Oxidative stress in brain aging, neurodegenerative and vascular diseases: An overview

According to the free radical theory, aging can be considered as a progressive, inevitable process partially related to the accumulation of oxidative damage into biomolecules – nucleic acids, lipids, proteins or carbohydrates – due to an imbalance between prooxidants and antioxidants in favor of the former. More recently also the pathogenesis of several diseases has been linked to a condition of oxidative stress. In this review we focus our attention on the evidence of oxidative stress in aging brain, some of the most important neurodegenerative diseases – Alzheimerʹs disease (AD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), Parkinsonʹs disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Huntingtonʹs disease (HD) – and in two common and highly disabling vascular pathologies—stroke and cardiac failure. Particular attention will be given to the current knowledge about the biomarkers of oxidative stress that can be possibly used to monitor their severity and outcome.