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International Journal of Molecular... Jul 2020Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2) is a transcription factor that regulates the cellular defense against toxic and oxidative insults through the... (Review)
Review
Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2) is a transcription factor that regulates the cellular defense against toxic and oxidative insults through the expression of genes involved in oxidative stress response and drug detoxification. NRF2 activation renders cells resistant to chemical carcinogens and inflammatory challenges. In addition to antioxidant responses, NRF2 is involved in many other cellular processes, including metabolism and inflammation, and its functions are beyond the originally envisioned. NRF2 activity is tightly regulated through a complex transcriptional and post-translational network that enables it to orchestrate the cell's response and adaptation to various pathological stressors for the homeostasis maintenance. Elevated or decreased NRF2 activity by pharmacological and genetic manipulations of NRF2 activation is associated with many metabolism- or inflammation-related diseases. Emerging evidence shows that NRF2 lies at the center of a complex regulatory network and establishes NRF2 as a truly pleiotropic transcription factor. Here we summarize the complex regulatory network of NRF2 activity and its roles in metabolic reprogramming, unfolded protein response, proteostasis, autophagy, mitochondrial biogenesis, inflammation, and immunity.
Topics: Animals; Autophagy; Gene Expression Regulation; Humans; Inflammation; NF-E2-Related Factor 2; Oxidative Stress; Unfolded Protein Response
PubMed: 32640524
DOI: 10.3390/ijms21134777 -
Redox Biology Aug 2020Mistakenly thought to be the consequence of oxygen lack in contracting skeletal muscle we now know that the L-enantiomer of the lactate anion is formed under fully... (Review)
Review
Mistakenly thought to be the consequence of oxygen lack in contracting skeletal muscle we now know that the L-enantiomer of the lactate anion is formed under fully aerobic conditions and is utilized continuously in diverse cells, tissues, organs and at the whole-body level. By shuttling between producer (driver) and consumer (recipient) cells lactate fulfills at least three purposes: 1] a major energy source for mitochondrial respiration; 2] the major gluconeogenic precursor; and 3] a signaling molecule. Working by mass action, cell redox regulation, allosteric binding, and reprogramming of chromatin by lactylation of lysine residues on histones, lactate has major influences in energy substrate partitioning. The physiological range of tissue [lactate] is 0.5-20 mM and the cellular Lactate/Pyruvate ratio (L/P) can range from 10 to >500; these changes during exercise and other stress-strain responses dwarf other metabolic signals in magnitude and span. Hence, lactate dynamics have rapid and major short- and long-term effects on cell redox and other control systems. By inhibiting lipolysis in adipose via HCAR-1, and muscle mitochondrial fatty acid uptake via malonyl-CoA and CPT1, lactate controls energy substrate partitioning. Repeated lactate exposure from regular exercise results in major effects on the expression of regulatory enzymes of glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration. Lactate is the fulcrum of metabolic regulation in vivo.
Topics: Energy Metabolism; Glycolysis; Lactic Acid; Mitochondria; Muscle, Skeletal; Oxidation-Reduction
PubMed: 32113910
DOI: 10.1016/j.redox.2020.101454 -
The Journal of Clinical Investigation Jul 2019Development of novel and effective therapeutics for treating various cancers is probably the most congested and challenging enterprise of pharmaceutical companies.... (Review)
Review
Development of novel and effective therapeutics for treating various cancers is probably the most congested and challenging enterprise of pharmaceutical companies. Diverse drugs targeting malignant and nonmalignant cells receive clinical approval each year from the FDA. Targeting cancer cells and nonmalignant cells unavoidably changes the tumor microenvironment, and cellular and molecular components relentlessly alter in response to drugs. Cancer cells often reprogram their metabolic pathways to adapt to environmental challenges and facilitate survival, proliferation, and metastasis. While cancer cells' dependence on glycolysis for energy production is well studied, the roles of adipocytes and lipid metabolic reprogramming in supporting cancer growth, metastasis, and drug responses are less understood. This Review focuses on emerging mechanisms involving adipocytes and lipid metabolism in altering the response to cancer treatment. In particular, we discuss mechanisms underlying cancer-associated adipocytes and lipid metabolic reprogramming in cancer drug resistance.
Topics: Adipocytes; Animals; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm; Glycolysis; Humans; Lipid Metabolism; Neoplasms; Tumor Microenvironment
PubMed: 31264969
DOI: 10.1172/JCI127201 -
International Journal of Molecular... Nov 2021Human cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, as membrane-bound hemoproteins, play important roles in the detoxification of drugs, cellular metabolism, and homeostasis. In... (Review)
Review
Human cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, as membrane-bound hemoproteins, play important roles in the detoxification of drugs, cellular metabolism, and homeostasis. In humans, almost 80% of oxidative metabolism and approximately 50% of the overall elimination of common clinical drugs can be attributed to one or more of the various CYPs, from the CYP families 1-3. In addition to the basic metabolic effects for elimination, CYPs are also capable of affecting drug responses by influencing drug action, safety, bioavailability, and drug resistance through metabolism, in both metabolic organs and local sites of action. Structures of CYPs have recently provided new insights into both understanding the mechanisms of drug metabolism and exploiting CYPs as drug targets. Genetic polymorphisms and epigenetic changes in CYP genes and environmental factors may be responsible for interethnic and interindividual variations in the therapeutic efficacy of drugs. In this review, we summarize and highlight the structural knowledge about CYPs and the major CYPs in drug metabolism. Additionally, genetic and epigenetic factors, as well as several intrinsic and extrinsic factors that contribute to interindividual variation in drug response are also reviewed, to reveal the multifarious and important roles of CYP-mediated metabolism and elimination in drug therapy.
Topics: Animals; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System; Humans; Inactivation, Metabolic; Metabolic Clearance Rate; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Polymorphism, Genetic; Xenobiotics
PubMed: 34884615
DOI: 10.3390/ijms222312808 -
Frontiers in Immunology 2019Macrophages are a heterogeneous population of immune cells playing several and diverse functions in homeostatic and immune responses. The broad spectrum of macrophage... (Review)
Review
Macrophages are a heterogeneous population of immune cells playing several and diverse functions in homeostatic and immune responses. The broad spectrum of macrophage functions depends on both heterogeneity and plasticity of these cells, which are highly specialized in sensing the microenvironment and modify their properties accordingly. Although it is clear that macrophage phenotypes are difficult to categorize and should be seen as plastic and adaptable, they can be simplified into two extremes: a pro-inflammatory (M1) and an anti-inflammatory/pro-resolving (M2) profile. Based on this definition, M1 macrophages are able to start and sustain inflammatory responses, secreting pro-inflammatory cytokines, activating endothelial cells, and inducing the recruitment of other immune cells into the inflamed tissue; on the other hand, M2 macrophages promote the resolution of inflammation, phagocytose apoptotic cells, drive collagen deposition, coordinate tissue integrity, and release anti-inflammatory mediators. Dramatic switches in cell metabolism accompany these phenotypic and functional changes of macrophages. In particular, M1 macrophages rely mainly on glycolysis and present two breaks on the TCA cycle that result in accumulation of itaconate (a microbicide compound) and succinate. Excess of succinate leads to Hypoxia Inducible Factor 1α (HIF1α) stabilization that, in turn, activates the transcription of glycolytic genes, thus sustaining the glycolytic metabolism of M1 macrophages. On the contrary, M2 cells are more dependent on oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), their TCA cycle is intact and provides the substrates for the complexes of the electron transport chain (ETC). Moreover, pro- and anti-inflammatory macrophages are characterized by specific pathways that regulate the metabolism of lipids and amino acids and affect their responses. All these metabolic adaptations are functional to support macrophage activities as well as to sustain their polarization in specific contexts. The aim of this review is to discuss recent findings linking macrophage functions and metabolism.
Topics: Citric Acid Cycle; Glycolysis; Humans; Inflammation; Macrophage Activation; Macrophages; Oxidation-Reduction; Oxidative Phosphorylation
PubMed: 31333642
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.01462 -
Cell Metabolism Dec 2020Energetic metabolism reprogramming is critical for cancer and immune responses. Current methods to functionally profile the global metabolic capacities and dependencies...
Energetic metabolism reprogramming is critical for cancer and immune responses. Current methods to functionally profile the global metabolic capacities and dependencies of cells are performed in bulk. We designed a simple method for complex metabolic profiling called SCENITH, for single-cell energetic metabolism by profiling translation inhibition. SCENITH allows for the study of metabolic responses in multiple cell types in parallel by flow cytometry. SCENITH is designed to perform metabolic studies ex vivo, particularly for rare cells in whole blood samples, avoiding metabolic biases introduced by culture media. We analyzed myeloid cells in solid tumors from patients and identified variable metabolic profiles, in ways that are not linked to their lineage or their activation phenotype. SCENITH's ability to reveal global metabolic functions and determine complex and linked immune-phenotypes in rare cell subpopulations will contribute to the information needed for evaluating therapeutic responses or patient stratification.
Topics: Adult; Animals; Cells, Cultured; Energy Metabolism; Female; Fibroblasts; Humans; Male; Metabolome; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Middle Aged; Neoplasms; Single-Cell Analysis
PubMed: 33264598
DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2020.11.007 -
Mitochondrion May 2023Pathogenesis and salugenesis are the first and second stages of the two-stage problem of disease production and health recovery. Salugenesis is the automatic,... (Review)
Review
Pathogenesis and salugenesis are the first and second stages of the two-stage problem of disease production and health recovery. Salugenesis is the automatic, evolutionarily conserved, ontogenetic sequence of molecular, cellular, organ system, and behavioral changes that is used by living systems to heal. It is a whole-body process that begins with mitochondria and the cell. The stages of salugenesis define a circle that is energy- and resource-consuming, genetically programmed, and environmentally responsive. Energy and metabolic resources are provided by mitochondrial and metabolic transformations that drive the cell danger response (CDR) and create the three phases of the healing cycle: Phase 1-Inflammation, Phase 2-Proliferation, and Phase 3-Differentiation. Each phase requires a different mitochondrial phenotype. Without different mitochondria there can be no healing. The rise and fall of extracellular ATP (eATP) signaling is a key driver of the mitochondrial and metabolic reprogramming required to progress through the healing cycle. Sphingolipid and cholesterol-enriched membrane lipid rafts act as rheostats for tuning cellular sensitivity to purinergic signaling. Abnormal persistence of any phase of the CDR inhibits the healing cycle, creates dysfunctional cellular mosaics, causes the symptoms of chronic disease, and accelerates the process of aging. New research reframes the rising tide of chronic disease around the world as a systems problem caused by the combined action of pathogenic triggers and anthropogenic factors that interfere with the mitochondrial functions needed for healing. Once chronic pain, disability, or disease is established, salugenesis-based therapies will start where pathogenesis-based therapies end.
Topics: Humans; Mitochondria; Energy Metabolism; Chronic Disease; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 37120082
DOI: 10.1016/j.mito.2023.04.003 -
Ageing Research Reviews Mar 2021Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease characterized by low-grade inflammation and high levels of clinical heterogeneity. Aberrant chondrocyte metabolism is... (Review)
Review
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease characterized by low-grade inflammation and high levels of clinical heterogeneity. Aberrant chondrocyte metabolism is a response to changes in the inflammatory microenvironment and may play a key role in cartilage degeneration and OA progression. Under conditions of environmental stress, chondrocytes tend to adapt their metabolism to microenvironmental changes by shifting from one metabolic pathway to another, for example from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis. Similar changes occur in other joint cells, including synoviocytes. Switching between these pathways is implicated in metabolic alterations that involve mitochondrial dysfunction, enhanced anaerobic glycolysis, and altered lipid and amino acid metabolism. The shift between oxidative phosphorylation and glycolysis is mainly regulated by the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathways. Chondrocyte metabolic changes are likely to be a feature of different OA phenotypes. Determining the role of chondrocyte metabolism in OA has revealed key features of disease pathogenesis. Future research should place greater emphasis on immunometabolism and altered metabolic pathways as a means to understand the pathophysiology of age-related OA. This knowledge will advance the development of new drugs against therapeutic targets of metabolic significance.
Topics: Cartilage, Articular; Chondrocytes; Humans; Osteoarthritis; Oxidative Phosphorylation; Oxidative Stress
PubMed: 33383189
DOI: 10.1016/j.arr.2020.101249 -
Cells Jul 2021Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the leading causes of cancer death worldwide. HCC progression and metastasis are closely related to altered mitochondrial... (Review)
Review
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the leading causes of cancer death worldwide. HCC progression and metastasis are closely related to altered mitochondrial metabolism, including mitochondrial stress responses, metabolic reprogramming, and mitoribosomal defects. Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) defects and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production are attributed to mitochondrial dysfunction. In response to oxidative stress caused by increased ROS production, misfolded or unfolded proteins can accumulate in the mitochondrial matrix, leading to initiation of the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPR). The mitokines FGF21 and GDF15 are upregulated during UPR and their levels are positively correlated with liver cancer development, progression, and metastasis. In addition, mitoribosome biogenesis is important for the regulation of mitochondrial respiration, cell viability, and differentiation. Mitoribosomal defects cause OXPHOS impairment, mitochondrial dysfunction, and increased production of ROS, which are associated with HCC progression in mouse models and human HCC patients. In this paper, we focus on the role of mitochondrial metabolic signatures in the development and progression of HCC. Furthermore, we provide a comprehensive review of cell autonomous and cell non-autonomous mitochondrial stress responses during HCC progression and metastasis.
Topics: Animals; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Disease Progression; Energy Metabolism; Humans; Liver Neoplasms; Metabolome; Mitochondria, Liver; Mitochondrial Ribosomes; Proteostasis; Reactive Oxygen Species; Signal Transduction; Unfolded Protein Response
PubMed: 34440674
DOI: 10.3390/cells10081901 -
The Plant Journal : For Cell and... Jan 2021Strigolactones (SLs) are plant hormones that regulate diverse developmental processes and environmental responses. They are also known to be root-derived chemical... (Review)
Review
Strigolactones (SLs) are plant hormones that regulate diverse developmental processes and environmental responses. They are also known to be root-derived chemical signals that regulate symbiotic and parasitic interactions with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and root parasitic plants, respectively. Since the discovery of the hormonal function of SLs in 2008, there has been much progress in the SL research field. In particular, a number of breakthroughs have been achieved in our understanding of SL biosynthesis, transport and perception. The discovery of the hormonal function of SL was quite valuable not only as the identification of a new class of plant hormones, but also as the discovery of the long-sought-after SL biosynthetic and response mutants. These mutants in several plant species provided us the genetic resources to address fundamental questions regarding SL biosynthesis and perception. Such mutants were further characterized later, and biochemical analyses of these genetically identified factors have uncovered the outline of SL biosynthesis and perception so far. Moreover, new genes involved in SL transport have been discovered through reverse genetic analyses. In this review, we summarize recent advances in SL research with a focus on biosynthesis, transport and perception.
Topics: Biological Transport; Heterocyclic Compounds, 3-Ring; Lactones; Metabolic Networks and Pathways; Plant Growth Regulators; Plants; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 33118266
DOI: 10.1111/tpj.15059