Review Article

Dietary Polyphenols as Modulators of Brain Functions: Biological Actions and Molecular Mechanisms Underpinning Their Beneficial Effects

Figure 2

Modulation of neuronal dysfunction by dietary polyphenols. In ageing and neurodegenerative diseases, neuronal death can be triggered by specific genetic mutations, neurotoxins, and/or neuroinflammation. Initiating factors promote cellular alterations, including increases in oxidative stress, protein aggregation, DNA damage, and activation of apoptotic cascades. Dietary polyphenols have been observed to protect the brain against such cellular alteration through the modulation of neuronal function against endogenous neurotoxins and inhibition of glial-induced neuroinflammation. Aβ, amyloid beta; CysDA, 5-S-cysteinyldopamine; DHBT1, dihydrobenzothiazine 1; TNF-α, tumor necrosis factor alpha; IL-1β, interleukine-1 beta; CRP, C reactive protein; NO, nitric oxide.
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