACE BETWEEN BIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THE MITOCHONDRION. MITOCHONDRIA ARE CELLULAR ORGANELLES WHICH PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN CELLULAR SENESCENCE. BOTH CHRONIC EXPOSURE TO PSYCHOSOCIAL STRESS AND GENETIC-BASED MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION HAVE STRIKINGLY SIMILAR BIOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES; BOTH PREDISPOSE INDIVIDUALS TO ADVERSE AGE-RELATED HEALTH DISORDERS AND EARLY MORTALITY. EXPLORING THE INTERACTIVE NATURE OF THE FACTORS RESULTING IN PATHWAYS TO NORMAL HEALTHY AGING, AS WELL AS THOSE LEADING TO MORBIDITY AND EARLY MORTALITY, WILL CONTINUE TO ENHANCE OUR ABILITY TO TRANSLATE RESEARCH INTO EFFECTIVE PRACTICES THAT CAN BE IMPLEMENTED THROUGHOUT THE LIFE COURSE TO OPTIMISE THE AGING PROCESS. 2011 15 637 34 BIOLOGY OF PREMATURE AGEING IN SURVIVORS OF CANCER. OVER 30 MILLION CANCER SURVIVORS EXIST WORLDWIDE. SURVIVORS HAVE AN EARLIER ONSET AND HIGHER INCIDENCE OF CHRONIC COMORBIDITIES, INCLUDING ENDOCRINOPATHIES, CARDIAC DYSFUNCTION, OSTEOPOROSIS, PULMONARY FIBROSIS, SECONDARY CANCERS AND FRAILTY THAN THE GENERAL POPULATION; HOWEVER, THE FUNDAMENTAL BASIS OF THESE CHANGES AT THE CELLULAR LEVEL IS UNKNOWN. AN ELECTRONIC SEARCH WAS PERFORMED ON EMBASE, MEDLINE IN-PROCESS & OTHER NON-INDEXED CITATIONS, AND THE COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS. ORIGINAL ARTICLES ADDRESSING THE CELLULAR BIOLOGY OF AGEING AND/OR THE MECHANISMS OF CANCER THERAPIES SIMILAR TO AGEING MECHANISMS WERE INCLUDED, AND REFERENCES OF THESE ARTICLES WERE REVIEWED FOR FURTHER SEARCH. WE FOUND MULTIPLE BIOLOGICAL PROCESS OF AGEING AT THE CELLULAR LEVEL AND THEIR ASSOCIATION WITH CANCER THERAPIES, AS WELL AS WITH CLINICAL EFFECTS. THE DIRECT EFFECTS OF VARIOUS CHEMOTHERAPIES AND RADIATION ON TELOMERE LENGTH, SENESCENT CELLS, EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS AND MICRORNA WERE FOUND. WE REVIEW THE EFFECTS OF CANCER THERAPIES ON RECOGNISED HALLMARKS OF AGEING. LONG-TERM COMORBIDITIES SEEN IN CANCER SURVIVORS MIMIC THE PHENOTYPES OF AGEING AND LIKELY RESULT FROM THE INTERACTION BETWEEN THERAPEUTIC EXPOSURES AND THE UNDERLYING BIOLOGY OF AGEING. LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP OF CANCER SURVIVORS AND RESEARCH ON PREVENTION STRATEGIES SHOULD BE PURSUED TO INCREASE THE LENGTH AND QUALITY OF LIFE AMONG THE GROWING POPULATION OF CANCER SURVIVORS. 2017 16 4802 35 OBESITY AND LIFESPAN HEALTH--IMPORTANCE OF THE FETAL ENVIRONMENT. A MARKED INCREASE IN THE FREQUENCY OF OBESITY AT THE POPULATION LEVEL HAS RESULTED IN AN INCREASING NUMBER OF OBESE WOMEN ENTERING PREGNANCY. THE INCREASING REALIZATION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FETAL ENVIRONMENT IN RELATION TO CHRONIC DISEASE ACROSS THE LIFESPAN HAS FOCUSED ATTENTION ON THE ROLE OF MATERNAL OBESITY IN FETAL DEVELOPMENT. PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT OBESITY DURING ADOLESCENCE AND ADULTHOOD CAN BE TRACED BACK TO FETAL AND EARLY CHILDHOOD EXPOSURES. THIS REVIEW FOCUSES ON FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO EARLY DEVELOPMENTAL EVENTS, SUCH AS EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS, THE POTENTIAL FOR AN INCREASE IN INFLAMMATORY BURDEN, EARLY DEVELOPMENTAL PROGRAMMING CHANGES SUCH AS THE VARIABLE DEVELOPMENT OF WHITE VERSUS BROWN ADIPOSE TISSUE, AND ALTERATIONS IN ORGAN ONTOGENY. WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT THESE MECHANISMS PROMOTE AN UNFAVORABLE FETAL ENVIRONMENT AND CAN HAVE A LONG-STANDING IMPACT, WITH EARLY MANIFESTATIONS OF CHRONIC DISEASE THAT CAN RESULT IN AN INCREASED DEMAND FOR FUTURE HEALTH CARE. IN ORDER TO IDENTIFY APPROPRIATE PREVENTIVE MEASURES, ATTENTION NEEDS TO BE PLACED BOTH ON REDUCING MATERNAL OBESITY AS WELL AS UNDERSTANDING THE MOLECULAR, CELLULAR, AND EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS THAT MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PRENATAL ONSET OF CHRONIC DISEASE. 2014 17 2855 47 FROM INFLAMMAGING TO HEALTHY AGING BY DIETARY LIFESTYLE CHOICES: IS EPIGENETICS THE KEY TO PERSONALIZED NUTRITION? THE PROGRESSIVELY OLDER POPULATION IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES IS REFLECTED IN AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE SUFFERING FROM AGE-RELATED CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES SUCH AS METABOLIC SYNDROME, DIABETES, HEART AND LUNG DISEASES, CANCER, OSTEOPOROSIS, ARTHRITIS, AND DEMENTIA. THE HETEROGENEITY IN BIOLOGICAL AGING, CHRONOLOGICAL AGE, AND AGING-ASSOCIATED DISORDERS IN HUMANS HAVE BEEN ASCRIBED TO DIFFERENT GENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS (I.E., DIET, POLLUTION, STRESS) THAT ARE CLOSELY LINKED TO SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS. THE COMMON DENOMINATOR OF THESE FACTORS IS THE INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE. CHRONIC LOW-GRADE SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION DURING PHYSIOLOGICAL AGING AND IMMUNOSENESCENCE ARE INTERTWINED IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF PREMATURE AGING ALSO DEFINED AS 'INFLAMMAGING.' THE LATTER HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH FRAILTY, MORBIDITY, AND MORTALITY IN ELDERLY SUBJECTS. HOWEVER, IT IS UNKNOWN TO WHAT EXTENT INFLAMMAGING OR LONGEVITY IS CONTROLLED BY EPIGENETIC EVENTS IN EARLY LIFE. TODAY, HUMAN DIET IS BELIEVED TO HAVE A MAJOR INFLUENCE ON BOTH THE DEVELOPMENT AND PREVENTION OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES. MOST PLANT-DERIVED DIETARY PHYTOCHEMICALS AND MACRO- AND MICRONUTRIENTS MODULATE OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATORY SIGNALING AND REGULATE METABOLIC PATHWAYS AND BIOENERGETICS THAT CAN BE TRANSLATED INTO STABLE EPIGENETIC PATTERNS OF GENE EXPRESSION. THEREFORE, DIET INTERVENTIONS DESIGNED FOR HEALTHY AGING HAVE BECOME A HOT TOPIC IN NUTRITIONAL EPIGENOMIC RESEARCH. INCREASING EVIDENCE HAS REVEALED THAT COMPLEX INTERACTIONS BETWEEN FOOD COMPONENTS AND HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, DNA METHYLATION, NON-CODING RNA EXPRESSION, AND CHROMATIN REMODELING FACTORS INFLUENCE THE INFLAMMAGING PHENOTYPE AND AS SUCH MAY PROTECT OR PREDISPOSE AN INDIVIDUAL TO MANY AGE-RELATED DISEASES. REMARKABLY, HUMANS PRESENT A BROAD RANGE OF RESPONSES TO SIMILAR DIETARY CHALLENGES DUE TO BOTH GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC MODULATIONS OF THE EXPRESSION OF TARGET PROTEINS AND KEY GENES INVOLVED IN THE METABOLISM AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE DIETARY CONSTITUENTS. HERE, WE WILL SUMMARIZE THE EPIGENETIC ACTIONS OF DIETARY COMPONENTS, INCLUDING PHYTOCHEMICALS, AND MACRO- AND MICRONUTRIENTS AS WELL AS METABOLITES, THAT CAN ATTENUATE INFLAMMAGING. WE WILL DISCUSS THE CHALLENGES FACING PERSONALIZED NUTRITION TO TRANSLATE HIGHLY VARIABLE INTERINDIVIDUAL EPIGENETIC DIET RESPONSES TO POTENTIAL INDIVIDUAL HEALTH BENEFITS/RISKS RELATED TO AGING DISEASE. 2015 18 3580 32 IMPACT OF PERINATAL ENVIRONMENTAL TOBACCO SMOKE ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDHOOD ALLERGIC DISEASES. ALLERGIC DISEASES SUCH AS ASTHMA, ALLERGIC RHINITIS, ATOPIC DERMATITIS, AND FOOD ALLERGY, ARE MOST COMMON CHRONIC, NONCOMMUNICABLE DISEASES IN CHILDHOOD. IN THE PAST FEW DECADES, THE PREVALENCE HAS INCREASED ABRUPTLY WORLDWIDE. THERE ARE 2 POSSIBLE EXPLANATIONS FOR THE RISING PREVALENCE OF ALLERGIC DISEASES WORLDWIDE, THAT AN INCREASED DISEASE-AWARENESS OF PHYSICIAN, PATIENT, OR CAREGIVERS, AND AN ABRUPT EXPOSURE TO UNKNOWN HAZARDS. UNFORTUNATELY, THE UNDERLYING MECHANISMS REMAIN LARGELY UNKNOWN. DESPITE THE CONTINUING EFFORTS WORLDWIDE, THE ETIOLOGIES AND RISING PREVALENCE REMAIN UNCLEAR. THUS, IT IS IMPORTANT TO IDENTIFY AND CONTROL RISK FACTORS IN THE SUSCEPTIBLE INDIVIDUAL FOR THE BEST PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT. GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY OR ENVIRONMENTS MAY BE A POTENTIAL BACKGROUND FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALLERGIC DISEASE, HOWEVER THEY ALONE CANNOT EXPLAIN THE RISING PREVALENCE WORLDWIDE. THERE IS GROWING EVIDENCE THAT EPIGENETIC CHANGE DEPENDS ON THE GENE, ENVIRONMENT, AND THEIR INTERACTIONS, MAY INDUCE A LONG-LASTING ALTERED GENE EXPRESSION AND THE CONSEQUENT DEVELOPMENT OF ALLERGIC DISEASES. IN EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, ENVIRONMENTAL TOBACCO SMOKE (ETS) EXPOSURE DURING CRITICAL PERIOD (I.E., DURING PREGNANCY AND EARLY LIFE) ARE CONSIDERED AS A POTENTIAL CAUSE OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDHOOD ALLERGIC DISEASES. HOWEVER, THE CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP IS STILL UNCLEAR. THIS REVIEW AIMED TO HIGHLIGHT THE IMPACT OF ETS EXPOSURE DURING THE PERINATAL PERIOD ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDHOOD ALLERGIC DISEASES AND TO PROPOSE A FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTION. 2016 19 285 36 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 20 2007 34 EPIGENETIC BASIS FOR FETAL ORIGINS OF AGE-RELATED DISEASE. THE CURRENT CONCEPT OF FETAL ORIGINS OF ADULT DISEASES DESCRIBES IN UTERO PROGRAMMING, OR ADAPTATION TO A SPECTRUM OF ADVERSE ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS THAT ULTIMATELY LEADS TO INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO AGE-RELATED DISEASES (E.G., TYPE 2 DIABETES AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE) LATER IN LIFE. ALTHOUGH THE PRECISE MECHANISM OF THIS BIOLOGICAL MEMORY REMAINS UNCLEAR, MOUNTING EVIDENCE SUGGESTS AN EPIGENETIC BASIS. THE INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO CHRONIC DISEASE AND INVOLVEMENT OF MULTIPLE ORGAN SYSTEMS THAT IS OBSERVED IS ANALOGOUS TO THE DECLINE IN RESISTANCE TO DISEASE THAT IS TYPICAL OF NORMAL AGING. ALTHOUGH THE CUMULATIVE ENVIRONMENT OVER THE COURSE OF A LIFETIME CAN INDUCE INCREASING EPIGENETIC DYSREGULATION, WE PROPOSE THAT ADVERSE EVENTS THAT OCCUR DURING EARLY DEVELOPMENT CAN INDUCE SIGNIFICANT ADDITIONAL DYSREGULATION OF THE EPIGENOME. HERE, WE DESCRIBE THE CURRENT EVIDENCE FOR FETAL ORIGINS OF ADULT DISEASE AND THE ASSOCIATED ROLE OF EPIGENETIC DYSREGULATION. IN ADDITION, WE PRESENT A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON THE INDUCTION OF EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS IN UTERO, WHICH SUBSEQUENTLY LEAD TO AN AGING PHENOTYPE MARKED BY INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO AGE-RELATED DISEASES. 2010