It is widely accepted that oxidative injury and inflammation are intimately involved in the aging process and the development of age-related diseases. Among the age-related diseases, cardiovascular diseases (CHD) represents the leading cause of death in industrialized and developing countries. Although we lack the power to change some risk factors such as family history, sex or age, there are some key prevention steps we can take. CHD should be targeted as a major set of preventable causes of illness, with effects not only on premature mortality but also on well-being in older ages. Many intervention and epidemiological studies demonstrated that following a heart-healthy diet may prevent or delay the onset of CHD. There is convincing evidence that increasing consumption of vegetables and fruit reduces the risk of disease. These are the main constituents of the Mediterranean diet (UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity), characterized by high levels of nutraceutical bioactive compounds. Nutraceutical, a term combining the words “nutrition” and “pharmaceutical”, is a food constituent, mainly a phytochemical component, that provides health benefits, including the prevention and treatment of disease. So, a healthy dietetic approach specifically formulated for elderly people, with a defined pattern of nutraceutical bioactive compounds, may represent a key strategy to improve the aging process. To date, most dietary anti-aging and cardioprotective strategies have only focused on the delivery of exogenous antioxidants to boost antioxidant status in an effort to protect against toxicant-induced oxidative and inflammatory stress as a means to prevent or combat the negative effects of age-related diseases. A promising new strategy intends to identify nutraceutical bioactive compounds with the ability to directly target and enhance intrinsic cytoprotective mechanisms, including modulation of the expression of genes involved in the detoxification of xenobiotics and their metabolites, genes involved in the synthesis and regulation of intrinsic antioxidants and antioxidant enzymes, genes involved in the regulation of inflammation. In particular, nutraceutical compounds as quercetin, the main polyphenol of the western diet, abundant in apples and onions, may prevent heart damage by inducing multiple cytoprotective pathways, upregulating antioxidant and phase II enzymes, intercepting and detoxifying damaging compounds, and efficiently removing said toxicants before they can initiate further damage (1-3). One more interesting compound is sulforaphane, derived from the hydrolysis of the Cruciferous vegetables glucosinolates, that is able to modulate the expression of genes and proteins related to the Nrf2/phase II detoxification and inflammatory pathways in cardiomyocytes, acting as a “second level” antioxidant (4,5). But individual nutraceuticals can have greater or lesser effects on specific Nrf2- and inflammation-related genes in various tissues and experimental models. Therefore, only using a combination of nutraceuticals, as those naturally present in fruits and vegetables, it would be possible to modulate the greatest diversity of Nrf2- and inflammation related genes in the greatest number of tissues to achieve the most dramatic protective effects against oxidative damage, toxicants, and inflammation, and to provide the most robust preventive/protective and anti-aging benefits.
NUTRACEUTICAL BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN THE PREVENTION OF CHRONIC/DEGENERATIVE DISEASES
HRELIA, SILVANA
2013
Abstract
It is widely accepted that oxidative injury and inflammation are intimately involved in the aging process and the development of age-related diseases. Among the age-related diseases, cardiovascular diseases (CHD) represents the leading cause of death in industrialized and developing countries. Although we lack the power to change some risk factors such as family history, sex or age, there are some key prevention steps we can take. CHD should be targeted as a major set of preventable causes of illness, with effects not only on premature mortality but also on well-being in older ages. Many intervention and epidemiological studies demonstrated that following a heart-healthy diet may prevent or delay the onset of CHD. There is convincing evidence that increasing consumption of vegetables and fruit reduces the risk of disease. These are the main constituents of the Mediterranean diet (UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity), characterized by high levels of nutraceutical bioactive compounds. Nutraceutical, a term combining the words “nutrition” and “pharmaceutical”, is a food constituent, mainly a phytochemical component, that provides health benefits, including the prevention and treatment of disease. So, a healthy dietetic approach specifically formulated for elderly people, with a defined pattern of nutraceutical bioactive compounds, may represent a key strategy to improve the aging process. To date, most dietary anti-aging and cardioprotective strategies have only focused on the delivery of exogenous antioxidants to boost antioxidant status in an effort to protect against toxicant-induced oxidative and inflammatory stress as a means to prevent or combat the negative effects of age-related diseases. A promising new strategy intends to identify nutraceutical bioactive compounds with the ability to directly target and enhance intrinsic cytoprotective mechanisms, including modulation of the expression of genes involved in the detoxification of xenobiotics and their metabolites, genes involved in the synthesis and regulation of intrinsic antioxidants and antioxidant enzymes, genes involved in the regulation of inflammation. In particular, nutraceutical compounds as quercetin, the main polyphenol of the western diet, abundant in apples and onions, may prevent heart damage by inducing multiple cytoprotective pathways, upregulating antioxidant and phase II enzymes, intercepting and detoxifying damaging compounds, and efficiently removing said toxicants before they can initiate further damage (1-3). One more interesting compound is sulforaphane, derived from the hydrolysis of the Cruciferous vegetables glucosinolates, that is able to modulate the expression of genes and proteins related to the Nrf2/phase II detoxification and inflammatory pathways in cardiomyocytes, acting as a “second level” antioxidant (4,5). But individual nutraceuticals can have greater or lesser effects on specific Nrf2- and inflammation-related genes in various tissues and experimental models. Therefore, only using a combination of nutraceuticals, as those naturally present in fruits and vegetables, it would be possible to modulate the greatest diversity of Nrf2- and inflammation related genes in the greatest number of tissues to achieve the most dramatic protective effects against oxidative damage, toxicants, and inflammation, and to provide the most robust preventive/protective and anti-aging benefits.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
