Abstract The concept of mild chronic vascular inflammation as part of the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease, most importantly hypertension and atherosclerosis, has been well accepted. Indeed ...there are links between vascular inflammation, endothelial dysfunction and oxidative stress. However, there are still gaps in our understanding regarding this matter that might be the cause behind disappointing results of antioxidant therapy for cardiovascular risk factors in large-scale long-term randomised controlled trials. Apart from the limitations of our knowledge, limitations in methodology and assessment of the body's endogenous and exogenous oxidant-antioxidant status are a serious handicap. The pleiotropic effects of antioxidant and anti-inflammation that are shown by some well-established antihypertensive agents and statins partly support the idea of using antioxidants in vascular diseases as still relevant. This review aims to provide an overview of the links between oxidative stress, vascular inflammation, endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular risk factors, importantly focusing on blood pressure regulation and atherosclerosis. In view of the potential benefits of antioxidants, this review will also examine the proposed role of vitamin C, vitamin E and polyphenols in cardiovascular diseases as well as the success or failure of antioxidant therapy for cardiovascular diseases in clinical trials.
Abstract The production of various reactive oxidant species in excess of endogenous antioxidant defense mechanisms promotes the development of a state of oxidative stress, with significant biological ...consequences. In recent years, evidence has emerged that oxidative stress plays a crucial role in the development and perpetuation of inflammation, and thus contributes to the pathophysiology of a number of debilitating illnesses, such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, or neurodegenerative processes. Oxidants affect all stages of the inflammatory response, including the release by damaged tissues of molecules acting as endogenous danger signals, their sensing by innate immune receptors from the Toll-like (TLRs) and the NOD-like (NLRs) families, and the activation of signaling pathways initiating the adaptive cellular response to such signals. In this article, after summarizing the basic aspects of redox biology and inflammation, we review in detail the current knowledge on the fundamental connections between oxidative stress and inflammatory processes, with a special emphasis on the danger molecule high-mobility group box-1, the TLRs, the NLRP-3 receptor, and the inflammasome, as well as the transcription factor nuclear factor-κB.
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•Milk-derived bioactive peptides inhibit lipid peroxidation in Caco-2 cells.•Antioxidant effect of bioactive peptides is exerted activating Nrf2 pathway.•Milk-derived bioactive ...peptides induce overexpression of phase II enzymes.•Docking simulation shows that K-8-K disrupts the Keap1-Nrf2 interaction.
Bioactive peptides are relevant nutritional factors that exhibit many functions including antioxidant, antihypertensive, anticancer and antimicrobial properties. In this paper, four synthetic peptides ARHPHPHLSFM (A-11-M), AVPYPQR (A-7-R), NPYVPR (N-6-R) and KVLPVPEK (K-8-K) with sequences present in milk proteins were examined for their antioxidant properties. The compounds show moderate free radical scavenging activity in the ABTS and crocin assays (A-7-R and N-6-R) and lipid peroxidation inhibition in Caco-2 cells (N-6-R and K-8-K). All peptides, in particular K-8-K, activate the Keap1-Nrf2 system by allowing the translocation of the transcription factor Nrf2 from the cytosol to nucleus. This activation triggers the overexpression of the antioxidant enzymes Trx1, TrxR1, GR, NQO1 and SOD1. Furthermore, molecular modeling shows that K-8-K is able to hinder the interaction of Nrf2 with Keap1. The reported results show that the antioxidant action in cells of these bioactive peptides is mostly due to the activation of Keap1-Nrf2 signaling pathway.
Autophagy is a major pathway for degradation of cytoplasmic proteins and organelles, and has been implicated in tumor suppression. Here, we report that mice with systemic mosaic deletion of Atg5 and ...liver-specific Atg7⁻/⁻ mice develop benign liver adenomas. These tumor cells originate autophagy-deficient hepatocytes and show mitochondrial swelling, p62 accumulation, and oxidative stress and genomic damage responses. The size of the Atg7⁻/⁻ liver tumors is reduced by simultaneous deletion of p62. These results suggest that autophagy is important for the suppression of spontaneous tumorigenesis through a cell-intrinsic mechanism, particularly in the liver, and that p62 accumulation contributes to tumor progression.
Forkhead box O (FOXO) transcription factors are involved in the regulation of the cell cycle, apoptosis and metabolism. In model organisms, FOXO activity also affects stem cell maintenance and ...lifespan as well as age-related diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. Multiple upstream pathways regulate FOXO activity through post-translational modifications and nuclear-cytoplasmic shuttling of both FOXO and its regulators. The diversity of this upstream regulation and the downstream effects of FOXOs suggest that they function as homeostasis regulators to maintain tissue homeostasis over time and coordinate a response to environmental changes, including growth factor deprivation, metabolic stress (starvation) and oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress is a component of many diseases, including atherosclerosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Alzheimer disease and cancer. Although numerous small molecules evaluated as ...antioxidants have exhibited therapeutic potential in preclinical studies, clinical trial results have been disappointing. A greater understanding of the mechanisms through which antioxidants act and where and when they are effective may provide a rational approach that leads to greater pharmacological success. Here, we review the relationships between oxidative stress, redox signalling and disease, the mechanisms through which oxidative stress can contribute to pathology, how antioxidant defences work, what limits their effectiveness and how antioxidant defences can be increased through physiological signalling, dietary components and potential pharmaceutical intervention.
Macroautophagy/autophagy is a degradative process essential for various cellular processes. We previously demonstrated that autophagy-deficiency causes myoblast apoptosis and impairs myotube ...formation. In this study, we continued this work with particular emphasis on mitochondrial remodelling and stress/apoptotic signaling. We found increased (p < 0.05) autophagic (e.g., altered LC3B levels, increased ATG7, decreased SQSTM1) and mitophagic (e.g., BNIP3 upregulation, mitochondrial localized GFP-LC3 puncta, and elevated mitochondrial LC3B-II) signaling during myoblast differentiation. shRNA-mediated knockdown of ATG7 (shAtg7) decreased these autophagic and mitophagic responses, while increasing CASP3 activity and ANXA5/annexin V staining in differentiating myoblasts; ultimately resulting in dramatically impaired myogenesis. Further confirming the importance of mitophagy in these responses, CRISPR-Cas9-mediated knockout of Bnip3 (bnip3
-/-
) resulted in increased CASP3 activity and DNA fragmentation as well as impaired myoblast differentiation. In addition, shAtg7 myoblasts displayed greater endoplasmic reticulum (e.g., increased CAPN activity and HSPA) and mitochondrial (e.g., mPTP formation, reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, elevated mitochondrial 4-HNE) stress. shAtg7 and bnip3
-/-
myoblasts also displayed altered mitochondria-associated signaling (e.g., PPARGC1A, DNM1L, OPA1) and protein content (e.g., SLC25A4, VDAC1, CYCS). Moreover, shAtg7 myoblasts displayed CYCS and AIFM1 release from mitochondria, and CASP9 activation. Similarly, bnip3
-/-
myoblasts had significantly higher CASP9 activation during differentiation. Importantly, administration of a chemical inhibitor of CASP9 (Ac-LEHD-CHO) or dominant-negative CASP9 (ad-DNCASP9) partially recovered differentiation and myogenesis in shAtg7 myoblasts. Together, these data demonstrate an essential role for autophagy in protecting myoblasts from mitochondrial oxidative stress and apoptotic signaling during differentiation, as well as in the regulation of mitochondrial network remodelling and myogenesis.
Abbreviations: 3MA: 3-methyladenine; 4-HNE: 4-hydroxynonenal; ACT: actin; AIFM1/AIF: apoptosis-inducing factor, mitochondrion-associated 1; ANXA5: annexin V; ATG7: autophagy related 7; AU: arbitrary units; BAX: BCL2-associated X protein; BCL2: B cell leukemia/lymphoma 2; BECN1: beclin 1, autophagy related; BNIP3: BCL2/adenovirus E1B interacting protein 3; CAPN: calpain; CASP: caspase; CASP3: caspase 3; CASP8: caspase 8; CASP9: caspase 9; CASP12: caspase 12; CAT: catalase; CQ: chloroquine; CYCS: cytochrome c, somatic; DCF; 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein; DNM1L/DRP1: dynamin 1-like; DM: differentiation media; DMEM: Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium; ER: endoplasmic reticulum; GAPDH: glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; GFP: green fluorescent protein; GM: growth media; p-H2AFX: phosphorylated H2A histone family, member X; H2BFM: H2B histone family, member M; HBSS: Hanks balanced salt solution; HSPA/HSP70: heat shock protein family A; JC-1: tetraethylbenzimidazolylcarbocyanine iodide; MAP1LC3B/LC3B: microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 beta; mPTP: mitochondrial permeability transition pore; MYH: myosin heavy chain; MYOG: myogenin; OPA1: OPA1, mitochondrial dynamin like GTPase; PI: propidium iodide; PINK1: PTEN induced putative kinase 1; PPARGC1A/PGC1α: peroxisome proliferative activated receptor, gamma, coactivator 1 alpha; ROS: reactive oxygen species; SLC25A4/ANT1: solute carrier family 25 (mitochondrial carrier, adenine nucleotide translocator), member 4; SOD1: superoxide dismutase 1, soluble; SOD2: superoxide dismutase 2, mitochondrial; SQSTM1/p62: sequestosome 1; VDAC1: voltage-dependent anion channel 1
Stroke is the second leading cause of death, after ischemic heart disease, and accounts for 9% of deaths worldwide. According to the World Health Organization WHO, 15 million people suffer stroke ...worldwide each year. Of these, more than 6 million die and another 5 million are permanently disabled. Reactive oxygen species ROS have been implicated in brain injury after ischemic stroke. There is evidence that a rapid increase in the production of ROS immediately after acute ischemic stroke rapidly overwhelm antioxidant defences, causing further tissue damage. These ROS can damage cellular macromolecules leading to autophagy, apoptosis, and necrosis. Moreover, the rapid restoration of blood flow increases the level of tissue oxygenation and accountsfor a second burst of ROS generation, which leads to reperfusion injury. Current measures to protect the brain against severe stroke damage are insufficient. Thus, it is critical to investigate antioxidant strategies that lead to the diminution of oxidative injury. The antioxidant vitamins C and E, the polyphenol resveratrol, the xanthine oxidase XO inhibitor allopurinol, and other antioxidant strategies have been reviewed in the setting of strokes. This review focuses on the mechanisms involved in ROS generation, the role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of ischemic stroke, and the novel therapeutic strategies to be tested to reduce the cerebral damage related to both ischemia and reperfusion.
Widely used in biomedical and bioanalytical applications, the detonation nanodiamonds (NDs) are generally considered to be biocompatible and non-toxic to a wide range of eukaryotic cells. Due to ...their high susceptibility to chemical modifications, surface functionalisation is often used to tune the biocompatibility and antioxidant activity of the NDs. The response of photosynthetic microorganisms to redox-active NDs is still poorly understood and is the focus of the present study. The green microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was used to assess the potential phytotoxicity and antioxidant activity of NDs hosting hydroxyl functional groups at concentrations of 5-80 μg NDs/mL. The photosynthetic capacity of microalgae was assessed by measuring the maximum quantum yield of PSII photochemistry and the light-saturated oxygen evolution rate, while oxidative stress was assessed by lipid peroxidation and ferric-reducing antioxidant capacity. We demonstrated that hydroxylated NDs might reduce cellular levels of oxidative stress, protect PSII photochemistry and facilitate the PSII repair under methyl viologen and high light associated stress conditions. Factors involved in this protection may include the low phytotoxicity of hydroxylated NDs in microalgae and their ability to accumulate in cells and scavenge reactive oxygen species. Our findings could pave the way for using hydroxylated NDs as antioxidants to improve cellular stability in algae-based biotechnological applications or semi-artificial photosynthetic systems.
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