Physiological Reviews

  1522-1210

  0031-9333

  Mỹ

Cơ quản chủ quản:  AMER PHYSIOLOGICAL SOC , American Physiological Society

Lĩnh vực:
PhysiologyMolecular BiologyPhysiology (medical)Medicine (miscellaneous)

Các bài báo tiêu biểu

Free Radicals in the Physiological Control of Cell Function
Tập 82 Số 1 - Trang 47-95 - 2002
Wulf Dröge
At high concentrations, free radicals and radical-derived, nonradical reactive species are hazardous for living organisms and damage all major cellular constituents. At moderate concentrations, however, nitric oxide (NO), superoxide anion, and related reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role as regulatory mediators in signaling processes. Many of the ROS-mediated responses actually protect the cells against oxidative stress and reestablish “redox homeostasis.” Higher organisms, however, have evolved the use of NO and ROS also as signaling molecules for other physiological functions. These include regulation of vascular tone, monitoring of oxygen tension in the control of ventilation and erythropoietin production, and signal transduction from membrane receptors in various physiological processes. NO and ROS are typically generated in these cases by tightly regulated enzymes such as NO synthase (NOS) and NAD(P)H oxidase isoforms, respectively. In a given signaling protein, oxidative attack induces either a loss of function, a gain of function, or a switch to a different function. Excessive amounts of ROS may arise either from excessive stimulation of NAD(P)H oxidases or from less well-regulated sources such as the mitochondrial electron-transport chain. In mitochondria, ROS are generated as undesirable side products of the oxidative energy metabolism. An excessive and/or sustained increase in ROS production has been implicated in the pathogenesis of cancer, diabetes mellitus, atherosclerosis, neurodegenerative diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, ischemia/reperfusion injury, obstructive sleep apnea, and other diseases. In addition, free radicals have been implicated in the mechanism of senescence. That the process of aging may result, at least in part, from radical-mediated oxidative damage was proposed more than 40 years ago by Harman ( J Gerontol 11: 298–300, 1956). There is growing evidence that aging involves, in addition, progressive changes in free radical-mediated regulatory processes that result in altered gene expression.
The NOX Family of ROS-Generating NADPH Oxidases: Physiology and Pathophysiology
Tập 87 Số 1 - Trang 245-313 - 2007
Karen Bedard, Karl‐Heinz Krause
For a long time, superoxide generation by an NADPH oxidase was considered as an oddity only found in professional phagocytes. Over the last years, six homologs of the cytochrome subunit of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase were found: NOX1, NOX3, NOX4, NOX5, DUOX1, and DUOX2. Together with the phagocyte NADPH oxidase itself (NOX2/gp91phox), the homologs are now referred to as the NOX family of NADPH oxidases. These enzymes share the capacity to transport electrons across the plasma membrane and to generate superoxide and other downstream reactive oxygen species (ROS). Activation mechanisms and tissue distribution of the different members of the family are markedly different. The physiological functions of NOX family enzymes include host defense, posttranlational processing of proteins, cellular signaling, regulation of gene expression, and cell differentiation. NOX enzymes also contribute to a wide range of pathological processes. NOX deficiency may lead to immunosuppresion, lack of otoconogenesis, or hypothyroidism. Increased NOX actvity also contributes to a large number or pathologies, in particular cardiovascular diseases and neurodegeneration. This review summarizes the current state of knowledge of the functions of NOX enzymes in physiology and pathology.
Brown Adipose Tissue: Function and Physiological Significance
Tập 84 Số 1 - Trang 277-359 - 2004
Barbara Cannon, Jan Nedergaard
Cannon, Barbara, and Jan Nedergaard. Brown Adipose Tissue: Function and Physiological Significance. Physiol Rev 84: 277–359, 2004; 10.1152/physrev.00015.2003.—The function of brown adipose tissue is to transfer energy from food into heat; physiologically, both the heat produced and the resulting decrease in metabolic efficiency can be of significance. Both the acute activity of the tissue, i.e., the heat production, and the recruitment process in the tissue (that results in a higher thermogenic capacity) are under the control of norepinephrine released from sympathetic nerves. In thermoregulatory thermogenesis, brown adipose tissue is essential for classical nonshivering thermogen-esis (this phenomenon does not exist in the absence of functional brown adipose tissue), as well as for the cold acclimation-recruited norepinephrine-induced thermogenesis. Heat production from brown adipose tissue is activated whenever the organism is in need of extra heat, e.g., postnatally, during entry into a febrile state, and during arousal from hibernation, and the rate of thermogenesis is centrally controlled via a pathway initiated in the hypothalamus. Feeding as such also results in activation of brown adipose tissue; a series of diets, apparently all characterized by being low in protein, result in a leptin-dependent recruitment of the tissue; this metaboloregulatory thermogenesis is also under hypothalamic control. When the tissue is active, high amounts of lipids and glucose are combusted in the tissue. The development of brown adipose tissue with its characteristic protein, uncoupling protein-1 (UCP1), was probably determinative for the evolutionary success of mammals, as its thermogenesis enhances neonatal survival and allows for active life even in cold surroundings.
Hydroperoxide metabolism in mammalian organs.
Tập 59 Số 3 - Trang 527-605 - 1979
B Chance, Helmut Sies, Alberto Boveris
Nitric Oxide and Peroxynitrite in Health and Disease
Tập 87 Số 1 - Trang 315-424 - 2007
Pál Pacher, Joseph S. Beckman, Lucas Liaudet
The discovery that mammalian cells have the ability to synthesize the free radical nitric oxide (NO) has stimulated an extraordinary impetus for scientific research in all the fields of biology and medicine. Since its early description as an endothelial-derived relaxing factor, NO has emerged as a fundamental signaling device regulating virtually every critical cellular function, as well as a potent mediator of cellular damage in a wide range of conditions. Recent evidence indicates that most of the cytotoxicity attributed to NO is rather due to peroxynitrite, produced from the diffusion-controlled reaction between NO and another free radical, the superoxide anion. Peroxynitrite interacts with lipids, DNA, and proteins via direct oxidative reactions or via indirect, radical-mediated mechanisms. These reactions trigger cellular responses ranging from subtle modulations of cell signaling to overwhelming oxidative injury, committing cells to necrosis or apoptosis. In vivo, peroxynitrite generation represents a crucial pathogenic mechanism in conditions such as stroke, myocardial infarction, chronic heart failure, diabetes, circulatory shock, chronic inflammatory diseases, cancer, and neurodegenerative disorders. Hence, novel pharmacological strategies aimed at removing peroxynitrite might represent powerful therapeutic tools in the future. Evidence supporting these novel roles of NO and peroxynitrite is presented in detail in this review.
The Ubiquitin-Proteasome Proteolytic Pathway: Destruction for the Sake of Construction
Tập 82 Số 2 - Trang 373-428 - 2002
Michael H. Glickman, Aaron Ciechanover
Between the 1960s and 1980s, most life scientists focused their attention on studies of nucleic acids and the translation of the coded information. Protein degradation was a neglected area, considered to be a nonspecific, dead-end process. Although it was known that proteins do turn over, the large extent and high specificity of the process, whereby distinct proteins have half-lives that range from a few minutes to several days, was not appreciated. The discovery of the lysosome by Christian de Duve did not significantly change this view, because it became clear that this organelle is involved mostly in the degradation of extracellular proteins, and their proteases cannot be substrate specific. The discovery of the complex cascade of the ubiquitin pathway revolutionized the field. It is clear now that degradation of cellular proteins is a highly complex, temporally controlled, and tightly regulated process that plays major roles in a variety of basic pathways during cell life and death as well as in health and disease. With the multitude of substrates targeted and the myriad processes involved, it is not surprising that aberrations in the pathway are implicated in the pathogenesis of many diseases, certain malignancies, and neurodegeneration among them. Degradation of a protein via the ubiquitin/proteasome pathway involves two successive steps: 1) conjugation of multiple ubiquitin moieties to the substrate and 2) degradation of the tagged protein by the downstream 26S proteasome complex. Despite intensive research, the unknown still exceeds what we currently know on intracellular protein degradation, and major key questions have remained unsolved. Among these are the modes of specific and timed recognition for the degradation of the many substrates and the mechanisms that underlie aberrations in the system that lead to pathogenesis of diseases.
Physiology and Neurobiology of Stress and Adaptation: Central Role of the Brain
Tập 87 Số 3 - Trang 873-904 - 2007
Bruce S. McEwen
The brain is the key organ of the response to stress because it determines what is threatening and, therefore, potentially stressful, as well as the physiological and behavioral responses which can be either adaptive or damaging. Stress involves two-way communication between the brain and the cardiovascular, immune, and other systems via neural and endocrine mechanisms. Beyond the “flight-or-fight” response to acute stress, there are events in daily life that produce a type of chronic stress and lead over time to wear and tear on the body (“allostatic load”). Yet, hormones associated with stress protect the body in the short-run and promote adaptation (“allostasis”). The brain is a target of stress, and the hippocampus was the first brain region, besides the hypothalamus, to be recognized as a target of glucocorticoids. Stress and stress hormones produce both adaptive and maladaptive effects on this brain region throughout the life course. Early life events influence life-long patterns of emotionality and stress responsiveness and alter the rate of brain and body aging. The hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex undergo stress-induced structural remodeling, which alters behavioral and physiological responses. As an adjunct to pharmaceutical therapy, social and behavioral interventions such as regular physical activity and social support reduce the chronic stress burden and benefit brain and body health and resilience.
The stress response in fish
Tập 77 Số 3 - Trang 591-625 - 1997
S.E. Wendelaar Bonga
The stress response in teleost fish shows many similarities to that of the terrestrial vertebrates. These concern the principal messengers of the brain-sympathetic-chromaffin cell axis (equivalent of the brain-sympathetic-adrenal medulla axis) and the brain-pituitary-interrenal axis (equivalent of the brain-pituitary-adrenal axis), as well as their functions, involving stimulation of oxygen uptake and transfer, mobilization of energy substrates, reallocation of energy away from growth and reproduction, and mainly suppressive effects on immune functions. There is also growing evidence for intensive interaction between the neuroendocrine system and the immune system in fish. Conspicuous differences, however, are present, and these are primarily related to the aquatic environment of fishes. For example, stressors increase the permeability of the surface epithelia, including the gills, to water and ions, and thus induce systemic hydromineral disturbances. High circulating catecholamine levels as well as structural damage to the gills and perhaps the skin are prime causal factors. This is associated with increased cellular turnover in these organs. In fish, cortisol combines glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid actions, with the latter being essential for the restoration of hydromineral homeostasis, in concert with hormones such as prolactin (in freshwater) and growth hormone (in seawater). Toxic stressors are part of the stress literature in fish more so than in mammals. This is mainly related to the fact that fish are exposed to aquatic pollutants via the extensive and delicate respiratory surface of the gills and, in seawater, also via drinking. The high bioavailability of many chemicals in water is an additional factor. Together with the variety of highly sensitive perceptive mechanisms in the integument, this may explain why so many pollutants evoke an integrated stress response in fish in addition to their toxic effects at the cell and tissue levels. Exposure to chemicals may also directly compromise the stress response by interfering with specific neuroendocrine control mechanisms. Because hydromineral disturbance is inherent to stress in fish, external factors such as water pH, mineral composition, and ionic calcium levels have a significant impact on stressor intensity. Although the species studied comprise a small and nonrepresentative sample of the almost 20,000 known teleost species, there are many indications that the stress response is variable and flexible in fish, in line with the great diversity of adaptations that enable these animals to live in a large variety of aquatic habitats.
The Free Radical Theory of Aging Matures
Tập 78 Số 2 - Trang 547-581 - 1998
Kenneth B. Beckman, Bruce N. Ames
Beckman, Kenneth B., and Bruce N. Ames. The Free Radical Theory of Aging Matures. Physiol. Rev. 78: 547–581, 1998. — The free radical theory of aging, conceived in 1956, has turned 40 and is rapidly attracting the interest of the mainstream of biological research. From its origins in radiation biology, through a decade or so of dormancy and two decades of steady phenomenological research, it has attracted an increasing number of scientists from an expanding circle of fields. During the past decade, several lines of evidence have convinced a number of scientists that oxidants play an important role in aging. (For the sake of simplicity, we use the term oxidant to refer to all “reactive oxygen species,” including O2⋅, H2O2, and ⋅OH, even though the former often acts as a reductant and produces oxidants indirectly.) The pace and scope of research in the last few years have been particularly impressive and diverse. The only disadvantage of the current intellectual ferment is the difficulty in digesting the literature. Therefore, we have systematically reviewed the status of the free radical theory, by categorizing the literature in terms of the various types of experiments that have been performed. These include phenomenological measurements of age-associated oxidative stress, interspecies comparisons, dietary restriction, the manipulation of metabolic activity and oxygen tension, treatment with dietary and pharmacological antioxidants, in vitro senescence, classical and population genetics, molecular genetics, transgenic organisms, the study of human diseases of aging, epidemiological studies, and the ongoing elucidation of the role of active oxygen in biology.
Gut Microbiota in Health and Disease
Tập 90 Số 3 - Trang 859-904 - 2010
Inna Sekirov, Sarah Russell, L. Caetano M. Antunes, B. Brett Finlay
Gut microbiota is an assortment of microorganisms inhabiting the length and width of the mammalian gastrointestinal tract. The composition of this microbial community is host specific, evolving throughout an individual's lifetime and susceptible to both exogenous and endogenous modifications. Recent renewed interest in the structure and function of this “organ” has illuminated its central position in health and disease. The microbiota is intimately involved in numerous aspects of normal host physiology, from nutritional status to behavior and stress response. Additionally, they can be a central or a contributing cause of many diseases, affecting both near and far organ systems. The overall balance in the composition of the gut microbial community, as well as the presence or absence of key species capable of effecting specific responses, is important in ensuring homeostasis or lack thereof at the intestinal mucosa and beyond. The mechanisms through which microbiota exerts its beneficial or detrimental influences remain largely undefined, but include elaboration of signaling molecules and recognition of bacterial epitopes by both intestinal epithelial and mucosal immune cells. The advances in modeling and analysis of gut microbiota will further our knowledge of their role in health and disease, allowing customization of existing and future therapeutic and prophylactic modalities.