Abstract
Terpenes and terpenoids are the largest groups of plant secondary metabolites. However, unlike polyphenols, they are rarely associated with geroprotective properties. Here we evaluated the conformity of the biological effects of terpenoids with the criteria of geroprotectors, including primary criteria (lifespan-extending effects in model organisms, improvement of aging biomarkers, low toxicity, minimal adverse effects, improvement of the quality of life) and secondary criteria (evolutionarily conserved mechanisms of action, reproducibility of the effects on different models, prevention of age-associated diseases, increasing of stress-resistance). The number of substances that demonstrate the greatest compliance with both primary and secondary criteria of geroprotectors were found among different classes of terpenoids. Thus, terpenoids are an underestimated source of potential geroprotectors that can effectively influence the mechanisms of aging and age-related diseases.
Highlights
Terpenoids are the largest group of plant secondary metabolites [1]
Triterpenes and triterpenoids influence a set of pro- and anti-aging signaling pathways, mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR)/AKT/PI3K, AMPK, SIRT1, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), FOXO, NRF2, NF-κB, HSF1/HSPs pathways
We showed that most classes of terpenoids have representatives with the explicit geroprotective properties as antioxidants and inducers of the expression of cytoprotective mechanisms
Summary
Terpenoids are the largest group of plant secondary metabolites [1]. There are tens of thousands of naturally occurring hydrocarbons and they are one of the most structurally diverse classes of natural compounds. Terpenoids are rarely associated with anti-aging properties and may be underestimated as potential geroprotectors. Despite the fact that terpenoids are the broad class of compounds, only a few of its representatives are well-known geroprotectors [5]. We proposed a set of primary and secondary selection criteria for potential geroprotector [6]. The geroprotector should prolong the life of the model beyond the intact maximum lifespan, protecting it from one or more mechanisms of aging. The target or mechanism of action of the geroprotector that extends the lifespan of the model should be evolutionarily conserved. This review discusses terpenoid compounds belonging to different classes of this large group of substances, in terms of meeting the criteria for potential geroprotector and their potential for clinical use in relation to age-dependent diseases
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