title: Mitochondrial functional impairment in response to environmental toxins in the cardiorenal metabolic syndrome.
abstract: Environmental toxins can promote cardiovascular, metabolic, and renal abnormalities, which characterize the cardiorenal metabolic syndrome (CRS). Heavy metals, such as mercury and arsenic, represent two of the most toxic pollutants. Exposure to these toxins is increasing due to increased industrialization throughout much of the world. Studies conducted to understand the impact of environmental toxins have shown a major impact on mitochondrial structure and function. The maladaptive stress products caused by these toxins, including aggregated proteins, damaged organelles, and intracellular pathogens, can be removed through autophagy, which is also known as mitophagy in mitochondria. Although the underlying mechanisms involved in the regulation of mitophagy in response to pollution are not well understood, accumulating evidence supports a role for maladaptive mitochondrial responses to environmental pollution in the pathogenesis of the CRS. In this review, we discuss the ongoing research, which explores the mechanisms by which these toxins promote abnormalities in mitophagy and associated mitochondrial dysfunction and the CRS.
authors.affiliation: Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, Diabetes Cardiovascular Center, University of Missouri School of Medicine, Columbia, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Guanghong
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.forename: Annayya R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Aroor
authors.forename: Luis A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Martinez-Lemus
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Sowers
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D001151:Arsenic / Q000633:toxicity; D059347:Cardio-Renal Syndrome / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D006801:Humans; D008628:Mercury / Q000633:toxicity; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D063306:Mitophagy / Q000187:drug effects; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D008628:Mercury; D001151:Arsenic