| dc.description.abstract | Dietary fat sources differently affect cellular metabolism, with different effects on
metabolic disease risks. In the present PhD thesis, it was evaluated the effect of
Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (Omega-3 PUFAs), on the biochemical
pathways involved in cellular metabolism, which can play an important role in
metabolic diseases associated with obesity, such as hepatic steatosis and
reproductive dysfunction, as well as in carcinogenesis processes and anti-cancer
therapy. It is well known that, at the cellular level, metabolic pathways involved in
stress and cell death are: 1) mitochondrial dysfunction associated with oxidative
stress and alteration of mitochondrial dynamics behaviour, and 2) endoplasmic
reticulum stress (ER stress). Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles that
continuously undergo fusion and fission processes, which are regulated by the
protein mitofusin 2 (MFN2) and dynamin-related protein 1 (DRP1), respectively.
Maintaining a correct balance between mitochondrial fusion and fission is
necessary to maintain correct morphology, distribution and functionality of the
mitochondria. In fact, an imbalance towards mitochondrial fission processes is
associated with mitochondrial dysfunction, mitophagy and autophagy. Another
mechanism involved in cellular metabolic dysfunction is ER stress, which
activates the unfolded protein response pathway (UPR) and can trigger
inflammatory processes and apoptosis.It is well known that Omega-3 PUFAs have
anti-inflammatory effects, whereas little is known on the effect of Omega-3
PUFAs at the cellular level on the processes of mitochondrial dynamics behaviour
and ER stress. Protective mechanisms against mitochondrial dysfunction,
oxidative stress and ER stress could be activated by Omega-3 PUFAs to counteract
the obesity induced metabolic dysfunctions, as well as they could be at the basis
of the adjuvant effect of Omega-3 PUFAs in therapy with anticancer drugs. [...] [edited by Author] | it_IT |
