So why would environmental exposures age us faster? Again, we can learn a lot about it through the study of the Nrf2. The inhibition of which causes oxidative stress. We now know that many diseases of aging are caused by oxidative stress. This includes diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Experts suspect that this is due to the decline in mitochondrial function and exposures to toxicants increase dysfunction. Alternatively, there is a natural decline of Nrf2 as we age. One study compared Nrf2 levels in young and older adults in bronchial cells. It was determined that basal levels of Nrf2 are lower in the cells of older adults even though the expression of Nrf2-regulated genes, that are responsible for glutathione synthesis, was higher. In addition, the levels of Nrf2, activated by sulphoraphane (an activator of the Nrf2) was significantly lower in older participants. The researchers also noted that the suppressors of Nrf2, Bach1 and c-Myc, were higher in cells of older adults. (1)
1. Aging-related decline in the induction of Nrf2-regulated antioxidant genes in human bronchial epithelial cells. Redox biology, Vol. 14 (April 2018), pp. 35-40 by Lulu Zhou, Hongqiao Zhang, Kelvin J. A. Davies, Henry Jay J. Forman
