High-Resolution Tracking of Aging-Related Small Molecules: Bridging Pollutant Exposure, Brain Aging Mechanisms, and Detection Innovations.
作者信息
Yu Keying, Yang Sirui, Song Hongxu, Sun Zhou, Wang Kaichao, Zhu Yuqi, Yang Chengkai, Hao Rongzhang, Cao Yuanyuan
机构信息
Department of Toxicology and Sanitary Chemistry, School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.
Beijing Key Laboratory of Environment and Aging, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.
出版信息
Biosensors (Basel). 2025 Apr 11;15(4):242. doi: 10.3390/bios15040242.
Brain aging is a complex process regulated by genetic, environmental, and metabolic factors, and increasing evidence suggests that environmental pollutants can significantly accelerate this process by interfering with oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and mitochondrial function-related signaling pathways. Traditional studies have focused on the direct damage of pollutants on macromolecules (e.g., proteins, DNA), while the central role of senescence-associated small molecules (e.g., ROS, PGE2, lactate) in early regulatory mechanisms has been long neglected. In this study, we innovatively proposed a cascade framework of "small molecule metabolic imbalance-signaling pathway dysregulation-macromolecule collapse", which reveals that pollutants exacerbate the dynamics of brain aging through activation of NLRP3 inflammatory vesicles and inhibition of HIF-1α. Meanwhile, to address the technical bottleneck of small molecule spatiotemporal dynamics monitoring, this paper systematically reviews the cutting-edge detection tools such as electrochemical sensors, genetically encoded fluorescent probes and antioxidant quantum dots (AQDs). Among them, AQDs show unique advantages in real-time monitoring of ROS fluctuations and intervention of oxidative damage by virtue of their ultra-high specific surface area, controllable surface modification, and free radical scavenging ability. By integrating multimodal detection techniques and mechanism studies, this work provides a new perspective for analyzing pollutant-induced brain aging and lays a methodological foundation for early intervention strategies based on small molecule metabolic networks.