Nicolia Vincenzina, Lucarelli Marco, Fuso Andrea
Dept. of Surgery "P. Valdoni", Via A. Scarpa 16, 00161, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.
Dept. of Cellular Biotechnologies and Hematology, Viale del Policlinico 155, 00161, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy; Pasteur Institute Cenci Bolognetti Foundation, Viale Regina Elena 291, 00161, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.
Exp Gerontol. 2015 Aug;68:8-12. doi: 10.1016/j.exger.2014.10.006. Epub 2014 Oct 14.
Many different environmental factors (nutrients, pollutants, chemicals, physical activity, lifestyle, physical and mental stress) can modulate epigenetic markers in the developing and adult organism. Epigenetics, in turn, can cause and is associated with several neurodegenerative and aging-dependent human diseases. Alzheimer's disease certainly represents one of the most relevant neurodegenerative disorders due to its incidence and its huge socio-economic impact. Therefore, it is easy to understand why recent literature focuses on the epigenetic modifications associated with Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. One of the most intriguing and, at the same time, worrying evidence is that even "mild" environmental factors (such as behavioral or physical stress) as well as the under-threshold exposure to pollutants and chemicals, can be effective. Finally, even mild nutrients disequilibria can result in long-lasting and functional alterations of many epigenetic markers, although they don't have an immediate acute effect. Therefore, we will probably have to re-define the current risk threshold for many factors, molecules and stresses. Among the many different environmental factors affecting the epigenome, nutrition represents one of the most investigated fields; the reasons are probably that each person interacts with nutrients and that, in turn, nutrients can modulate at molecular level the epigenetic biochemical pathways. The role that nutrition can exert in modulating epigenetic modifications in Alzheimer's disease will be discussed with particular emphasis on the role of B vitamins and DNA methylation.
许多不同的环境因素（营养物质、污染物、化学物质、身体活动、生活方式、身心压力）能够调节发育中的生物体和成年生物体的表观遗传标记。反过来，表观遗传学能够引发多种神经退行性疾病和与衰老相关的人类疾病，并与之相关联。由于阿尔茨海默病的发病率及其巨大的社会经济影响，它无疑是最相关的神经退行性疾病之一。因此，很容易理解为什么近期的文献聚焦于与阿尔茨海默病及其他神经退行性疾病相关的表观遗传修饰。最引人关注且同时令人担忧的证据之一是，即使是“轻度”环境因素（如行为或身体压力）以及低于阈值的污染物和化学物质暴露也可能产生影响。最后，即使是轻度的营养失衡也可能导致许多表观遗传标记的长期功能性改变，尽管它们没有立即产生急性效应。因此，我们可能不得不重新定义当前许多因素、分子和压力的风险阈值。在众多影响表观基因组的不同环境因素中，营养是研究最多的领域之一；原因可能是每个人都与营养物质相互作用，而且营养物质反过来能够在分子水平上调节表观遗传生化途径。将特别强调B族维生素和DNA甲基化的作用，来讨论营养在调节阿尔茨海默病表观遗传修饰中所起的作用。
